Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Gaming
  3. News

‘Monster Hunter World’ will stalk its way onto PC this fall

By

Monster Hunter World will follow the franchise’s triumphant return to consoles later this month with its first PC release, now slated for the fall of 2018. Producer Ryozo Tsujimoto took to Twitter with a brief video thanking fans for their invaluable feedback during the beta testing process and announcing that the game is currently being optimized for PC, aiming for an autumn 2018 release. He promised more details soon. Tsujimoto ends the video by promising that they will release free updates to Monster Hunter World after it launches for consoles on January 26, including new monsters. There’s no word yet on the frequency or size of these anticipated content updates.

#MHWorld is currently being optimized for PC and is planned for an Autumn 2018 release! pic.twitter.com/82JUC6iIMC

— Monster Hunter (@monsterhunter) January 3, 2018

After several entries on the 3DS handheld, Monster Hunter World marks the series’ return to home consoles in a bid to expand the games’ niche (but passionate) fan community, particularly outside of its native Japan. The game launches for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on January 26. Our hands-off live demo at E3 last year when the game was announced piqued our interest, and everything we have subsequently learned has kept it as one of our most anticipated upcoming games of 2018. 2017 was a pretty astounding year for gaming, so it leaves large shoes to fill, but Monster Hunter World is certainly a strong start.

Recommended Videos

An autumn 2018 release will give its chief competitor on PC, indie Monster Hunter-like Dauntless, a chance to establish itself when it soon enters public beta. Developer Phoenix Labs is stacked with former staffers from League of Legends‘ Riot Games, but they are nevertheless an underdog in a genre more or less invented by Capcom’s long-running franchise. Dauntless aims to translate the Monster Hunter formula into a more elegant, Western-friendly package that’s built for PC from the ground up. Capcom has a mixed history with porting its console titles to PC, so time will tell how well Dauntless holds up in a direct comparison to Monster Hunter World. We quite enjoyed hunting monsters in the bright, stylized world of Dauntless when we got our hands on it at the end of last year. Regardless, PC gamers will have a glut of options for hunting giant beasts with their friends by the end of 2018.

Will Fulton
Will Fulton
Staff Writer, Gaming
Will Fulton is a New York-based writer and theater-maker. In 2011 he co-founded mythic theater company AntiMatter Collective…
Topics

Editors’ Recommendations

Monster Hunter Wilds gets a February release date in fierce new trailer
A hunter dodges a monster in Monster Hunter Wilds.

Capcom has treated us to another long look at Monster Hunter Wilds, including that all-important release date. The hunt is on beginning February 28, 2025, on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.

The latest trailer for the next entry in the massively popular Monster Hunter franchise showed off a more personal side to the story, opening with a child fleeing the wrath of the White Wraith and introducing us to many of the characters we can look forward to bonding with while slaying giant beasts. The adorable Palicos are back in full force, helping with cooking and on the battlefield as they have in prior games. In one instance a hunter was knocked out and saved by a Palico dropping a health potion on them.

Read more
Everything announced at August’s Nintendo Direct and Indie World stream
Nintendo Switch OLED and Joy-Con.

In the wake of Gamescom and ahead of a busy autumn for the video game industry, Nintendo did something unique for its latest showcase. It was a combination of the Nintendo Direct Partner Showcase and Indie World formats. First, an Indie World showcase gave us a look at some of the games from independent developers that are heading to Nintendo Switch soon, like Neva and Pizza Tower. Then, the Nintendo Direct Partner Showcase highlighted some upcoming titles from bigger third-party developers.

It was a particularly great Partner Showcase for fans of remasters and ports, as it featured announcements like Tetris Forever, Capcom Fighting Collection 2, Suikoden 1 & 2 HD Remaster: Gate Rune and Dunan Unification Wars, Castlevania Dominus Collection, and more. You should stay in the loop on what was announced if you're a big Nintendo Switch fan. To help, we've rounded up every announcement made during these Nintendo showcases.

Read more
I played Monster Hunter Wilds, and it’s already a thrill
A hunter runs through a lightning storm in Monster Hunter Wilds.

I've always seen Monster Hunter as a cinematic game, though perhaps not in the way that many gamers picture when they hear the word. I'm not talking about big-budget cutscenes. Rather, spectacle is baked into its world. There's no greater thrill than watching on as the titanic beast I'm tracking suddenly gets attacked by another creature. It's like watching a kaiju battle unfold organically.

With Monster Hunter Wilds, though, Capcom is upping the ante. In a 90-minute demo, I played through the upcoming action RPG's first two missions. They were standard hunts against towering beasts, but something was different this time. A larger emphasis on thrilling cutscenes and cinematic set pieces took center stage between my normal hacking and slashing. That makes for a sequel that takes Monster Hunter to the next level, unlocking its blockbuster potential.
More cinematic
When my demo begins, I'm sailing on an ocean of sand with a crew of ragtag characters. After getting briefed on a monster in the area, the dreaded White Wraithe, I'm treated to an action-packed sequence. I see sandworms chasing a character in the distance, as if I'm watching a scene out of Dune. My hero leaps from the side of the ship and lands on a Seikret and gives chase. As I gain control of my character, I'm suddenly in a chase sequence. Worms leap around me, and I have to knock them off my trail with my slingshot. It's positively dazzling.

Read more