Crafting Your Character
As always, you start by designing your Hunter and their faithful Palico sidekick. This time, the character creator offers more options to customize your Hunter's build and appearance. Capcom has confirmed that beta characters can be transferred to the full game next year. We opted for a tough, enigmatic Hunter, but the possibilities are endless - you could really let your imagination run wild!
The Adventure Begins
After finalizing your Hunter, you're thrust into the action. You find yourself on a ship gliding over sand dunes, leading to an exciting chase where you ride a bird-like Seikret to save someone from becoming monster food. This seamlessly transitions into the beta's story mission, where we hunted a frog-like beast called a Chatacabra in a cave system of this new world. Once free to explore, our first move was to leave base camp and venture into the wilderness.
Venturing into the Wild
The scene that greets you is reminiscent of a safari or a certain dinosaur movie - herds of monsters roam across arid grasslands while other creatures gather at oases. In our view, the map - officially named 'Windward Plains' - felt more vibrant, expansive, and interconnected than before, better concealing its linear elements compared to previous games. When you first view it from the menu, you might be taken aback by the sheer number of icons and points of interest!
Beyond what's been mentioned, Windward Plains features watering holes, rocky caverns, and countless sand dunes. Adding to this is a dynamic climate with weather patterns, sandstorms, and day-night cycles. To navigate this world, you can quick-travel between camps, set up new camps in certain spots, and even auto-travel from one Monster or landmark to another on your Seikret. All these features made exploring the map even more engaging, and we found it incredibly easy to lose ourselves in the environment, hopping from one area (or monster) to the next.
The Hunt
The gameplay mechanics remain familiar to series veterans. You select your class and secondary weapon before venturing out to track, trap, and ultimately capture or slay monsters. As in previous titles, the SOS Flare feature returns, allowing you to summon AI or human hunters for assistance. Alternatively, you can join other players' lobbies to tackle objectives together.
During the beta, we teamed up with various groups to take down formidable foes. Cross-play support enhances these multiplayer experiences. The beta showcased the 'Doshaguma Hunt', pitting hunters against a massive bear-like creature. We also encountered the thunder-Wyvern 'Rey Dau', the apex predator of Windward Plains. Excitingly, monster-versus-monster battles make a comeback, adding another layer of dynamism to the hunts.
Xbox Performance
While acknowledging this was a beta build, performance on Xbox Series X|S raised some concerns. These issues weren't exclusive to Xbox, with players across platforms reporting various bugs.
Our Xbox Series X experience was mixed. The 'enhanced' setting looked impressive but felt less smooth, especially during online play. We encountered visual glitches at base camp, including picture distortion and flashing. Multiplayer hunts felt somewhat sluggish.
The 'performance' mode ran more smoothly but at the cost of noticeably lower image quality. The visuals appeared blurrier than expected from a next-gen Monster Hunter title. Other Xbox players reported crashes and disconnects during the beta.
Despite these issues, the environments, weather effects, and sand dunes looked stunning. We hope Capcom addresses these performance concerns before the final release next year, as smooth gameplay is crucial for an enjoyable hunting experience.
Final Thoughts
Monster Hunter Wilds shows promise with its expansive world and familiar yet refined gameplay. The Windward Plains offer a diverse, interconnected environment that's a joy to explore. The addition of dynamic weather and day-night cycles adds depth to the hunting experience.
The character creation options allow for more personalization than ever before, and the ability to transfer beta characters to the full game is a nice touch. The new mount, Seikret, adds an exciting dimension to traversal and combat.
However, the performance issues on Xbox Series X|S are concerning. While it's important to remember this was a beta, Capcom needs to optimize the game further to ensure a smooth, stable experience across all platforms.
Despite these concerns, Monster Hunter Wilds has the potential to be a standout entry in the series. With its blend of familiar mechanics and new features, it could offer both longtime fans and newcomers an engaging, immersive monster-hunting adventure. We're eager to see how the final product shapes up when it releases next year.
Our experience with the Monster Hunter Wilds beta was enjoyable, hinting at a promising addition to the series when it launches in early 2025. The game seems to offer more freedom, though we didn't encounter any groundbreaking features during our playtest. We're hopeful that Capcom will deliver a more stable experience overall and strike the right balance between the game's visual modes. That wraps up our thoughts - we'll see you in the wilderness next February when Monster Hunter Wilds hits Xbox Series X|S.
Monster Hunter Wilds Xbox Beta: A Promising Start, But Performance Needs Some Work
The hunt begins February 2025
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