Fresh information on two zones we’ll explore in Monster Hunter: World is out this week, following a new presentation from Capcom and Game Informer’s latest cover story. Some of the content outlined this week will be familiar if you’ve already played a Monster Hunter that supports online multiplayer, but it sounds like Capcom also has plenty of new ideas to experiment with in the series’ next outing.
Game Informer’s preview of the Coral Highlands is probably the more exciting of this week’s map reveals, thanks to the invaluable insight provided by Monster Hunter: World’s Executive Director and Art Director Kaname Fujioka. According to Fujioka, the primary goal with the third map in Monster Hunter: World was to radically alter the player’s expectations. By the time we reach the Highlands, World has already asked players to explore two environments that “look like they could take place somewhere on Earth.” But the flora and fauna encountered in the Coral Highlands will be unlike anything one might expect to see in real life. The entire map is situated around a towering plateau covered in coral, and the game’s art director says locations in Chile heavily inspired the Coral Highlands’ aesthetic.
Elsewhere, a new Capcom presentation (summarized by Siliconera) offered an avalanche of new information on the airship we’ll explore while preparing for multiplayer hunts in Monster Hunter: World. There’s a new tavern (Star’s Ship) were players can form parties and coordinate new hunts. Players will also have the ability to join hunts in progress; however, arriving too late in the mission will prevent you from receiving rewards or credit for completing the scenario. We’ll meet Arena and Quest clerks who stand ready to provide players with new contracts and visit a notice board to claim login bonuses and receive community updates from the Monster Hunter: World team. Capcom’s presentation also included more information on progression in MHW. The game still uses specific missions to gate access to new areas.
We also learned a bit more about Monster Hunter: World’s take on clans. Players can join up to eight Circles, each of which can have up to 50 people on its roster, and there will be dedicated social spaces for each Circle. There’s also going to be an in-game invitation system, presumably to save you the trouble of using PSN’s native party features to organize new hunts. Each Circle’s creator will have some ability to personalize the group with unique icons, names, symbols and more.
For an early look at Monster Hunter: World, check out some of gameplay shown during Paris Games Week. Then head down to the comments and let us know what you hope to see in MHW when the Monster Hunter franchise charges onto PC and consoles next year.
Monster Hunter: World is in development for PS4, Xbox One and PC. The game hits consoles on Jan. 26, but there’s still no timeline for Monster Hunter: World’s Steam debut.
Be sure to check back with Player.One and follow Scott on Twitter for more Monster Hunter: World news in 2017 and however long Capcom supports Monster Hunter: World after launch.
