youHere’s something undeniably cool about Capcom’s ongoing creature-hunting series, Monster Hunter: In our world of mundane capitalism, it offers a return to the violent and heroic days of yore, where it’s just you, monsters, and a greatsword. However, as hard as I try to heed the call of the hunt, my heroic ambitions are constantly thwarted by walls of text and hours of killing the same embarrassingly small lizards. I thought Monster Hunter and its ilk weren’t for me, but then I played the wonderfully weird Wild Hearts from EA and Omega Force.
An amazing collaboration between the publisher of Fifa and the creators of Dynasty Warriors, set in the land of Azuma (inspired by feudal Japan), it’s like a fever dream. This realm is ruled by giant mythical beasts known as Kemono, covered in moss and flowers, and these once peaceful creatures have inexplicably gone on a rampage. The hapless Azumians aren’t having a great time with these skyscraper-sized scoundrels, and it’s up to you to put things right.
Unlike the game it’s unashamedly influenced by, Wild Hearts makes its world feel mysterious and accessible. Where Monster Hunter bombards you with menus, EA’s version is happy to let its world do the talking, plunging you headlong into its fantastical surroundings. As you climb and fight your way through lavish locations, its sprawling, overgrown world hints at life within a larger civilization, inviting curiosity in a way Monster Hunter’s enclosed hubs don’t. It’s a fun-filled addition that immediately gets you into the good stuff, and then things take a weird turn.
Giving the middle finger to the hunter-gatherer of Monster Hunter, Wild Hearts imbues you with the powers of building; Dubbed the mystical art of “Karakuri,” collecting magic thread allows players to build Fortnite-style structures in the midst of battle. With everything from wooden walls blocking the gigantic tail tethers, to a hastily assembled catapult hammer at your disposal, it’s a fun and extremely silly mechanic.
It gets more ridiculous: As the townsfolk rebuild a hub world mid-game, the NPCs insist that they can’t take advantage of Karakuri now, despite lots of construction going on behind them. Who knew you could be enlightened by an entire video game? These bizarre contradictions are the first of many narrative missteps in Wild Hearts, but when it comes to the central creature combat, its designers get it very right.
Unlike the more mythical monsters in Capcom’s adventure, Wild Hearts’ combatants look more like ghoulish recreations of legendary Pokémon. From six-eyed demon warthogs to spore-covered rodents, every shuttle-sized enemy is memorably unhinged, including a giant flying squirrel that shoots water and squeals like a dolphin.
Like Destiny before it, more important than the tedious narrative are the player-driven stories; While you won’t remember the name of a single NPC, you will remember that you and your partner finally overthrew the fearsome Amaterasu on his fourth try. Or that time you somehow built a ridiculous tower in the middle of the attack and failed your way back into a battle that seemed all but lost. And really, you’ll have to call a friend, because solo play quickly loses its charm. Thankfully, matchmaking here is a world away from the abstruse Monster Hunter, allowing players to quest with friends and strangers at the push of a button.
Once you’ve upgraded his range of attractive weapons (most notably bear claws and a transforming stick), Wild Hearts’ whimsical shapes fall satisfactorily into place. As you get stronger, the encounters get predictably big, and developer Omega Force’s Dynasty Warriors experience translates into suitably loud and flashy on-screen matchups.
Where Monster Hunter throws system after system at you, almost willing to quit, Wild Hearts drips feed its glorious nonsense in a refreshingly patient way. The only caveat: it is patience that you will have to pay in kind. While the battles shine, Wild Hearts takes you out of the fun at every other opportunity. As their wounded quarry limps off to the next battlefield, the lack of mounts makes the journey to follow them a grueling task. The downtime between fights is even worse: players must engage in an endless series of excruciating conversations before being sent back into the wild.
While there’s a lot to like about this world, its characters certainly aren’t one of them: all the jabber full of proper names will have you jumping more than a triple jump, and the in-game camera zooms in unnervingly. Their claustrophobic eyesight can make facing off against these titans infuriating, especially in close-knit environments.
These are no small quibbles, but despite its flaws, I’m still having a great time with Wild Hearts. Thirty hours later, I’m patiently slaying beast after beast, pining for the next tantalizing weapon upgrade and shining armor set.
EA and Omega Force’s unlikely adventure succeeds by being the perfect entry point into the hunter genre. This is the accessible radio single from Monster Hunter’s progressive album odyssey: it’s silly, flawed, and probably not destined to be a smash hit, but if you’re in the right mood, oh my gosh, it’s fun. Whether he will continue to sink his claws into me remains to be seen, but after years of frustration, I finally feel ready to dive deeper into this once impenetrable genre.
