Monster Hunter Wilds – Is It Worth Your Time?
Monster Hunter Wilds, released in February 2025, is the latest entry in the long-running Monster Hunter franchise by Capcom—the same studio behind Street Fighter, Resident Evil, and Mega Man. With a strong legacy and a dedicated fanbase, expectations were high for this game.
I played through the entire campaign, rolled credits, and… had zero motivation to continue. Many fans claim that the "real" game starts after the campaign, that the first 15 hours are just an extended tutorial. But if I wasn’t having fun during that tutorial, why would I want to stick around?
Story – A Wasted Premise
You play as a monster hunter who discovers people living in what was thought to be an uninhabitable land. Your job? Kill monsters for them.
That’s really all there is to it. The plot points, twists, and reveals were predictable—so much so that my 8-year-old daughter could have guessed them. Nothing stood out as unique or engaging. It’s disappointing because the premise had so much potential. The idea of uncovering a civilization in a supposedly uninhabitable land could have led to deeper storytelling, but instead, the game focuses entirely on monster hunting.
To be fair, that’s exactly what Monster Hunter fans are here for. The developers knew their audience well, and some long-time players even wish they could skip the campaign entirely and jump straight into the hunt.
Gameplay – Overcomplicated, Underexplained, and Repetitive
Throughout my 15-hour playthrough, the gameplay never truly clicked for me. The amount of information thrown at you is overwhelming, and much of it is poorly explained. Unless you sit down and read the in-game manual, you’re left figuring things out on your own.
There are mechanics for pouches, ammo, dart guns, ghillie suits, barbecuing, weapon sharpening, and an endless list of materials. Yet, most of these aren’t properly introduced, making it feel like you’re stepping into a game’s third expansion without prior knowledge of the base mechanics.
Then comes the core of the game—monster battles. Unfortunately, they felt frustrating rather than exhilarating. The biggest issue for me was the attack direction. Your attacks don’t follow the camera or your lock-on target—they go wherever your character is facing. There is a Focus Mode that helps, but you either have to play with it on permanently or constantly tap it to ensure your attacks are aimed correctly.
Why is this even a thing? If I’m locked onto a monster, my attacks should naturally follow that direction. Because of this, I found myself gravitating toward the bow. Unlike melee combat, the bow felt fluid, rewarding me with perfect dodges that restored stamina. It was the only weapon that made the gameplay remotely enjoyable.
Unfortunately, the fights themselves became repetitive. Every monster battle boiled down to the same formula—attack, dodge, repeat until it dies. Occasionally, the monster would run away, forcing me to chase it down and finish the job. That’s it.
I came into this after playing Eternal Strands, another game with a similar premise—hunting massive creatures, gathering loot, and crafting gear. But in that game, battles had depth. You could cripple a dragon’s wing to ground it, or break a giant’s leg to slow it down. Strategic takedowns impacted how a monster fought, forcing you to adapt.
With Monster Hunter Wilds, a game dedicated to hunting big monsters, I expected it to offer something even more refined and to go beyond. Perhaps disabling a dragon’s wing would force it into a new attack phase, or group play would allow coordinated efforts to restrain different limbs. But none of that exists. The combat lacks depth, making fights feel like simple endurance battles rather than strategic encounters.
Yet, despite my frustrations, Monster Hunter Wilds is receiving overwhelming praise. OpenCritic reviews are glowing, and my friends who loved the previous game say this is the best in the series.
I’m just not seeing it.
Graphics – Gorgeous on Console, Disaster on PC
On PlayStation, the game looks great and seems to run fine. But on PC? It’s a disaster.
Steam reviews are filled with complaints about poor performance, and my own experience backs that up. Even with settings on Low, the game ran terribly on my RTX 3090. Digital Foundry did a deep dive into the issue, and to summarize—there’s a major problem with how textures are streamed to the GPU. Unless you’re running a top-tier 50-series card, expect significant performance struggles.
If the game at least ran smoothly at lower settings, I could deal with the graphical downgrade. But the performance issues make that sacrifice meaningless.
Sound – Forgettable Music, Wasted Talent
The soundtrack? I know it exists. But I can't remember any of it.
The voice acting, however, was handled by some incredibly talented professionals:
Patrick Seitz (Garrosh Hellscream, Endeavor from My Hero Academia)
Casey Mongillo (Chilchuck from Delicious in Dungeon)
Kristen McGuire (multiple anime and game roles)
Alicyn Packard (Neon Red from Neon White)
This is a star-studded cast of voice actors, but the way their dialogue is edited completely ruins their performances.
For some reason, there are three-second pauses between every line of dialogue. Conversations feel unnatural and sluggish, killing any potential immersion.
It’s frustrating because the actors did a fantastic job—but the editing makes it painful to listen to.
Final Verdict – Not for Me
If you’re a longtime Monster Hunter fan, you’re probably already playing and loving this game. But if you’re like me—someone new to the series, considering this as your entry point—my advice is simple: don’t.
For $70, you get:
❌ A forgettable story
❌ Poorly explained mechanics
❌ Frustrating combat
❌ Repetitive monster fights
❌ Terrible PC performance
Yet, I acknowledge that I seem to be in the minority. The game is getting rave reviews, and dedicated fans seem to love it. But for me? It was a disappointing experience.
Had the game at least given me a compelling story, and a smooth gameplay experience, I might have been able to give it a maybe. But as it stands, Monster Hunter Wilds is not worth your time.
Monster Hunter Wilds – Is It Worth Your Time?
Monster Hunter Wilds, released in February 2025, is the latest entry in the long-running Monster Hunter franchise by Capcom—the same studio behind Street Fighter, Resident Evil, and Mega Man. With a strong legacy and a dedicated fanbase, expectations were high for this game.
I played through the entire campaign, rolled credits, and… had zero motivation to continue. Many fans claim that the "real" game starts after the campaign, that the first 15 hours are just an extended tutorial. But if I wasn’t having fun during that tutorial, why would I want to stick around?
Story – A Wasted Premise
You play as a monster hunter who discovers people living in what was thought to be an uninhabitable land. Your job? Kill monsters for them.
That’s really all there is to it. The plot points, twists, and reveals were predictable—so much so that my 8-year-old daughter could have guessed them. Nothing stood out as unique or engaging. It’s disappointing because the premise had so much potential. The idea of uncovering a civilization in a supposedly uninhabitable land could have led to deeper storytelling, but instead, the game focuses entirely on monster hunting.
To be fair, that’s exactly what Monster Hunter fans are here for. The developers knew their audience well, and some long-time players even wish they could skip the campaign entirely and jump straight into the hunt.
Gameplay – Overcomplicated, Underexplained, and Repetitive
Throughout my 15-hour playthrough, the gameplay never truly clicked for me. The amount of information thrown at you is overwhelming, and much of it is poorly explained. Unless you sit down and read the in-game manual, you’re left figuring things out on your own.
There are mechanics for pouches, ammo, dart guns, ghillie suits, barbecuing, weapon sharpening, and an endless list of materials. Yet, most of these aren’t properly introduced, making it feel like you’re stepping into a game’s third expansion without prior knowledge of the base mechanics.
Then comes the core of the game—monster battles. Unfortunately, they felt frustrating rather than exhilarating. The biggest issue for me was the attack direction. Your attacks don’t follow the camera or your lock-on target—they go wherever your character is facing. There is a Focus Mode that helps, but you either have to play with it on permanently or constantly tap it to ensure your attacks are aimed correctly.
Why is this even a thing? If I’m locked onto a monster, my attacks should naturally follow that direction. Because of this, I found myself gravitating toward the bow. Unlike melee combat, the bow felt fluid, rewarding me with perfect dodges that restored stamina. It was the only weapon that made the gameplay remotely enjoyable.
Unfortunately, the fights themselves became repetitive. Every monster battle boiled down to the same formula—attack, dodge, repeat until it dies. Occasionally, the monster would run away, forcing me to chase it down and finish the job. That’s it.
I came into this after playing Eternal Strands, another game with a similar premise—hunting massive creatures, gathering loot, and crafting gear. But in that game, battles had depth. You could cripple a dragon’s wing to ground it, or break a giant’s leg to slow it down. Strategic takedowns impacted how a monster fought, forcing you to adapt.
With Monster Hunter Wilds, a game dedicated to hunting big monsters, I expected it to offer something even more refined and to go beyond. Perhaps disabling a dragon’s wing would force it into a new attack phase, or group play would allow coordinated efforts to restrain different limbs. But none of that exists. The combat lacks depth, making fights feel like simple endurance battles rather than strategic encounters.
Yet, despite my frustrations, Monster Hunter Wilds is receiving overwhelming praise. OpenCritic reviews are glowing, and my friends who loved the previous game say this is the best in the series.
I’m just not seeing it.
Graphics – Gorgeous on Console, Disaster on PC
On PlayStation, the game looks great and seems to run fine. But on PC? It’s a disaster.
Steam reviews are filled with complaints about poor performance, and my own experience backs that up. Even with settings on Low, the game ran terribly on my RTX 3090. Digital Foundry did a deep dive into the issue, and to summarize—there’s a major problem with how textures are streamed to the GPU. Unless you’re running a top-tier 50-series card, expect significant performance struggles.
If the game at least ran smoothly at lower settings, I could deal with the graphical downgrade. But the performance issues make that sacrifice meaningless.
Sound – Forgettable Music, Wasted Talent
The soundtrack? I know it exists. But I can't remember any of it.
The voice acting, however, was handled by some incredibly talented professionals:
Patrick Seitz (Garrosh Hellscream, Endeavor from My Hero Academia)
Casey Mongillo (Chilchuck from Delicious in Dungeon)
Kristen McGuire (multiple anime and game roles)
Alicyn Packard (Neon Red from Neon White)
This is a star-studded cast of voice actors, but the way their dialogue is edited completely ruins their performances.
For some reason, there are three-second pauses between every line of dialogue. Conversations feel unnatural and sluggish, killing any potential immersion.
It’s frustrating because the actors did a fantastic job—but the editing makes it painful to listen to.
Final Verdict – Not for Me
If you’re a longtime Monster Hunter fan, you’re probably already playing and loving this game. But if you’re like me—someone new to the series, considering this as your entry point—my advice is simple: don’t.
For $70, you get:
❌ A forgettable story
❌ Poorly explained mechanics
❌ Frustrating combat
❌ Repetitive monster fights
❌ Terrible PC performance
Yet, I acknowledge that I seem to be in the minority. The game is getting rave reviews, and dedicated fans seem to love it. But for me? It was a disappointing experience.
Had the game at least given me a compelling story, and a smooth gameplay experience, I might have been able to give it a maybe. But as it stands, Monster Hunter Wilds is not worth your time.
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