Developed by Japanese studio Omega Force, Wild Hearts is an entirely new action RPG with more than just a passing resemblance to Capcom’s Monster Hunter series. There’s no disguising Wild Hearts’ inspiration here: you accept missions, track down colossal beasts roaming the land and you battle through day and night, alone or in online co-op, until your target is slain. Beyond that, you scavenge their remains, mine the environment for resources and forge even higher-stat weapons and armour to take on even tougher foes. What sets this game apart is its target hardware: Wild Hearts targets current-gen consoles and PC only, whereas Monster Hunter is firmly addressing older gaming hardware. This gave me plenty of optimism going into the reviewing the game – but it’s clear that despite some laudible ambition here, every version of the game has technical issues in some form that must be addressed.
Developed using the Katana engine – a newly branded tech from Koei Tecmo – there’s no denying the quality of Wild Hearts’ art direction. The icy tundras of its opening tutorial, the shrines of the Minato hub area and the coral reefs of Natsukodachi Isle offer a wealth of variety. There’s a rich colour palette to every biome, with a rolling time of day, procedural cloud generation, and physics-based elements.
The concept art behind each Kemono is brilliantly translated in-game, too. Every one is a spectacle, covered in climbable fur – Shadow of the Colossus-style – and at times even a tangle of vines and petals. These are walking, breathing hybrids of plant and mammal, flora and fauna, that morph into multiple forms, dragging you to different sections of the map. The combat lands brilliantly too: every strike delivers a satisfying crunch and snap, punctuated by heavy effects and shader-work. Plus there’s the ability to build objects, crates, springs, barriers on the fly to transform the battlefield. And in fact, PS5 sweetens the deal with a very light use of adaptive triggers for the final blow.
