If that's the case, is there one game from the series you'd really recommend? I feel like trying it out but don't know where to start

I started with Monster Hunter Tri on the Wii, which was the last one that really felt to me like they were really trying, hence the one I'd most recommend, but I suppose Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate on 3DS/Wii U or Monster Hunter 4 on 3DS are fairly accessible starting points also.

calm down here dude

Monster Hunter series stagnant?

for every mainline series it comes with a lot of new things compared to the previous version

jump from MH3 to MH4 is bigger than dark soul to dark soul 3  in comparison

or you just want cosmetic aesthetic like a graphical improvement rather than game mechanic improvement? 

so what is your ideal of good improvement here ? 

gameplay >>> graphics

Gameplay > Graphics sounds good and all, until you have a game in 2016 that looks scarcely any better than the series debut in 2004. Imagine if Halo 5 came out looking just like Halo 2 from 2004, or Breath of the Wild released next year with Gamecube-tier graphics.

It's not even the graphics alone, its the sheer laziness.

and you expect them to give PC level graphics on 3ds? come on dude please be real they already doing everything they can to get every inch of juice from 3ds

your statement is correct when mainline monster hunter on another platform and still looking like ps2 graphics the problem here is not

we have Monster Hunter online from tencent using cryengine for graphics and it looks cool and great but with dos level of gameplay it looks like shit compares to mh4u vertical gameplay with 3ds graphics

did you really think what makes  MH good is graphics alone?

Animation

monster AI

Weapon Variety ( every weapon feels exactly unique unlike dark soul which is basically the same shit for every weapon class)

Terrain and verticality level (mh4u is great while generation takes a few step back on map design)

Difficulties (not baby like dark soul , dmc or bayonetta )

If everything about graphics then monster hunter is no longer monster hunter fans want to play and should rename it to graphics hunter instead

Yeah I agree as MH has progressed a lot tbh having followed the series since the original PS2 games, 4U and Generations have heavily built on the previous games, the style system how ever controversial changes up how fundamentals are applied in the game to the point each style makes the game a different experience and the enhanced version of Generations is adding two more styles.

I hope they bring back underwater hunts in future games.

Has Monster Hunter already reached a series fatigue in japan like cod here in the west?

Underwater part is truly one the most confusing part and mechanics in monster hunter , i love it because it gives you more dynamic view on hunting but i hate it because only selectable weapon of choice able to used effectively underwater like a lance and ranged weapon . The idea was there but need more improvement to be playable on every weapon like huge boost to movement speed and lowered monster hp when fighting underwater to make fight more engaging and not exhausting like in tri and tri ultimate . 

Then stop making them for 3DS and make a new one from the ground up for Switch, so it's not limited to looking like a game from two generations ago.

It's not just about graphics either; with more power, you could have better animation, better AI, more interactivity with monsters and the environment, more monsters/players at once, more complex levels, etc.

As it stands now, Monster Hunter's recent entries shamelessly reuse monsters, weapons, animations, etc from games on Wii, PSP, even PS2. That's incredibly lazy, especially with a franchise that sells gangbusters and could easily justify the costs of making actual fresh content. People give COD and FIFA a hard time for their rehashing of old material, but MH is just as bad.

Did you really play all monster hunter mainline games?

the jump between each generation is fucking massive except graphics 

Monster AI = probably the best ever in gaming right now ( monster after tri-engine) 

animation = take a look at soul series and compared it to monster hunter = from running animation , combat , combo  , dodging and etc 

weapon = Go find any other games with variety like the monster hunter in term of weapon combat . I'm a huge fan of action genre and MMORPG nothing comes close to monster hunter.int that field .

simply calling capcom lazy because of graphics alone is fucking bullshit

Mechanics improvement between from MH1 > DOS > TRI > 4 is massive compared to 

pokemon red > pokemon sun and moon

demon soul > dark soul 3

cod > cod infinite warfare 

They already take a gamble by creating MONSTER HUNTER FOR THE WEST and its called DRAGON'S DOGMA and cost them a huge amount of company resources and got underwhelming reception from the west . 

They need to play safe with Monster Hunter brand by appeal to mass audiences in japan which is portable market since home consoles in the west are not hardcore for Monster Hunter types of game which required shit tons of skill . 

Monster Hunter itself is huge evolution in action genre and creating new genre called Action Hunting .