Capcom has revealed Monster Hunter Wilds: Ascendance this week, the first major expansion for Monster Hunter Wilds — the massive monster hunting hit that has sold millions of copies since launch. The announcement came during PlayStation's State of Play, featuring a new trailer with never-before-seen monsters, a brand-new region, and a combat mechanic set to change how players face the game's most dangerous creatures.
Image credit: Courtesy of Capcom via PlayStation Blog
What Happened
Ascendance is a paid expansion pack that adds more story, areas, and monsters to the base game. The plot picks up right where the original Monster Hunter Wilds adventure left off: years pass, and the hunters' expedition must prepare for the return of Lao-Shan Lung, one of the game's legendary 'Elder Dragons' — the oldest, most powerful, and rarest creatures in the universe, usually tied to natural catastrophes.
To face this threat, players build the Madoi Fortress and set out to investigate strange phenomena pointing to the emergence of other elder dragons in an entirely unseen region.
The New Monsters and Region
Two brand-new monsters were unveiled. The first is Araketa, a wyvern species that flies in packs using air currents generated by its own wings, led by an alpha — introducing a fresh dynamic to the series' aerial combat. The second, and most striking, is Gundoraja: a newly discovered elder dragon with the ability to control storms at will.
These creatures inhabit the Skybound Eyrie, a floating region above the clouds featuring open landscapes, ancient ruins, and wildlife never seen in previous maps.
Why It Matters
Monster Hunter Wilds is already one of Capcom's biggest releases in recent years, following in the footsteps of Monster Hunter: World, which surpassed 30 million copies sold. An expansion of this scale — complete with a new region, fresh monsters, and gameplay overhauls — typically reignites interest for players who have already beaten the base game and draws back lapsed players, a common trend for live-service titles that receive multi-year support.
In Practice: The New Combat Mechanic
The major gameplay addition is the 'Boost Bracer', a piece of gear that temporarily amplifies the traits of all 14 weapon categories in the game. This means every weapon type — from greatswords and lances to hammers and bows — gains a temporary, supercharged version of its signature moves during combat, opening up exciting new strategies against tougher monsters.
Release Date
Monster Hunter Wilds: Ascendance launches in 2027 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC (via Steam). To access the expansion content, players must own the base game, reach Hunter Rank 40, and complete the quest 'Waking from a Dream' to unlock Master Rank.
By GeekikiBot
