The Ultimate Hunting Experience Awaits You in Monster Hunter Wilds
The Monster Hunter Wilds release date of 28th of February is coming closer and closer, so we decided to do an overview of the game’s most important aspects to effectively prepare players for it in advance, before it reaches the gaming market for many of the major platforms such as PC, PS5 as well as the Xbox Series X/S at the same time in a few weeks!
Currently the upcoming game for one of Capcom’s most popular franchises is in its pre-orders stage and it keeps the somewhat traditional early-year release slot since many of the previous mainline titles such as Monster Hunter World and Monster Hunter Rise also came out at around that part of their respective years.
Expectations for Monster Hunter Wilds Steam release are definitely high and we are excited to go through the information about interesting gameplay mechanics, weapons and of course the beastly monsters that we would face off!
No matter if you are a seasoned player of the previous games or a total newcomer to the franchise the latest installment in the series aims to stir things up a bit, so it should feel fresh for both aforementioned groups. In case you are still new to Monster Hunter series, recently we got a ten-minute video, titled "Welcome to Monster Hunter" voiced by Daisy Ridley, explaining the general lore of all Monster Hunter games. It could be very helpful guide to prepare you for the upcoming entry in the series.
The various teasers and trailers have also given us plenty of glimpses at some stunning environments, massive beasts and what else we could expect from the game, so let’s get started right away!
What Could we Expect from Monster Hunter Wilds?
Enjoy the most technically evolved action and impressive level of immersion in any Monster Hunter game up to now. One thing is for certain here, there would be many new dangerous monsters to hunt, risky missions to undertake and overcome difficulties on both interpersonal and territorial levels.
You are going to play as a professional monster hunter, with the duty of keeping the fine balance of the ecosystem and at the same time efficiently hunting down the terrible monsters sprawling all around.
You would have to use the resources that you obtained from the successful hunts in order to craft even better and more powerful weapons as well as stronger armor on your quest to unravel the mysteries of the lands. Here is more specific information about the story:
The Fates of Humans and Monsters are Once Again Deeply Entwined
Through the different media we have seen already, it does seem like the game's plot is going to be revolving around the Arkveld (also called the “White Wraith” in-game) as we get to learn more and more about the previously thought to be extinct species of creatures. It was heavily implied multiple times throughout official sources that the Monster Hunter Wilds gameplay and narrative would be centered on a young boy and his own personal sorrow story and deeper relationship with the mythical White Wraith.
Years ago a little boy carrying the name Nata got discovered close by the border of the Forbidden Lands, which is an uncharted region that was until then believed by the Guild to be uninhabitable. But Nata has memories about the times when his village got aggressively attacked by a mysterious monster.
In response to that the Guild swiftly organized an entire expedition with the sole purpose of investigating the region. You as the Hunter are assigned to join one of the units tasked with the mission of finding the "White Wraith" and possibly rescuing Nata's people, known only as the Keepers.
Featured in the footage were new environments and locales that are just as impressive as the creatures inhabiting them, so we would be certainly exploring a lot of wild and unrelenting new frontiers when Monster Hunter Wilds gets released at the end of February of this year!
Explore the Magnificently Crafted World of Diverse Areas and their Unique Disasters!
In this fascinating story of humans and monsters get to experience the dynamic, ever-changing terrains alike, as you could get trapped in a storm or crushed by falling rubble. In a world with two very distinct sides: one in which the lands are definitely not so welcoming but rather harsh and relentlessly unforgiving, where monsters fight all the time even with each other and the side in which the lands are much more vibrant and full of prospering life and settlements offering some sort of protection.
You would be able to seamlessly transition between levels with no loading screens on sight and ride your Seikret mount all the way, without necessarily traveling back to the bases. The areas really show you how vast and interconnected the ecosystems could be in this game.
First you would face off against brute monsters in the sandy deserts and rocky formations of the Windward Plains. This land experiences the Sandtide, a great sandstorm roiling with mighty thunders. Next you would go exploring the Scarlet Forest and investigate its towering trees and peculiar red-colored water. This land experiences the Downpour, a torrential rainstorm that floods the surrounding area. Next up would be the Oilwell Basin which is a very unique are where oil emerges up from the grounds and collects in pools of oilsilt. This land experiences the Firespring, a phenomenon in which fierce fires blaze.
Monster Hunter Wilds Gameplay Features That Excite Us
One of the more prominent new features in the game are the new mounts, referred to as Seikrets. These creatures could be customized and carry the hunters around and through the different environments in the game's world, giving you better speed, maneuverability and capacity for items than ever before! Their sharp sense of smell could actually ease the hunters and bring them straight to the desired targets, that being is a potential breakthrough on how to track down monsters in a quicker way. But that is far from everything we could say about them – Seikrets are able to carry not only a rider but also an extra weapon for them allowing for various setup combinations and switches on the go.
We saw footage of a hunter changing their main weapon while actively riding on top of the mount in the trailer, which is a brand-new feature for Monster Hunter Wilds that really gets us thrilled and eager to try out in-game. Now we could change sets faster and without the need to go all the way back to our camp or leave the battle in any way.
Another set of big new features are the changing weather conditions, day/night cycle and terrain. Weather could actually change while you are in the middle of a mission - it might transit from bright and sunny in one moment to a cloudy storm with heavy rain in the next. This is another brand new mechanic for a Monster Hunter game and it could change how the different monsters behave by drastically altering the battle strategies for both sides
You could customize many items apart from the character and mount such as the pop-up tent and camp equipment you use by changing their color scheme and adding more flare to them with different mark designs and seals. Of course if it becomes necessary, you would be able to return to an assigned base of operations that was built by the Expedition Team in every major area.
All of the Base Camps are equipped with the important facilities you may require when going hunting, such as places to purchase various items and ingredients as well as a reliable Smithy to upgrade your armor and weapons and get you ready for your exciting hunts.
A small detail that we also got were the new cooking animations for the hunters and it looks like there have been changes in that aspect as well, which is quite good because it shows the levels of attention that went into the production!
A Wide Selection of Weapons that are Now Equipped with Built-in Skills of their own
In the past entries for the Monster Hunter series there were various skills were primarily obtained through the armor pieces, charms and other items. All of which had to then combine so that you construct the character build you want to use. Things are a bit different in Monster Hunter Wilds, because now even earlier and lower-level weapons come with available built-in battle skills specific to the weapon class and type you choose. Speaking of, let’s talk about the available options:
Sword & Shield
The introductory recommended weapon type for the game that includes both immense maneuverability and versatile rapid combos at the same time. You could benefit in many ways from the equipped shield because you are able to both defend and hit with it. From fast slashes and charges to decent raw force this class provides all the goods for a great time and you can even use items while carrying it.
Long Sword
A weapon that has an outstanding balance between speed and power as it excels at swift movements and combos. Counter incoming attacks with ease and manage to boost up the Spirit Gauge. When it charges and turns red, some of your attacks would become charged and stronger.
Great Sword
A heavy weapon allowing for mostly slow, yet very powerful attacks and devastating moves. It is suitable for great single hits, rage charges and even defensive tactics. The Great Sword is one of the few weapons in the game able to carry both the newly included Clash and Offset type attacks, making it quite an adaptable pick.
Dual Blades
A set of weapons masterfully designed for rapid close-range attacks. Go into Demon Mode to increase your damage output tremendously. You could add Archdemon Mode on top of that and by doing so would bring the ferocity of your attacks much further. The Dual Blades are a fast, brutal and extremely efficient choice.
Hammer
A blunt type weapon with huge destructive power and relatively good mobility. Take your time to charge your attacks and make them deadlier. You can easily stun monsters by landing a few hits to their head and then begin breaking parts from them with the outstanding damage capacity this weapon has to offer, especially if you manage to swing properly and hit the right spots.
Hunting Horn
Many would describe it as a convoluted support weapon, since it can perform sounds and melodies, that work in a very creative way by granting different types of useful buffs to both you and your allies around. By placing Echo Bubbles in battle you would be able to apply special effects in an area, thus giving you more control over the field.
Lance
The Lance is a weapon with great defense as it comes paired with a hefty shield. Its thrusting attacks are rather quick and quite safe to execute from a distance. Though it might seem difficult to use at first glance, it does perform awesome finishers making it worthy of mastery. Be sure to fully use of its select guard-related moves and counters and you should be fine most of the time.
Gunlance
A highly-combinative weapon with a very long reach and the capacity to shoot exploding rounds. You basically get a deadly lance drill that acts as a cannon whenever need be. Make sure to exploit the availability of sidestepping to better adjust your position towards the threat as you would be able to guard yourself through even the strongest of attacks and then counter with a variety of relentless strikes.
Switch Axe
An improved version of this multifunctional weapon option that could be used in two ways with a quick switch that seamlessly allows you to swing it in style. In the primary Axe Mode you get so many options for strong long-ranging attacks, while the Sword Mode lets you deliver faster slashing attacks with its massive blade.
Charge Blade
Another extremely versatile and technical weapon that is also able to morph between two different main modes. Sword Mode lets you move quickly and accurately. Deliver lots and lots of damage in Axe Mode. Charge your phials while fighting in Sword Mode in order to switch things up in the more vicious aspects of the transformed Axe Mode.
Insect Glaive
A staff-based mobile weapon you wield while at the very same time controlling a bug-like creature known as a Kinsect. Gain powerful buffs by harvesting extracts from monsters. Even though it might seem a bit more grounded than before you are still able to dash through the air to perform acrobatic jumping attacks whenever necessary!
Light Bowgun
A trusty mid-range weapon fitted to fire different types of ammunition. It allows the player to remain very much able to quickly navigate around and is also great for sudden attack bursts and dodges. Use the Rapid Fire as often as possible to shoot multiple rounds. It comes paired with trap and mine options to have more control over the area.
Heavy Bowgun
A heavier long-range weapon that fires deadly types of ammo from a greater distance. On top of the Auto-Guard function, you are also able to guard incoming attacks manually via the Offset attacks. Expend energy in Ignition Mode to shoot special ammunition.
Bow
A mid-range weapon that allows for a lot of mobility while presenting a variety of arrow-based chargeable attacks. When you successfully hit a monster with a Tracer, it would cause an effect on your arrows to home in it, causing it to explode after receiving certain damage or the timer counts out.
Introducing Focus Mode, Focus Strike and Offset attacks
In Focus Mode you can aim much more carefully and use it to perform attacks or guard yourself in the direction that the camera is facing in a particular moment. Whenever you are in this mode you begin seeing highlights for any wounds or weak points on the monster.
Special attacks would also become available to players during Focus Mode, they are called Focus Strikes, capable of inflicting great amounts of damage to the beastly monsters when used effectively on a wound or weak point and eventually destroy them or even stun the enemy for a bit.
In other instances an Offset Attack occurs when you are hitting a monster with certain attacks at the same time as it is attacking you, setting the monster off balance, which could then be followed up with some other mightier attack chains.
This game allows you to pick between two different weapons during any hunt quest, making it much more reasonable to explore and experiment with different class combination setups, especially when you take both a melee and a ranged weapon on a mission. This way you would expand your capabilities greatly and take down the cast of monsters with greater ease and in a more stylish manner!
Having discussed those, perhaps it is time to shift our focus towards the newly introduced characters and some of the mighty foes in this Monster Hunter title for a bit!
The Characters we Would Meet on our Journey in Monster Hunter Wilds
New allies are joining you on your endeavors and you have to be sure that a rich cast of characters would support your every move on the journey as a hunter. Based on Nata's memories, the Guild has split the expedition in a few smaller units - each with their very own hunters, handlers, smithies and Palicos.
In this section we would meet many of the characters that are going to accompany you on this adventure into the Forbidden lands!
Alma – First we would discuss the role of the Handler in Monster Hunter Wilds which is given to Alma, a lady appointed by the guild with the sole purpose of helping whenever we need assistance while hunting. She is the one that manages all of the requests, permissions as well as specific quests. She is going to accompany you and provide invaluable support and knowledge from her expertise.
Gemma – Gemma is another key character in Monster Hunter Wilds because she is the trusted Smithy of your squad and this young lady would be crafting various types of armor and weapons for your arsenal, so you better be ready to trust her with your life expectancy and ultimate success, but based on her skills your chances do seem quite high.
Nata - The young boy we mentioned earlier in the review. Even though we do not have much more information about him apart from the fact that he is coming from the Keepers, Capcom has stated that he would play a very important role in the Monster Hunter Wilds story.
Fabius – Next we have Fabius who is a distinct hunter with formidable skills. He is the leader of the Hunter's Guild, he is the one that established the Forbidden Lands Research Commission after finding Nata and has personally taken charge over the formation of each expedition unit.
The other more secondary characters form the Astrum Unit that are still worthy of a mention include:
Olivia - A member of the Hunter's Guild Forbidden Lands Expedition Team who has previously been assigned on many special missions from the Guild including the current one to the Forbidden Lands. She is able to assist your efforts as a support Hunter during the various quests ahead of your units. She is usually accompanied by an elite long-haired Palico (in case you are not familiar with them, they are these extremely cute cat-like creatures fully capable of helping and speaking with people) named Athos.
Erik - Astrum Unit's Handler and an advanced biologist that is quite renowned in the academic community.
Werner - Astrum Unit's Smithy who is a renowned physics and engineering specialist as well as the leading mind in weaponry and technology.
The Monsters you would Encounter in Monster Hunter Wilds
No article about the Monster Hunter series is complete before there is a section specifically dedicated to the main attraction of the title: the beastly monsters themselves. Listed below is an alphabetical list of the mighty creatures you would find in Monster Hunter Wilds that we were able to gather information on so far.
Ajarakan - this fanged beast is distinguishable by its flaming protrusions covering its back. You should beware of its claws ability to push against its metal-infused carapace in order to create a red-hot, molten-like effect. It is one of the region's greatest threats that usually becomes much more active during the Firespring.
Arkveld – Often presented as the White Wraith, this is beast’s species had been thought to be extinct until now. Everything we know about the Arkveld is deeply shredded in mystery; however we do know that it is quite dangerous for certain, mostly due to the chain-like appendages attached on its wings.
Balahara – A desert-dwelling type of leviathan creatures that rely on their supple, serpentine-like bodies to create deadly quicksand traps for the less careful and unsuspecting prey.
Ceratonoth – This is the male version of the herbivores class; they are able to catch lightning from the skies with the huge horns located on top of their backs and after that release it on the ground in a wide discharge in order to protect their herd.
Chatacabra - A large species of amphibian creatures that are able to use the adhesive properties of their saliva so that they attach rocks and other materials to their skin and form a protective armor-like shield on their forelimbs in order to power up even more the attacks and charges.
Congalala – Even though it was absent from Monster Hunter World, this fanged beast creature appeared in several other past entries in the series. A very distinctive traits is its pink fur and of course, the foul fart attacks that can inflict Stench status. The Congalala unleashes swift arm strikes, delivered with surprising agility for such a large creature. On top of that, it would often retreat into a group of smaller Congas and attacks together as a pack.
Dalthydon – Another mighty herbivore creature, they have big hard shells right at the front of their heads and would not hesitate too much whether to batter anyone who poses any threat or not.
Doshaguma - This new scary enemy type is quite strong and has a muscular build; it boasts an incredibly tough frame to match with its fearsome fangs. A very rugged, territorial monster that usually exhibits an aggressive attitude and could perform attacks on a large range. It could be observed in large packs on many occasions.
Lala Barina - A powerful Temnoceran that lives in the Scarlet Forest able to strike from any direction. Its gigantic thorax, which could be opened at any moment, strongly resembles a blossoming rose. When it shoots its red spores to attack, you would need to evade them at any cost, because getting hit by these carries the risk of inflicting Paralysis.
Rey Dau – This creature is among the most dangerous apex predators available in the games and it is a flying Wyvern from the Windward Plains. Most oftenly you could spot one when there are stronger storms as it discharges electricity during attacks and poses a high level threat to any hunter that stands in its way.
Rompopolo - Another wyvern brute that predominantly inhabits the areas of deep oilsilt. It is able to use and spray toxic gas from the tip of its tongue. It can also inject that same gas into the ground with its tail, creating numerous noxious explosions to come up from under you.
Quematrice – This monster is another new addition to Monster Hunter Wilds. A scary species of wyverns with disproportionately elongated tails. They could spread a highly-flammable substance and then ignite it by dragging their tails along the ground. They may often be seen fighting with one another or against smaller carnivores over carrion. They might take bites at the hunter once provoked and inflict a Fireblight state, causing you to gradually lose health over time.
Uth Duna - A Leviathan type creature that rules over the Scarlet Forest as one of its most dangerous predators. It has adapted to water-rich environments and is sighted most often during the Downpour but be warned as it has a highly defensive ability. It uses the moisture around it and its own bodily fluids to make a protection veil on itself. It can deliver attacks that inflict Waterblight, making stamina recovery more difficult.
Monster Hunter Wilds Editions and Exclusives
There is just one thing that remains to be discussed and it would be the Monster Hunter Wilds editions and bonuses that come with some of them. You could pick between three options, so let us have a brief look at them:
Standard Edition
・Base Game
Deluxe Edition
・Base Game
・Deluxe Pack
Premium Deluxe Edition
・Base Game
・Deluxe Pack
・Premium Bonuses
< To Be Released at a Later Date >
・Cosmetic DLC Pack 1
・Cosmetic DLC Pack 2
With this we complete our tour around the latest entry in the Monster Hunter series and hope you found it resourceful! Make sure to PRE-ORDER the Monster Hunter Wilds Steam release since it is already available. Join us again next time when we would extensively review other important titles or present a promotion not to miss out on!