Monster Hunter Wilds is an absolute thrill. Far and away my most anticipated title for 2025, the game has built on the success of Monster Hunter World before it, creating what may actually be the perfect jumping on point for Capcom's diamond series.

Yet despite this, it's not like the game itself is perfect. As an older Monster Hunter fan, the game asks of you a simple question: Trust in Capcom's vision.

Title: Monster Hunter Wilds

Developer: Capcom

Publisher: Capcom

Platforms: PC, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5

A Bold First Impression

When you first play Monster Hunter Wilds, it's easy to assume that a lot of concessions have been made to pull a more casual audience into the laughably niche Monster Hunter series. Look, there's a reason we call games like Wild Hearts and Dauntless Monster Hunter clones- the game by itself isn't exactly easy to categorize, which makes it harder to reach a casual audience.

Yet, the opening hours of Monster Hunter Wilds feels almost, well, generic. The Low Rank campaign, a 20 hour story mode, feels almost like its from a different series: quests are now walk-and-talks, as your now-voiced Hunter moves between locations trying to solve the age-old Monster Hunter plot: Something's messing with the ecosystem, who do I kill to fix it?

Combine that with its much more toned-down cast- compared to previous titles, Wilds seems way lighter on its usual batch of weirdos- and it's easy to get cold feet that maybe casualization had been taken too far.

And yet, it hasn't. After beating the game's very linear Low Rank story, you're introduced to High Rank- another episode set after the Low Rank story. Here, it opens up like a proper Monster Hunter game, as all manner of characters come to you with problems that can all be solved by you hunting down a specific Wyvern blighting their day.

From there I'd suddenly realized what exactly the Low Rank story has done: it's the fabled onboarding process, long in need of improvement for the series. Admittedly it's not perfect- I don't think you can onboard the kind of obsessive tweaking that late game Monster Hunter is all about. But as a means of getting people familiar with their weapons, it's a great way to get people into what's easily the most fun part: turning all manner of large Monster into footwear so I can dodge roll a little bit further.

Diversity Win But Not In The Way You Think

As an older Monster Hunter fan, it's pretty easy to get worn down with Monster Hunter rosters Sure, Khezu, Gypceros and Rathalos are cool- but once you realize they're all using the same skeletons, you wouldn't be blamed if you started to get bored of fighting bipedal wyverns.

And that's why I'm so happy with how diverse Monster Hunter Wilds is. The game boasts a wide variety in Monster types, from the theropod-shaped Brute Wyverns like Quematrice to even an all-new Cephalopod class. In a game with flying Wyverns, some of the most fun I've had has been manually dismembering arms off of a flaming Octopus.

They're not just side quest monsters, either- from ape skeletons, spiders, cephalopods to even the Leviathan body type, Monster Hunter Wilds gives each of these uncommon monster builds time to shine. It's glorious enough to remind me of my experience playing Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate for the first time- every monster is given its spotlight to show off just how cool and unique it is.

Of course, that does mean a lot of favorites aren't here. But Monster Hunter Wilds has such a charming array of newcomers it's hard to be mad- it's a new experience no matter which game you started with. Seeing returnees like Gypceros and Yian Kut-ku is also great- they're free from their newbie trap prison and get to meaningfully interact with all of Monster Hunter Wilds systems.

Playing Into The Fantasy

Overall, Monster Hunter Wilds feels very much like its a game that's built on the player fantasy. The new combat system naturalizes a lot of recent gameplay innovations- wounds are now just a result of regular combat, meaning you don't have to remind people to Tenderize monster parts for maximum DPS. Similarly, the new armor system, which removes gender locking and locks some skills to weapons instead of gear, gives you a radical amount of freedom when making your hunter.

Combine that with the big open world, the roaming monsters and the kind of quest-everywhere-system and it's a lot of freedom. For a game all about predictive patterns its nice to be overwhelmed by how much is at play: the big fields need you to keep track of in-game weather and seasons, and once you hit High Rank not every monster is going to be story relevant, meaning you're liable to be jump-scared by a Gypceros because you simply weren't expecting to see one in this game, not because it was the sudden villain all along.

If you're an oldhead it's hard to not miss the old structure of just running between the quest counter and item chest, but it's not like that style is gone. But the idea of needing to be able to track some monsters in the wild first feels like the thing we were always imagining doing when we booted up the game on our handhelds- and a great evolution of the series and Monster Hunter World in particular.

Some of the game's biggest drawbacks come from its streamlining- a lot of what would be core features in previous games are pushed back to High Rank, creating an overly-linear experience at first. Things like the item farm, or getting new ingredients to cook with- these are usually the whole reason you sidequest at all. While it's joked that Monster Hunter doesn't start til High Rank, Monster Hunter Wilds really feels it.

There's also another glaring issue, its performance: the Nmia Gaming team has collectively enjoyed the game on PC, PS5 and PS5 Pro, and there seems to be no definitive version of the game that doesn't encounter some kind of performance issues. Personally, it's not catastrophically bad- but if texture popping or low-res textures bothers you, prepare to have a lot of concerned Monster Hunter sessions.

High Rolling In Monster Hunter Wilds

If you are enjoying the game at full blast, I'd recommend enjoying the game with a good monitor. MSI's MPG 321URX QD OLED monitor is an absolute beauty for enjoying a game like this, letting bright colors explode out of the screen with its top-of-the line HDR display. It really does help bring a lot of the environments to life, especially with more scenic vistas like Azuz the Everforge or even the Lala Barina nest, with its striking white-on-red visuals.

Additionally, the 240Hz refresh rate is great for high-speed action- the flurry of Insect Glaive hits or Switch Axe morph combos looks much better when it's not being held back by your display, and the MSI MPG 321URX QD OLED monitor is a great way to do just that, whether you're enjoying it on a PS5 Pro or a tricked-out PC.

MSI is even having an offer now– buying a selected MSI gaming monitor will get you a free copy of Monster Hunter Wilds, so consider shooting for a high-performance gaming monitor before you start your journey in the Forbidden Lands.

Closing Thoughts

Despite its nitpicks, Monster Hunter Wilds is the kind of game that absolutely has you head over heels for it by the time you hit high rank. It's the magic of Monster Hunter, with a dash of magic to get a wider audience into the act of turning beautiful creatures into footwear.

Admittedly if you're going to bounce off the game it will probably be during low rank- that's where it most often plays its cards close to the chest. But even then, what you're not getting in a traditional monster hunter experience, you're getting a fairly fascinating story, featuring some deep pulls for older Monster Hunter fans and an otherwise excellent exploration of a world that has one too many Yian Kut-Ku.

New generation Monster Hunter games are usually excellent expansions of the franchise, and Monster Hunter Wilds is no different. From a huge menu of different monsters to some truly stunning locales, I've happily lost hours to the grind, and I'll happily lose more.

Final Score: 9/10

Game reviewed on PS5 and PC, screenshots from the PC version. Review code for the PS5 version provided by Capcom