Cosmic horror, along with sci-fi in general, is a difficult genre to get right. It thrives on the unknown, the creeping sensation that something is just out of sight, not entirely clear, itching at your reality. But, if you don’t get the balance right, you’ll end up with a galaxy wide narrative that’s as deep as a puddle. Shroud understands this well, twisting its story in ways that leave you adrift in its dark world. It’s a book that revels in disorientation, pulling you deeper into its mysteries the more you struggle to grasp them. When it’s at its best, it makes you feel lost in all the right ways.

Shroud is an utterly gripping story of alien encounter and survival from Adrian Tchaikovsky, author of the Arthur C. Clarke Award-winning Children of Time, and paints a grim and grotesque vision of the future, where humanity’s expansion into the cosmos is as much a test of endurance (and capitalist hell) as it is a descent into existential dread.

The descriptions of Shroud itself—its tendrils curling through the void, the sensation of alien briar tightening around the atmosphere—are striking. The opening chapters, in particular, are a masterclass in setting the tone, so much so that I found myself rereading them just to soak in their gnarly brilliance again and again.

Tchaikovsky’s writing heavily leans into ambiguity, using a mix of perspectives and deliberately vague language to reinforce the unknowable nature of Shroud and its horrors. The book constantly shifts, leaving you unmoored in a way that mirrors the characters’ own descent into fear and uncertainty. Alien encounters are presented in strange, fragmented imagery rather than overtly explicit detail, making them all the more unsettling.

The prose itself even feels unstable at times, as if the words are bending under the weight of something beyond comprehension. Tchaikovsky does his best at making the sci-fi elements accessible, but it’s still a style that won’t work for everyone—those looking for clear explanations or firm resolutions may find themselves frustrated at times—but it’s undeniably effective at immersing you in a world that feels utterly alien.

The characters, particularly Juna Ceelander and Mai Ste Etienne, are an interesting study in detachment. They begin as almost intentionally blank slates, their personalities stripped down to what’s necessary to survive in their assigned roles. There’s a sense that they’re meant to be shaped by their time on Shroud, and they do develop more emotion as they struggle against its horrors. Yet there’s also moments they also regress, hollowed out by their experiences for the faceless corporate machine that sent them there in the first place.

In the leadup to its global launch, Monster Hunter Wilds broke pre-order records on both Steam and PlayStation. It effortlessly followed in the footsteps of its extraordinarily popular predecessors, 2022’s Monster Hunter Rise and 2018’s Monster Hunter: World, achieving sales that truly cements Capcom’s unique and esoteric RPG series as one of the biggest video game franchises in the whole world.

But that wasn’t always the case. Less than a decade ago, the idea of a Monster Hunter game attaining such remarkable popularity across the globe would have seemed alien. Rewind the clock even further, back to when Monster Hunter hit the scene in 2004, and it would have seemed even more farfetched: the original game was met with mixed reviews. It wasn’t until a year later when Monster Hunter made the jump to the PSP did the series really blow up… in Japan.

That’s right. For a long time, Monster Hunter was the poster child for the “game series bigger in Japan than the rest of the world” phenomenon. The reasons for this were simple, as this story will explain, but that didn’t stop Capcom from trying to figure out how to break Monster Hunter through to the international market. And, as Monster Hunters World, Rise, and now Wilds proves, it was well worth the effort.

This is how Monster Hunter went from a domestic hit to a global force.

Capcom has announced early details of Monster Hunter Wilds’ first major patch, which is due early April.

Amid the huge launch of Monster Hunter Wilds itself, Capcom detailed Title Update 1 in a post on Steam. The company said the patch’s early April release date, set to arrive a little over a month after the game itself, “will give hunters enough time to prepare for the new content, and challenges, that await them.”

To that end, Title Update 1 adds a new level of challenge: “Prepare your gear, and resolve, hunters!” Capcom said. “TU1 will bring with it a monster of formidable strength at a level above Tempered!” Meanwhile, a new challenging monster will be added with Title Update 1.

Interestingly, Title Update 1 also adds an endgame place to gather. “A new place to meet, communicate, have meals together and more with other hunters will be added to Monster Hunter Wilds in TU1!” Capcom said.

“This area will be available to hunters who have completed the main story, so get hunting and be ready!”

Early reaction to the news that Title Update 1 will add a place for endgame players to gather has been mixed, with some welcoming the addition, others wondering why it’s not in the game at launch. It sounds very much like a Gathering Hub from previous Monster Hunter games, but as some have pointed out, it’s interesting that Capcom has chosen not to call it that here. While other players can turn up in your camp, Monster Hunter Wilds lacks a true social hub, so hopefully whatever this is will fill the void.

Capcom released a few images showcasing this new place to gather:

Meanwhile, Capcom issued a Monster Hunter Wilds troubleshooting guide amid ‘mixed’ Steam user reviews.

To help get your Monster Hunter Wilds adventure started, take a look at what Monster Hunter Wilds doesn’t tell you, and a guide to all 14 weapon types in the game. We’ve also got a detailed Monster Hunter Wilds walkthrough in progress, a Monster Hunter Wilds multiplayer guide to explain how to play with friends, and if you’ve played one of the open betas, here’s how to transfer your Monster Hunter Wilds Beta character over.

IGN’s Monster Hunter Wilds review returned an 8/10. We said: “Monster Hunter Wilds continues to smooth off the rougher corners of the series in smart ways, making for some extremely fun fights but also lacking any real challenge.”

Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.

Capcom has issued official advice for PC via Steam players of Monster Hunter Wilds after the game launched to a ‘mixed’ user review rating due to performance issues.

The Japanese games company said Steam users should try updating their graphics driver, turning off compatibility mode, and then readjust their settings if they’re experiencing any initial issues.

“Thank you all for your patience and support!” Capcom said in a tweet.

One of the ‘Not Recommended’ Steam reviews flagged as ‘most helpful’ says Monster Hunter Wilds “has the worst optimisation I’ve ever seen.”

“I understand that new games are becoming more demanding and people are expected to upgrade, but this is absurd,” they said. “I’m aware this isn’t the first instance of new games having poor performance on launch, because the same thing happened with World, but it feels inexcusable at this point.

“I am by no means saying the game is bad, but in its current state, you should probably consider waiting for a more stable release.”

Another negative review also focused on the game’s optimization, saying: “Absolutely atrocious performance for how the game looks. Runs even worse than the beta.”

In a bid to help Steam users improve matters, Capcom published a ‘Troubleshooting & Known Issues’ guide with potential solutions. Capcom asked PC players to follow the steps below “to rule out problems with your PC, Steam, or the game’s files.”

Monster Hunter Wilds troubleshooting and known issues guide

Troubleshooting

When the game does not run properly, please try the steps below.

1. Make sure you meet the minimum system requirements for the game.
2. Update your Video/Graphics Drivers.
3. Check for Windows Updates and ensure all of the latest programs are installed to your OS.
4. If you still experience issues, try performing a clean installation of the video driver set.
5. Update DirectX to the latest version.
   For details on how to update DirectX, please visit the Microsoft support page or Microsoft Download Center.
6. Add the game’s folder and files to your anti-virus program’s exception / exclusion list.
   Default Paths:
   C:Program Files (x86)SteamSteamAppscommonMonsterHunterWilds
   C:Program Files (x86)SteamSteamAppscommonMonsterHunterWildsMonsterHunterWilds.exe
7. Add folder and files for Steam.exe to your anti-virus program’s exception / exclusion list.
   *Default Paths:
   C:Program Files (x86)Steam
   C:Program Files (x86)SteamSteam.exe
8. Give administrator privileges to Steam.
   To run Steam.exe in administrator mode, right-click on the .exe file and select “Run as administrator.”
9. If you still experience issues, try logging into your PC in administrator mode and then run the game’s execution file (MonsterHunterWilds.exe).
10. Verify the game’s files on Steam.
    To verify your game’s files, follow these steps:
    (1) Restart your computer and launch Steam.
    (2) From the “Library” section, right-click on the game, and select “Properties” from the menu.
    (3) Select the “Installed Files” tab and click the “Verify integrity of game files” button.
    (4) Steam will verify the game’s files – this process may take several minutes.
    Important: One or more files may fail to verify. The files that fail to verify are local configuration files that should not be replaced as part of this process. You can safely ignore this message. If problematic files were detected during this process, Steam will automatically download and / or replace those files.
11. Disable Compatibility Mode for “MonsterHunterWilds.exe” if enabled.
    (1) Right click on “MonsterHunterWilds.exe” located in the following folder:
    　　C:Program Files (x86)SteamSteamAppscommonMonsterHunterWilds
    　　 *The above is the default location.
    (2) Go to Properties
    (3) Open Compatibility tab
    (4) Untick “Run this program in compatibility mode for:”
    If the above does not resolve the issue, please disable the Compatibility Mode for “Steam.exe” located in the folder below.
    C:Program Files (x86)Steam
12. If you still experience issues, please also try the troubleshooting steps on the Official Monster Hunter Wilds Troubleshooting & Issue Reporting Thread posted on the Steam community page as they contain more detailed and additional steps that may help resolve your issue.

Despite these performance problems, Monster Hunter Wilds is off to an incredible start, with nearly 1 million concurrent players on Steam alone. That’s enough to crack Steam’s top 10 most-played games of all-time list, and it’s only going to get bigger as we head into the weekend.

To help get your Monster Hunter Wilds adventure started, take a look at what Monster Hunter Wilds doesn’t tell you, and a guide to all 14 weapon types in the game. We’ve also got a detailed Monster Hunter Wilds walkthrough in progress, a Monster Hunter Wilds multiplayer guide to explain how to play with friends, and if you’ve played one of the open betas, here’s how to transfer your Monster Hunter Wilds Beta character over.

IGN’s Monster Hunter Wilds review returned an 8/10. We said: “Monster Hunter Wilds continues to smooth off the rougher corners of the series in smart ways, making for some extremely fun fights but also lacking any real challenge.”

Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.

Monster Hunter Wilds has enjoyed a huge launch, with nearly 1 million concurrent players on Steam.

Capcom’s action adventure game launched on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X and S, and quickly became the eighth most-played game on Steam of all-time with an incredible 987,482 concurrent users.

To put it into context, that’s ahead of the all-time peaks of best-sellers Elden Ring, Hogwarts Legacy, and Baldur’s Gate 3. It’s already outstripped its predecessor on Steam, where 2018’s Monster Hunter World enjoyed a peak concurrent figure of 334,684.

And it’s worth noting that Monster Hunter Wilds’ actual peak concurrent figure will be much higher, given neither Sony nor Microsoft report player numbers.

The question now is how high can that Steam concurrent figure go as Monster Hunter Wilds heads into its first weekend on sale and beyond. It seems likely it will crack the 1 million concurrents mark later today, overtaking Cyberpunk 2077 in the process. Could 2 million be possible?

While Capcom is yet to announce a sales figure for Monster Hunter Wilds, all signs point to a hugely successful release. (Monster Hunter World topped 25 million sales in six years to cement its position as Capcom’s best-selling title ever.) However, the game has a ‘mixed’ user review rating on Steam, with some reporting performance problems.

IGN’s Monster Hunter Wilds review returned an 8/10. We said: “Monster Hunter Wilds continues to smooth off the rougher corners of the series in smart ways, making for some extremely fun fights but also lacking any real challenge.”

Check out our How Long Is Monster Hunter Wilds? page to find out how long it took various members of the IGN team to beat the game. Preparing for the hunt? Take a look at our list of every confirmed monster in Monster Hunter Wilds, and our guide to all 14 weapon types in the game.

Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.