Monster Hunter Wilds Redefines the Series with Open World Gameplay

Building on the phenomenal success of Monster Hunter World, Capcom is revolutionizing the series with Monster Hunter Wilds.

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Reimagining the Hunt: A Seamless Open World

Capcom's ambitious Monster Hunter Wilds reimagines the franchise, immersing players in a vibrant, interconnected world with a dynamic ecosystem that reacts in real-time.

In a Summer Game Fest interview, producer Ryozo Tsujimoto, executive director Kaname Fujioka, and director Yuya Tokuda detailed Wilds' transformative approach. They emphasized seamless gameplay and an immersive environment directly responsive to player actions.

Like its predecessors, Wilds casts players as hunters exploring uncharted territories, encountering new creatures and resources. However, the Summer Game Fest demo showcased a significant departure from the series' traditional mission structure. Instead of segmented areas, Wilds presents a fully explorable open world, offering freedom to hunt, explore, and interact with the environment.

"Seamlessness is central to Monster Hunter Wilds," Fujioka stated. "We aimed to craft detailed, immersive ecosystems demanding a seamless world brimming with freely huntable monsters."

A Dynamic and Immersive World

The demo featured desert settlements, diverse biomes, various monsters, and NPC hunters. This new approach eliminates timed missions, allowing for a more flexible hunting experience. Fujioka stressed the importance of world interaction: "We focused on interactions like monster packs pursuing prey and their conflicts with human hunters. These characters exhibit 24-hour behavior patterns, creating a more dynamic and organic feel."

Monster Hunter Wilds also incorporates real-time weather changes and fluctuating monster populations. Director Yuya Tokuda explained the technological advancements enabling this dynamic world: "Creating a massive, evolving ecosystem with numerous monsters and interactive characters was a significant challenge. Environmental changes occur concurrently—a feat previously impossible."

The success of Monster Hunter World provided invaluable lessons shaping Wilds' development. Producer Ryozo Tsujimoto highlighted the impact of their expanded global strategy: "We approached Monster Hunter World with a global perspective, prioritizing simultaneous worldwide release and comprehensive localization. This global focus helped us consider players unfamiliar with the series and how to re-engage them."