Monster Hunter Wilds director Yuya Tokuda has unveiled exciting details about the upcoming May 28 Ver. 1.011 update, promising "an abundance of new features and changes to the game," including a thrilling collaboration with Street Fighter 6.
In his latest Director's Letter, Tokuda expressed the team's commitment to enhancing the gaming experience, stating their goal "to provide more great content for you to enjoy as well as make various adjustments to make Monster Hunter Wilds even more fun to play." A highlight of the update is the introduction of Street Fighter's Akuma as a new challenger. Players can look forward to obtaining a full Arkuma armor set and layered armor. Equipping either set will grant access to three new items in your item bar: assisted combo Akuma, Drive Impact, and Gou Hadoken. For more details on these additions, be sure to visit the official Monster Hunter website.
The Ver. 1.011 update also introduces eight-star "challenging" monsters, available for hunting at HR 41 and above. These include Gore Magala, Rey Dau, Uth Duna, Nu Udra, and Jin Dahaad, offering players a variety of high-difficulty targets beyond the seven-star Arkveld. These eight-star versions come with increased health, wound resistance, and adjustments to multiplayer scaling. Tokuda warns that Tempered Gore Magala poses a "particularly tough challenge to even the best of hunters." As your HR increases, expect more high-difficulty quests and encounters with multiple monsters.
Alongside these new challenges, Ver. 1.011 and Title Update 2 will introduce "player-centric balance adjustments" to several weapons, including the Hammer, Hunting Horn, Gunlance, Light Bowgun, and Heavy Bowgun. Specific adjustments to Gunlance Artian weapons have been enhanced. Tokuda notes, "While some weapons have had certain parameters adjusted downward, other parameters have been adjusted upwards, and viewed in totality I think you will find that all weapon types have had their possibilities expanded, so I encourage you to give them a try for yourself once the update is out." Additionally, the Hammer and Dual Blades will receive "various improvements."
Quality of life (QoL) enhancements are also on the way. Hunters will now be able to rest in the Grand Hub and Suja, Peaks of Accord, which will restore all destroyed Pop-up Camps. A confirmation window will no longer appear when obtaining an item with a full item pouch; the item will automatically be sent to your item box. The visibility of meal effect durations has been improved, with a countdown appearing 10 minutes before expiration. Notifications have been adjusted to reduce their frequency in locales, displaying only higher-priority targets in the environment overview without blocking map input.
Tokuda also highlighted the ability to view individual endemic life captured, accessible through the Ecological Research menu in the Windward Plains. Players can check the names, sizes, and weights of their catches, and even favorite specific creatures to keep them beyond the storage limit. This feature allows for the appreciation of unique patterns and elements in individual creatures.
Stability improvements, particularly on Steam, are part of the update, along with increased rewards for eight-star investigations and field surveys. Guild Point rewards for fishing have been "rebalanced," though specifics remain undisclosed.
Monster Hunter Wilds is the latest entry in Capcom's renowned Monster Hunter series, featuring dynamic, ever-changing environments and a dual-natured world where monsters and humans navigate both harsh, resource-scarce landscapes and vibrant, life-filled territories. In our review, we awarded Monster Hunter Wilds an 8, praising it for "continuing to smooth off the rougher corners of the series in smart ways, making for some extremely fun fights but also lacking any real challenge."
Interestingly, Monster Hunter Wilds players have discovered an unconventional method of dodging attacks by using their emotes, adding a creative twist to gameplay strategies.
