Image: Capcom
Monster Hunter Wilds' first free Title Update aims to give players more challenging endgame hunts.
Monster Hunter Wilds, the highly-anticipated latest mainline title in Capcom's classic Monster Hunter series, has just been released, but its developers are giving players plenty more to be excited for. Capcom has announced that the game's free Title Update 1 is set to be released in early April.
Capcom previously revealed that Monster Hunter Wilds' first free Title Update will see the release of a returning monster in Mizutsune, but the developers also added in this latest announcement that the update will also include the addition of a ‘Gathering Hub’ and more challenging endgame content.
Monster Hunter Wilds' free Title Update 1 to add Gathering Hub, higher difficulty hunts
In a post on the official Monster Hunter X (formerly Twitter) account, Capcom said that Monster Hunter Wilds' free Title Update 1 will add “a new place to gather” for players where they can “meet, communicate, have meals together, and more." While Capcom didn't explicitly call this new area a Gathering Hub, the description is in line with this feature, which has been present in all previous titles in the series.
The Gathering Hubs in previous Monster Hunter titles serve as an online hub for players during online play, and includes all the essentials needed in hunts. This includes areas where they can initiate and join quests, partake in pre-hunt meals, craft weapons and armor, and even socialise with other players.
According to Capcom, Monster Hunter Wilds' version of the Gathering Hub will only be available to players who have completed the game's main story. With Title Update 1 coming in early April, players should have more than enough time to finish the main story and prepare to embark on hunts with other players across the world.
Aside from the Gathering Hub, the developers also revealed in a separate post that Monster Hunter Wilds' free Title Update 1 will also add a “new level of challenge” for players in the form of “a monster of formidable strength at a level above Tempered."
Tempered Monsters is a returning feature from Monster Hunter World, and will serve as the main form of endgame content for Monster Hunter Wilds. Tempered Monsters are stronger monsters that have survived multiple encounters with hunters, which make them more fearsome opponents with tougher hides and new moves. Monster Hunter Wilds' version of the Tempered Monsters system also makes use of its new ‘Wounds’ feature, as players can take advantage of the scars that Tempered Monsters earned from previous hunts by re-opening them to deal more damage.
As a reward for defeating Tempered Monsters, players will be able to earn unique drops to craft special ‘Artian’ weapons and decorations. Decorations will grant a variety of weapon and armor skills that will help players take on more challenging hunts.
It is unclear what Capcom means when it says that Monster Hunter Wilds' free Title Update 1 will include a monster above the level of Tempered. This may refer to the Arch-Tempered Monsters from Monster Hunter World, which were the most difficult hunts of that game and were exclusive to Elder Dragon-type monsters. With little to no signs of the presence of Elder Dragons in Monster Hunter Wilds so far, the developers may also be hinting at the addition of this iconic class of monsters – just with a much higher base level of difficulty compared to previous entries in the series.
With that said, it may also refer to an entirely new system. Aside from Tempered Monsters, the other endgame-level hunts available to players in Monster Hunter Wilds are Frenzied Monsters. The term Frenzied Monsters refers to monsters which have been afflicted with the Frenzy Virus by the monster Gore Magala and its adult form Shagaru Magala. The virus causes heightened aggression, speed, and strength in monsters.
Monster Hunter Wilds' free Title Update 1 may very well see the release of Shagaru Magala and a stronger type of Frenzied Monster to go along with this fearsome Elder Dragon.
Monster Hunter Wilds released globally on 28 February, 2025 on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S.