With the second open beta for Monster Hunter Wilds just having concluded, players were finally able to tackle the intimidating title monster first-hand. While the time limit proved to be the greatest challenge when hunting down the legendary Akrveld, the title monster fight was just as climactic and challenging as players can expect in the full release. While each battle with Arkveld is a rewardingly tense fighting experience, there might be more than meets the eye behind the chained beast.

The second beta not only gave players a chance to face off against its title monster but also included the craft Gypceros and gave them access to the much-needed training room. Despite its greater offerings, many of the performance and weapon improvements didn't make their way into Wilds' second beta either, with Capcom reserving them for the full release. These upgraded features might not be the only thing Capcom is holding back either, as many players have started to suspect Arkveld may be hiding more secrets than it seems.

Arkveld Will Likely Have An Unchained Version In The Full Release

Giving Players A New Reason To Fear The Arkveld's Call

Part of what makes the fight with Monster Hunter Wild's Arkveld unique is how it integrates the organic chains tied to its body, giving it even greater reach while empowering certain attacks with deadly dragon energy. Arkveld can even split each of its chains in half, unleashing all four of its appendages to create shockwaves and blasts that deal massive damage to underprepared hunters. Even with the chains slowing it down, Arkveld is still an incredibly fast-paced monster that attacks in explosive bursts, but its current state may only be a fraction of its true power.

The 'chained' title in Arkveld's name and promotional images show the monster being tied down by the chains it's using in battle, which could hint that it's not a permanent state of being for the terrifying monster. While it would be sad to see Arkveld lose its unique chains and the deadly moveset that comes with them, it's exciting to consider how powerful a further enhanced version of the already challenging monster could be in the full release.

It seems there may be a lot more to the mysterious Arkveld than meets the eye.

The chained aspect of Arkveld is also likely to tie into the full story of Wilds' narrative, potentially being the reason the beast attacked the village the mysterious boy players save in the introduction is from. Whether it's an attempt at freeing itself or even seeking revenge against the ones that caused it to suffer this fate, it seems there may be a lot more to the mysterious Arkveld than meets the eye.

Even in its regular form, Arkveld is the perfect example of how Wilds is innovating the franchise's monster design process. It fixes a long-standing problem with the series by adding a greater level of variety for experienced hunters.

Arkveld Wouldn't Be The First Monster To Have A Powerful Transformation

Upgraded Monster Variations Are Fairly Common Across The Series

Although it doesn't directly prove that Arkveld will eventually have an upgraded form, the return of monsters like Gore Magala could hint at more to come. From its origins in Monster Hunter 4 and recent Rise appearances, Gore Magala is an incredibly unique monster with a frenzy mechanic that directly affects how players hunt with its aggressive status effect and armor skills. Despite how powerful and intimidating Gore Magala is on its own, it is merely a growth stage before its ultimate transformation into the shining beacon of battle that is Shagura Magala.

With Wilds introducing the expanded Monster corpse mechanic, players might get to see how Gore Magala reproduces by using infected monsters as hosts.

While Gore Magala is the first monster shown in Wilds that's known to have a powerful transformation variant, even the most recent Worlds had a wide range of similar evolutions, featuring the likes of Safijiva, Savage Dejiljho, Stygian Zinogre, Furious Rajang, and many more.

Giving monsters an enhanced form is a relatively common practice throughout the franchise to provide players with more challenges without wasting creative designs. This often changes the combat style and design of the monster significantly. While not all of these variations are equal, with some monsters feeling similar to their original version, upgraded forms are practically guaranteed to return in Wilds in some fashion, likely in its inevitable paid expansion.

Not Giving Arkveld An Enhanced Form Would Be A Wasted Opportunity

Making The Unique Monster Stand Out From The Crowd

While it may seem odd that Monster Hunter Wilds is already letting players tackle its title monster so soon with the beta, it's a common challenge for players to push themselves to the limits, with a similar offering being in both World and Rise. Despite its incredibly unique design and engaging attack patterns, Magnamalo from Monser Hunter Rise quickly became somewhat of a pushover compared to the more challenging monsters added post-launch. Thankfully, Capcom didn't give up on the intimidatingly designed creature and added the violent Scorned variation, just like Monster Hunter World's Ruiner Nergignate.

An unchained Arkveld variation could easily become one of the most memorable hunting experiences in the franchise yet.

Nergigante itself offered an excellently fast-paced challenge for hunters at any level in its base form, from launching spikes at players to taking out players in a single divebomb attack; each fight was a memorable dance to the death. The evolved Ruiner Nergigante simply brought an even more powerful version into Iceborne's late game to keep up the difficulty while offering worthwhile rewards for players willing to take down the Elder Dragon at the top of the food chain once more.

With how intense the regular Arkveld fight is, an unchained Arkveld variation could easily become one of the most memorable hunting experiences in the franchise yet, especially if it takes advantage of Monster Hunter Wilds' new features like its weather systems or dynamic level design.

Wilds Will Offer Even More Flexibility With Its Monsters

Experimenting With Old Creature Types And Mechanics

Monster Hunter Wilds is even breaking fan expectations by finally overcoming the issue of monsters with untraditional skeletons, as the tentacle-wielding Nu Udra proves that nearly any kind of monster could make it into Wilds, even the legendary Lagiacrus, which Monster Hunter's developers struggled with for years. While this is an exciting prospect for fans hoping some of the series' most iconic monsters will return with this newest release, it could have even greater potential to see a uniquely transformed version of Arkveld in its full glory.

An enhanced version of Arkveld could even see the mysterious monster transform its chain-like appendages into an even more powerful version, unshackling itself while allowing it to retain a similar but expanded moveset.

Many of the monsters showcased in Wilds are already breaking the mold when it comes to what players have grown accustomed to in recent entries, showcasing fresh hunting experiences even before release. The full release of Monster Hunter Wilds is bound to offer an even greater array of monsters and action-packed hunting experiences, which will hopefully see an even more powerful version of Arkveld that isn't chained by its past.