Wild Hearts Reviews
Wild Hearts refreshes the hunting genre with clever crafting and awesome beasts but is brought down by a poor technical state and weak story.
Wild Hearts’ building mechanics add a very fun twist to its familiar but well-executed co-op monster hunting formula.
Sublime combat can only do so much to carry a flawed building system, too few monsters and terrible performance.
Far more than just a Monster Hunter clone, Wild Hearts exceeds expectations and then some, mixing streamlined action with inventive new toys.
Ultimately, Wild Hearts shows up as a colorful and curious contender in the hunting game genre, and a very welcome one right now. With games like Monster Hunter Rise going for a less challenging approach, this game brings fascinating ideas that make it the breath of fresh air that the genre needs, combining difficult battles with some twists in mobility and construction, in a completely unexpected fashion. Some improvements to the unfortunate performance issues are needed, but the overall experience isn’t less enjoyable because of them.
Arguably the best Monster Hunter clone ever made and while it's not quite as good as Capcom's series it does have some unique and interesting ideas of its own – despite initial impressions to the contrary.
"You'll need to stop and familiarize yourself with a monster and its attacks if you want to succeed"
The gameplay matters most in Wild Hearts – it’s fresh, chaotic, and breathless. It does not reinvent the hunting genre, but it does just enough with its addition of the Karakuri gadgets and arresting locales (not to mention the myriad ways to traverse them) to give the genre a fresh and welcome perspective. A stronger story would have been welcome, and the camera leaves much to be desired, but Wild Hearts is a deeply engaging experience even with these faults.
Wild Hearts latches onto the familiar gameplay loop of Monster Hunter and infuses it with a fast-paced crafting system that lets you build your way to victory.
I can picture myself weeks from now, strolling among the creations, gadgets, and objects that my friends and I have left littered across our worlds, thinking back on these early days in Wild Hearts. These constructions are marks of solidarity in a game that could have been mere homage. Building in Wild Hearts isn’t just a mechanical conceit. It’s the pillar of its identity.
Though it can be a blurry mess at times, Wild Hearts does plenty right to justify a play by both monster hunter veterans and newcomers to the genre. The Karakuri system is genius and enhances an already fantastic combat experience, and co-op is wonderfully implemented, making it easy to group up with other hunters.
Impressive efforts with a few noticeable problems holding them back. Won't astound everyone, but is worth your time and cash.
Wild Hearts has proved to be an immense surprise. It navigates the line between well-worn ground and exciting new innovation immensely well. It's the best non-Capcom hunting game we've ever had, and a hugely enjoyable action RPG in its own right.
Wild Hearts is a more than solid proposal that manages to come out well from its comparison with Monster Hunter. Its distinctive points are clear and give the game a style of its own. The Japanese design and atmosphere convinces and although it is far from being a round IP, Wild Hearts could have a great future as a saga.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
I love Monster Hunter, and Wild Hearts isn’t perfect, but it improves and diversifies on that formula in ways I don’t think any fan of this genre should overlook. I want to keep being in this world and I can’t wait to see how Koei Tecmo continues to expand upon it.
When you get into the action and get into the right rhythm, Wild Hearts works. Too bad for some uncertainty too much that delays, or interrupts, this state of grace.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Wild Hearts often feels like a game that doesn’t want to be played. It’s fussy, it’s janky, and it constantly trips itself up. An erratic gameplay loop, an absolute bastard of a camera, and some ill-conceived weapon gimmicks prevent Koei Tecmo and EA’s experimental hunting joint from ever really succeeding where its genre rivals have. It’s ironic that building is such a core part of this game: if this is the start of a series, Omega Force has laid down some important groundwork, but it needs to make some serious structural revisions from the foundations up if it ever wants to look eye-to-eye with Capcom’s imposing juggernaut.
Wild Hearts is not only a great exponent of the genre, but it can also be a highly recommended entry point.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Wild Hearts offers a fresh take on the monster hunting formula.