Highlights

  • Monster Hunter Wilds introduces players to the Forbidden Lands, a new region with a mix of old and new tools for hunting.
  • The game builds on the success of Monster Hunter World, emphasizing lifelike ecology and narrative progression through expeditions.
  • Wilds takes inspiration from spin-off games like Rise and Generations Ultimate, incorporating voice acting and new combat actions.

After waiting since the end of 2023, fans are finally getting more Monster Hunter Wilds news halfway through 2024, and it's already painting an impressively detailed picture of Capcom's upcoming game. Monster Hunter Wilds brings the series into the Forbidden Lands, a new region of the Monster Hunter universe that has caught the Hunter’s Guild’s attention for a yet unknown reason. Accompanied by a crew of Research Commission members, players will forge ahead into new frontiers using a mixture of Monster Hunter’s old and new tools along the way.

Riding atop a new Seikret mount, players will be able to venture into the Forbidden Lands to observe nature and take up hunts as they appear. How this will play out in practice is currently unknown, but as more of Monster Hunter Wilds’ new monsters come into view, fans' understanding of the game should grow as well. However, even with only one proper trailer out, it appears that in spite of Monster Hunter Wilds positioning itself as a sequel to MH World, it may have just as much in common with some of Monster Hunter’s stranger side entries.

Goss Harag in Monster Hunter Rise
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Monster Hunter Wilds' Premise Builds Off Of MH World

Judging the game by its cover, Monster Hunter Wilds is the visual and ideological sequel to Monster Hunter World. It doubles down on the same realistic art style, and reinforces the living, breathing ecosystem that MH World created. Complete with the return of the Slinger and Scoutflies, World's environmental interactions ironically enhance Monster Hunter Wilds' world, and using them to split up monster herds should make the hunting experience more engaging than ever. Lifelike ecology is also a central focus in both World and Wilds, more so than any other Monster Hunter title.

Wilds And World Share Approaches To Story And Setting

The very narrative of Monster Hunter Wilds also suggests that it is a sequel to Monster Hunter World, with the presence of Scoutflies and Slingers suggesting that the Forbidden Lands may be adjacent to the New World. Said Forbidden Lands’ wide-open Windward Plains environment is the logical conclusion of World trying to give its classically structured Monster Hunter maps a more open feel. How characters organically progress the narrative through expeditions unfolding into hunts may be the same way, and the concept of a story-heavy Monster Hunter with a Handler frequently present is also inherited directly from World.

Monster Hunter Wilds' Gameplay Takes Inspiration From MH's Quirkier Entries

It's clear that Monster Hunter World informed much of Wilds’ identity, with even Capcom seeming to agree by including old save data bonuses for World and its expansion Iceborne. Despite that, the gameplay of Monster Hunter Wilds seems couched in the crazier elements of side games like Monster Hunter Rise, Generations Ultimate, and even Frontier instead. Monster Hunter Wilds breaks tradition by making player hunters and their Palicos fully voiced, serving as an evolution of Rise’s mid-hunt voice lines, which is just the tip of the iceberg. In general, Wilds’ combat is full of ideas that appear drawn from the series’ offshoots.

Examples of Monster Hunter Wilds Taking After Spin-Offs

Switching to another weapon while mounted feels like a natural evolution, but mounting one’s Seikret while prone was lifted straight from Rise’s Palamutes. Running, or any major repositioning abilities, with the Great Sword used to be exclusive to specific Hunting Styles in GU or Frontier, and now there are multiple actions involving it. Focus Mode, and the new special actions it enables, seem to embody the spirit of these quirkier side titles, and there's no telling what else Wilds’ upgraded Monster Hunter weapons have in store. For all of its emphasis on immersing players in a realistic environment, Monster Hunter Wilds seems to be embracing some of its predecessors' combat styles with just as much gusto.