A new combat feature in all 14 Monster Hunter weapon types.
However, some players are logging onto Monster Hunter Wilds for the first time, only to find that their favorite weapons have been nerfed. Some weapons were definitely hit harder than others, but the changes are universal, and they're not all going to be popular. It's pretty clear that they're a direct result of Monster Hunter WIlds' biggest new mechanic, called Focus, but whether its introduction was worth these changes is up for debate.
Monster Hunter Wilds Changes The Insect Glaive
And Not For The Better
The worst casualty of Monster Hunter Wilds' weapon changes is the Insect Glaive, which has completely lost the ability to chain together aerial combos. The Insect Glaive functions somewhat like a pair of twin blades on the ground, but can also be used as a pole vault to launch a hunter into the air. Once they're up there, they have access to a variety of different moves, including, when the Glaive is powered up with red extract, a twisting, flipping, aerial somersault in which they orbit the Insect Glaive around their body, dealing constant damage to anything in the vicinity.
These hits are low-damage, but it's easy enough to land several at a time. More importantly, in previous Monster Hunter games, players could chain together multiple of these aerial combos, staying in the air for extended periods of time. It took a little practice to master: in order to start the next combo, the last hit in the previous one had to land. Positioning and timing to maximize damage were difficult. But once players got the hang of it, they could use these combos to deal tons of damage with little risk to themselves. Plus, it was really satisfying when done well.
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Capcom is making Monster Hunter more accessible than ever as it prepares fans for the release of Monster Hunter Wilds with this sale.
Certain monsters were particularly susceptible to this method of attack: in particular, hunters could stick themselves inside the curves of a serpentine monster like the Mizutsune, landing hit after hit while leaving the monster no hope of retaliation. In some cases, it could even prevent monsters from running away when they were injured; the Insect Glaive would allow players to propel themselves forward, giving them a quick option for chasing escaping monsters and potentially redrawing aggro.
Unfortunately, the ability to chain these combos has been done away with in Wilds. Players can still breakdance around monsters, but after performing a single aerial combo, they'll simply land on their feet, with no option to continue the combo. This knocks the wind out of its damaging ability, and takes away much of what makes the Insect Glaive unique among Monster Hunter weapons.
Why The Insect Glaive Was Nerfed
Focus Mode Would Make The Insect Glaive Too Easy
Naturally, there's a perfectly good reason for the Insect Glaive nerf, frustrating though it may be. Monster Hunter WIlds introduces a new feature called Focus that makes it much easier to power up the Insect Glaive; combined with chainable aerial combos, this would make the weapon overpowered. Focus has a variety of different uses in Wilds, most of them weapon-specific. For the Insect Glaive, it gives players a special attack that allows them to fill all three of their extract meters at once in a single move.
The Insect Glaive is paired with a companion called a Kinsect. This is a living ranged weapon with low-damage attacks, but more importantly, it's able to gather "extract" when fired at a monster. There are three different types of extract (red, orange, and white), each of which has a different effect. The type of extract collected depends on the part of the monster it's collected from. For aerial combat purposes, red is most important, as it increases damage and effectively unlocks the multi-hit aerial combo players need to use this strategy.
Red extract is usually collected from a monster's head or damaging appendages. Orange increases defense and knockback resistance, and is usually collected from a monster's body or armored exoskeleton. White boosts speed, and is usually collected from a monster's legs. There are also special bonuses for certain combinations, or having all three colors at once.
Before they can use aerial combos to their full potential, then, players usually need to demonstrate good aim and precise timing to collect red extract. Extract collection spots aren't always clear, so when fighting a new monster type, this may also require some experimentation. However, this skill-based check on the Insect Glaive's power is no longer necessary in Wilds, since players can fill up all three extract meters with a single strike. This would make it far too easy to deal damage with aerial combos, ultimately making the Insect Glaive unbalanced, and removing the challenge from most fights.
Monster Hunter Wilds’ Focus Mode Is Bad News For Some Weapons
Emphasizing Precision Over Spread
Monster Hunter Wilds' new Focus feature is cool, but it does more harm than good to certain weapon types. The whole point of Focus is to emphasize precision strikes at monster weak points. This goes hand-in-hand with the new wound system. If the player repeatedly hits the same part of a monster, it'll begin to glow red, signifying the opening of a new wound. This effectively becomes a new weak point; each subsequent hit to a wound is extra powerful, and enough consecutive hits will "destroy" the wound, dealing burst damage.
Monster Hunter Wilds Brings Highly Requested Features Like Crossplay & More
Crossplay is just one of the quality-of-life improvements being introduced in Monster Hunter Wilds, but don't expect to find new weapons.
This is, ittedly, an interesting feature at times. It's great for ranged weapons that emphasize precision, and even melee weapons with larger hitboxes can strike wounds easily by simply entering Focus mode. But this new emphasis on precision disincentivizes using weapons with wider damage spreads, like the Insect Glaive, Switch Axe, or Spread Ammo. These weapons lose their unique aspects as a result, and start to blend together with similar weapon types. This is overall harmful to the Monster Hunter arsenal, whose greatest strength is the wide variety of playstyles its different weapons allow for.
Wilds builds on Monster Hunter World (and to a lesser extent, Rise) in innumerable ways, adding new mechanics like Focus and wounds that completely change the game. However, these new mechanics aren't always constructive, as they take away much of what makes certain weapons unique. There is, however, still time for these mechanics to be changed between the end of the beta and the full game's launch. Whether these changes were truly worth the sacrifice will only become clear once the full breadth of combat is revealed after Monster Hunter Wilds' release.
Monster Hunter Wilds
- Released
- February 28, 2025
- ESRB
- T For Teen // Violence, Blood, Crude Humor
- Developer(s)
- Capcom
- Publisher(s)
- Capcom
- Engine
- RE Engine
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer, Online Co-Op
- Cross-Platform Play
- Yes, all platforms
- Cross Save
- No
- Franchise
- Monster Hunter
Monster Hunter Wilds is the highly anticipated follow-up to Capcom's multi-million seller, Monster Hunter World. Announced at The Game Awards 2023, Monster Hunter Wilds will put players into a sprawling world where they'll hunt monsters to create new weapons and armor while protecting their home base and uncovering the secrets of unexplored lands with friends or alone.
- PC Release Date
- February 28, 2025
- Xbox Series X|S Release Date
- February 28, 2025
- PS5 Release Date
- February 28, 2025
- Platform(s)
- PC
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