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Capcom releases their newest entry: Monster Hunter Wilds. And as someone whose only played Monster Hunter World, I’ve been looking forward to picking it up and seeing what new beast I’ll get to fight. My review will be mainly from a new players’ perspective. So for those who’s been with the franchise for longer, let me know in the comments your favourite entry/monster. There are three versions to pick from, with each giving more cosmetic items and some materials. If you’re looking to the pick up Monster Hunter Wild yourself then head over to the Steam here.
Warning! This article has GIFs with flashing images.
Is it wild to say I feel like the monster?
As mentioned above, Monster Hunter Wilds is the second game I’ve actually played in the franchise. And what personally got me into the games, of course, the monsters. Each monster looks brilliant and I’m personally there to read the bios of each monster the game has. And to see what I’ll face. Now, I don’t think the story is really what many are playing Monster Hunter Wilds for, but here is the basic set-up. We play a custom-made character who is part of a monster hunting guild that is exploring an area that is thought undiscovered. They then come across a boy called Nata whose tribe was attacked by a monster called the White Wraith. Jump a little into the future, and know we start a journey to find Nata’s tribe and the monster that attacked them.
Gameplay
Combat is mainly the bread and butter of the monster hunter franchise from what I’ve seen. And Monster Hunter Wilds looks to be no different. The player has a choice of 14 weapons, which is great for different play-styles. While playing Monster Hunter World, I used the Great Sword as I’m usually the type to just hit things until I win. But with Wilds, I thought I’d try my hands at something else. Each weapon felt great to use, but in the end I opted between three. The Insect Glaive, Great Hammer, and Twin Daggers. So far I’ve stuck to the Insect Glaive due to the buffs the actual insect provides. And I love flipping around monsters while trying to latch on their backs.
A new mechanic added to Monster Hunter Wilds is the Focus Mode. As the name suggests, it helps the player focus attacks on monsters. This helps in two ways I found. One is highlighting weak points on the monster for you to deal major damage and the other is more guiding the attack itself. When specifically attacking a weak point more so while latched onto a monster, you will also perform a rather awesome-looking finisher.
Missions & Prep
While you mainly tackle story missions, after meeting each new monster, you will get a new optional mission as well. I used these more for emergencies when wanting to fight a specific creature for materials. Otherwise, I head out to the biome they’re in and hunt them down. Just like in Worlds, Monster Hunter Wilds lets you prep before taking on a hunt. This can be done through gear or by cooking grub to gain benefits. I was a little disappointed that the fun animations from World weren’t really in Wilds. Like they’re there, but not as fun. There are also some side missions, but there kinda boring and don’t add much to the overall game.
Since Monster Hunter Wilds has made each area more open to the camp, we don’t want to run everywhere. In Monster Hunter Rise, they gave the Palamutes for riding, well, in Wilds we get the excellent looking Seikrets. These Avian creatures really helped me to get to the targets. As well as picking me up just before a beast was going to release an attack.
The Monsters Themselves
Now, let’s talk about the real stars of the show. The monsters. So far, the monsters I’ve encountered have all been fun to fight against. They don’t have hard attack patterns to read and I found them a little easier than the ones found in the worlds. But there are a couple such as the Ajarakan that did give me a run for my money. Although I love most of the designs and special attacks, but not all of them are hitters. The Congalala was a dull fight and seemed a little comic relief from a monster.
Every monster slain will have materials for you to create new weapons and gear. Each with its own stats and styles to better adapt to your preferred play-style. I used the Bone set until about the fourth biome. And don’t forget to craft weapons and armour for your furry little companion, the Palico. The outfit range is so fun.
Graphics & Audio
To get it out of the way, the graphical issues. Unfortunately, I regularly experienced frame rate and texture issues. The very beginning cutscenes lagged incredibly, and the audio was too fast for the video. Cut scenes suffer the most from the frame rate issues. Throughout the game, textures often take a few moments to load in, and the frame rate plays up. I tried to lower my graphic settings, but it didn’t seem to improve performance, so I continued to play on Ultra.
Despite all of this, none of these issues actually interfered with the gameplay. So while noticeable, it didn’t affect the quality of actual play, and the issues seemed to disappear the longer I played. And while I believe the environment textures seem a step back from the last Monster Hunter, to me, what makes up for it all, the monster designs. I also liked how I’m able to customise a lot of stuff in Monster Hunter Wild. From my mount, Seikret (which I named Douglas), to the tents you’re able to place throughout the biomes. I was a little disheartened that I wasn’t able to actually do a cosmetic layer for my armour till the end game.
Some of the monsters I’ve met
So many of the monsters really stuck with me and stood out in both mesmerising and terrifying ways. Just some notable monsters off the top of my head; Lala Barina looked stunning with the contrast of red and white and the rose-like features, and I absolutely hate spiders. Uth Duna is colourful and majestic, and its fin colours look almost psychedelic. On the scarier side, Rompopolo looks unbelievably freaky and alien in design, but also twitches terrifyingly in its animation. Nerscylla is pure, unfiltered nightmare fuel, and the Congalala is just… Ew. If you encounter it, you’ll know what I mean.
Not to mention that most of the designs for the gear for your hunter and Palico alike are insanely creative and interesting, and not what you’d always expect. Rompopolo’s hunter and Palico gear were both incredibly weird, unexpected but ridiculously cool.
Longevity
After finally beating Monster Hunter Wilds’ story, I clocked in roughly 30 hours of game time. Most of my time was obviously taken up doing hunts to get armour. But I also wanted to build all possible armour for me and my Palico. Before beating the last boss. Now, once you finally hit the end-game, it’s safe to assume you will be through more hours into it easily. Even more so when playing with friends. Monster Hunters Wilds’ end-game will have new monsters and increase the challenge of old ones. Armour will unlock new versions so you can create better builds for your hunter. And all while increasing your overall Hunter Rank.
Final Thoughts
With the bugs already mentioned out of the way, my thoughts. The new Focus Mode in Monster Hunter Wilds makes combat a little easier for taking down monsters. I mainly used it to help fill my extract gauge for my Insect Glaive while fighting, since I usually use the Great Sword. Combat itself reacts well and monsters reacting to hits/parts breaking off provide great indicators for when monsters are near death. One minor issue I had with Monster Hunter Worlds was going back to camp to get a mission, then heading back out. This is different with Wilds as I can now return to camp on foot (if close by) and simply walk/ride back out to gather materials and fight monsters. Making the flow of the game much more enjoyable.
The story itself was boring and honestly, I wasn’t really a fan of the characters besides one. And that was Rove the WudWud. He was just such a chill and funny little creature.
Some fights feel a little unfair at times. But for someone who’s played the franchise longer, I wouldn’t be surprised if this was a walk in the park. Hopefully, over time, the game does get more optimised for those who are having the issues. But if you’re like me, who loves seeing a variety of beasts and what they can do? Or is simply looking for a fun cooperative game which isn’t a competitive shooter, I’d highly recommend picking this game up.
That’s why I’m awarding it the Thumb Culture Platinum Award.
Disclaimer: A code was received to write this review.
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