Monster Hunter Rise & Sunbreak Can Easily Run Without a GPU (Just Lower the Settings)

ThinkPad X280 with Core i5-8350U (actually 8350U/8400 range) and Intel UHD Graphics 620/HD 630.

When you think of playing 3D games on a PC, you usually assume a dedicated graphics card is essential, especially for major titles like Monster Hunter...

Or so I thought, but Monster Hunter Rise and Sunbreak ran effortlessly without a graphics card... The software optimization for Rise and Sunbreak is just incredible.

All I did was lower the graphics settings, and it ran smoothly at 1920x1080p. Since the Nintendo Switch was the main target platform, I suppose it was built to run on lower 3D hardware capabilities.

Isn't it even prettier than on the Switch? The Steam version doesn't require an online subscription, so it might actually be better than the Switch. It's less than 2,000 yen on sale. Though I've already played it to death on Switch, so I won't be playing it again.

By the way, I bought my ThinkPad X280 on Yahoo! Shopping a few years ago for probably under 20,000 yen. Corporate lease-return units that are 4 years old are an absolute bargain. Right now, it looks like theX390 goes for around that price.

World: Iceborne is Rough and Practically Impossible

On the other hand, trying to play World: Iceborne without a GPU is tough. It did run if I cranked the resolution all the way down, but it ends up looking like a 3DS game.

Was it 640x480? Surprisingly, it might actually be playable.

This actually looks pretty nice. Maybe because there isn't too much fast movement?

Ah, maybe because it's in the distance, but the water details look totally terrible.

Even so, since it's not unplayable, buying it for 2,000 yen on sale and playing it on whatever laptop you happen to have at home might be a great deal.

After all, graphics fidelity isn't everything when it comes to how fun a game is.