Review: Monster Hunter Wilds
Can I really make a review for a game that just released and will continue to have title updates as time passes?
I don’t see why not! Heck, I might even update this blog entry as each title update is released. I just really like Monster Hunter, and I want to yap about it. One of these days, I’ll make a Monster Hunter shrine, but that is for another time and day!
Introduction
I’m writing this blog entry assuming that whoever will be reading this already knows about Monster Hunter, but in case you don’t, here’s a short summary.
Monster Hunter is an action RPG with MMO elements. You start out as a normal hunter and as you progress through the game, you hunt monsters and use their parts to craft stronger armor and weapons in order to hunt stronger monsters, rinse and repeat. You can progress through the game by yourself, but the games have always encouraged others to hunt with multiple players.
It is wildly popular in Japan, but it took a while to gain some traction in the west until Monster Hunter World where it has become one of Capcom’s most popular games since then, second only to Resident Evil.
Even if you have never heard of Monster Hunter, I’m sure you’ve seen it somewhere at some point in the form of some collab that it has done with another franchise. There was a collaboration with Animal Crossing New Leaf, its mascot Rathalos made an appearance in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate as a boss, to name a few.
The Actual Review
Monster Hunter Wilds released worldwide on February 28th, 2025 on platforms such as PS5, XBS, and PC, and it is also the first game in the series to allow crossplay across multiple platforms.
My wife and I, of course, as very normal Monster Hunter fans played both of its open beta tests (the first in November 2024, and the second in February 2025 before its full release), pre-ordered the games for both PS5 and PC, and bought whatever premium deluxe packages that came along with it.
I put more than 100 hours into the game over the past 2 1/2 weeks.
Does that mean I liked it? I sure did!
Maybe I’m singing its praises a little too soon but honestly, I think this is a great thing, considering how many games I’ve played at release day, hoping that they’d release a patch/update to make the game better. (Looking at you, Pokemon…)
The Good
Here are some things I liked about it!
Graphics
Absolutely love how everything looked in it! The landscapes, the characters, and most importantly, the monsters! I don’t have a gaming PC, so even with pretty basic settings, the game still looked phenomenal. This is honestly the best thing to ever happen to me since I’ve long since resigned to never being able to play AAA games before ever getting my new PC. 😭
Story
Sobbing forever. I don’t want to spoil anything at all, but I love the story!! I found myself really sympathizing with the characters, and I love the references to previous games such as 4U. I can’t wait to see what else they’ll do with future updates and with an eventual Master/G-Rank.
Gameplay
I love my Heavy Bowgun, and she’s still as beautiful as I remember her being from World. I’m a little sad that I wasn’t able to fully utilize its other features, but that’s only because I suck at countering lol.
Exploration
One of my favorite features from World was the ability to explore each landscape and take in the atmosphere, whether its collecting plants, fishing, or catching endemic life. So, I was really excited to see it return to Wilds after terribly missing it while playing Rise. They definitely didn’t disappoint this time around! My only hope is that there’ll be an update to display all the little critters I’ve caught so far!
Monsters
The most important part of the game! I love the new monster designs, and some of the returning monsters were such a pleasant surprise to see! I’ve never played the old games, but I’ve seen a few from when Sam played GU and 4U.
Without spoiling too much, I can definitely say I nearly jumped out of my seat seeing some monsters appear!! I LOVE THESE MONSTERS!!!
The OK
Here are some things that were ok, but I wish they could improve on.
Armor
Having both ɑ and β armor look exactly the same whereas they looked different in World is a very strange choice. I’m happy enough that they lifted the gender lock on armor, but it can get pretty confusing choosing which armor to craft when it looks the same…
NPC Dialogue Frequency
YES, ALMA, I KNOW I CAN CARVE SMALL MONSTERS. I’M CARVING ONE RIGHT NOW! Gemma, stop saying “hello” to every guest while I’m picking out my armor and weapons! No, Nata, you did NOT hear from the others!! I just checked with you!!
User Interface
You can’t also map the “Skip Notification” function to the “Open Map” button! Please just let me open the map!
Gore Magala
I hate Gore Magala.
Final Thoughts
Even with my few gripes about the game, I’m still enjoying it very much and will continue to play it for a long time! Also, I really appreciate how receptive the developers are to feedback, so I’m looking forward to whatever fixes they’ll implement!
I’m super excited to see what comes next, whether it’s quality-of-life features or monsters, new and old!!