From dry deserts, bustling forests, blazing volcanos to even frozen tundra, a variety of environments appear throughout the Monster Hunter series, each with its own unique ecosystem created by a diverse cast of monsters. The experience of adventuring through an unknown world, walking across its lands as you hunt, is one of the great joys when playing Monster Hunter.
This holds true for Monster Hunter Wilds, the newest game in the franchise. After the Windward Plains and Scarlet Forest, hunters will take their next step into the harsh lands of the Oilwell Basin, a place covered in flames and oilsilt. Once there, they'll find their path blocked by dripping, viscous oil and all-blazing magma. While it may seem to be a sterile, lifeless place, one can see the sluggish movements of small creatures wriggling around in the mire. And here and there in the Oilwell Basin sits what looks like the remains of some ancient civilization.
Yuya Tokuda, director of both Monster Hunter: World and Monster Hunter Wilds, describes the Oilwell Basin to us.
"During the Fallow, the Oilwell Basin is a place filled with mud and oil. When the Inclemency known as the Firespring comes, it burns away that oilsilt, and at times during the Plenty the burned-away oil and soot vanishes, revealing the minerals, microorganisms and the original color of the manmade artifacts hidden underneath," he says.
Down in the Muck
What kind of concept did the development team have in mind when constructing the Oilwell Basin? We ask Kaname Fujioka, director of the first Monster Hunter as well as executive director and art director for Wilds.
"We had two horizontally broad locales in the Windward Plains and Scarlet Forest, so we decided to make the Oilwell Basin a vertically connected place,” he says. “The environment there changes slightly when you travel between the top, middle and bottom strata. Sunlight reaches the top strata, where oil gathers like mud, and the lower you go, the hotter the place becomes, with lava and other substances."
Tokuda continues: "From the middle to bottom strata, you'll find creatures not unlike aquatic life that may remind you of the deep seas or underwater volcanoes. In World, we created the ecosystem of the Coral Highlands using the idea of what it would look like if aquatic creatures lived on the surface, and we've used the knowledge we gained in the process to create the Oilwell Basin's creatures and ecosystem.
It's a blazing and barren wasteland that becomes filled with vitality once the Plenty comes. Fujioka says he wants players to enjoy this contrast.
"During the Fallow and Inclemency, smoke comes out of everywhere in the Oilwell Basin like it's some sort of volcano or hot spring,” he explains. “But during the Plenty, it takes on a clear, marine-like tone as we just mentioned. Look closely at the environmental biology and you'll find that it's even a region inhabited by the kinds of creatures you'd expect to find on the ocean bed."
The Oilwell Basin's environment is made in a way that differentiates it from other locales. While it may look lifeless when covered in oilsilt, not only do shellfish like shrimp and crabs live under it, so do small monsters that provide raw meat. Large monsters eat small monsters, small monsters filter out and consume microorganisms from the environment and oilsilt, and microorganisms derive energy from the heat of the earth. If the Windward Plains and Scarlet Forest are ecosystems built upon sunlight and vegetation, the Oilwell Basin is an environment belonging to creatures that live by way of geothermal energy.
The large monsters that live in the Oilwell Basin are distinct from those found in other locales as well. One such monster is Rompopolo, a globular and noxious creature with a mouth resembling thin needles. What ideas could have led the developers to Rompopolo's bizarre design? Fujioka explains
"We designed it as a tricky monster that lives in swamps and creates chaos for players by using its stored up toxic gas,” he says. “The idea of a mad scientist came up often when we were trying to depict this trickiness. We were inspired by this concept when giving it a slightly chemical purple color and glowing red eyes. The equipment you can craft from it is surprisingly cute, though. So is its Palico equipment."
While Tokuda categorizes the Rompopolo Palico equipment as "amusing,” I could see exactly what they both meant when I got to play with it myself. I hope you'll craft the equipment and check it out, too.
Flames of Ajarakan
Another new monster appearing in the Oilwell Basin is Ajarakan, a monster that feels like a massive gorilla enveloped in flames. That said, unlike the Scarlet Forest's Congalala, it seems to have a slimmer sort of silhouette.
Another new monster appearing in the Oilwell Basin is Ajarakan, a monster that feels like a massive gorilla enveloped in flames. That said, unlike the Scarlet Forest's Congalala, it seems to have a slimmer sort of silhouette.
While we saw many scenes of Rompopolo and Ajarakan fighting for turf in this video, we actually see it grab Rompopolo's body with both arms to give it a bear hug. Its martial arts-inspired movements make frequent use of its fists, giving it a charm unlike that of fanged beasts we've seen before.
"Normally when we design fanged beasts, their hips are low to the ground, putting their heads at about eye level with the hunter,” says Tokuda. “We thought that this can make it harder to sense the threat that the monster poses. That's why we were conscious of giving this monster a more top-heavy and towering silhouette. We then added flame elements that are at home in the Oilwell Basin, as well as grabbing attacks reminiscent of a wrestler that highlight its physical strength. It's a monster that combines strength, physical attacks and flames, like its attack where it melts something and tosses it at you."
Fujioka also comments on Ajarakan's design: "With one unique monster after the next making an appearance, we thought that this might be a good time to add a monster whose strengths are easy to understand. That's how we got Ajarakan. It just punches or slams its fists on the ground to make flames shoot up, making it the kind of monster that's strong by way of all its super-straightforward attacks."
Ajarakan occupies a fairly high position in Oilwell Basins's ecosystem. Compared to Rompopolo, which makes full use of poison gas and oilsilt, Ajarakan really does stand out with its flashy appearance, with flames and magma accompanying each one of its attacks, making you very conscious of the area's pecking order.
"At first it was just kind of a physically powerful monster,” says Fujioka. “That's why I talked quite a bit with our artists and designers about giving it more personality in some way. It's a monster in a fiery location, so I wanted to make use of flames and heat. That said, I didn't want it to simply breathe fire or create flames. That's how we ended up with a design where the monster seems to be wearing flames on its back, similar to the Buddhist deity Acala. From there we got the idea of Ajarakan's rising internal temperature giving it enough heat and power to melt anything in front of it, which seemed to give it so much more personality. Ajarakan will grab the hunter or hug Rompopolo, and we wanted to make players think about how much they'd want to avoid getting hugged by an absurdly hot creature. We decided to make it seem scary by making it so hot that it'll melt anything and everything around."
Unlike the tricky Rompopolo, Ajarakan's design focuses on straightforward power. As there's the risk of its concept of depicting simple strength leading to no-frills movements, Fujioka says the team kept giving it flashier and flashier moves as they reached the end of development.
"We kept adding lots of different interesting techniques, like it jumping into the air, balling itself up and falling to the ground," he says.
A monster generations in the making
Ruling over the Oilwell Basin's ecosystem as its apex predator with octopus-like tentacles is the “Black Flame,” which we can finally name for the first time: Nu Udra. With its slimy body covered with the flammable oil it secretes, it stretches and wriggles around the Oilwell Basin in every direction. Just as the Windward Plains' Rey Dau controls lightning and the Scarlet Forest's Uth Duna envelops itself in water, Nu Udra coats itself in flames. The two developers say that apex predators in Wilds are designed with the element of their region strongly in mind. Of course, finding an octopus in a scorching hot area is odd. Was this really the animal that inspired the monster?
"Yes, it was octopuses,” says Fujioka. “We also wanted its silhouette to be striking when it rises up and gave it what look like demonic horns, but we also tried designing it in a way where you can't tell where its face is."
Tokuda explains that even the music that plays when fighting Nu Udra is based on demonic imagery.
"We had the composers include phrases and musical instruments reminiscent of black magic,” he says. “I think it ended up being a unique and good piece of music."
The squirming movements of Nu Udra's tentacles apparently follow in the footsteps of monsters like Lagiacrus, which appeared in Monster Hunter Tri. A tentacled monster like this is a concept that both Tokuda and Fujioka have long wanted to make a reality.
"One of the concepts in Tri was underwater combat, so I did write a proposal for an octopus-shaped monster at the time, emphasizing its distinctive underwater movements,” says Tokuda. “I had fun coming up with all kinds of ideas, like 'It has lots of legs, which means lots of parts you can sever!' There were challenges keeping us from making that a reality, though, including technical ones. But even so, I've been holding onto that proposal for all this time."
We've seen monsters in the past such as Yama Tsukami and Nakarkos that wriggle around as they use appendages like their tentacles. I ask Fujioka if they took the movements of these past monsters into consideration when developing Nu Udra.
"We're always interested in using monsters who move like that in moments where they'd stand out, as their silhouette and the impression they give are nothing like standard monsters with limbs and wings,” he says. “While including too many unique monsters will cause players to get tired of seeing them, dropping one in at just the right moment leaves such a strong impression. That's why we had Yama Tsukami appear in the game the way it did,” he says, referring to the scene in Monster Hunter 2 (Dos) where you encounter Yama Tsukami floating over the mountains in a deep forest. “You glance up, see it flying above you, and think, 'What the heck is that?' I think there's a kind of adventurous feeling you get from seeing something a bit odd, similar to cryptids."
Hearing this, Tokuda adds with a nostalgic tone, "You know, I'm the one who put that (Yama Tsukami) there." While they weren't able to create the same kind of actions for Yama Tsukami as they have for Nu Udra due to the technology at the time, they say they wanted to find some way for it to leave an impression.
A constant feeling I get throughout this interview is one of just how sincere Monster Hunter's team is throughout the development process about creating monsters, and that they make use of so many techniques in the process. Even if it can't be done with current technology, these creators have countless ideas in their heads about how they want to use a monster. Then when they develop a new title, they draw on this stockpile when creating new monsters. In that sense, you could call the realization of a monster that makes full use of its tentacles like Nu Udra a major accomplishment for both Tokuda and Fujioka.
"While Yama Tsukami and Nakarkos were monsters that attacked you with their tentacles while fixed there in a stage, Nu Udra makes use of its physical traits as a cephalopod to freely move around the area. In that way, the gameplay it enables could be seen as something we're trying for the very first time here."
Fujioka continues: "Monsters with tentacles like that pose a lot of technical challenges, like controlling it with respect to the terrain and its target. When we began development on Wilds, the technical department's tests went incredibly well, and so we felt like we could really make it happen this time."
"When we saw the tests, we also thought to make it the apex predator of the Oilwell Basin,” adds Tokuda. “That's just how much of an impact this monster has.”
"While there are countless proposals that I've had rejected due to technical reasons, it feels like I'm finally getting to attempt one of those this time around."
Even outside of hunting, I get the sense that fine attention was placed on Nu Udra's animations. After you deal it enough damage, it wraps itself around what looks like an ancient ruined pipe in order to wriggle its way around the area. It even enters into small holes in the terrain without any trouble at all. Every one of Nu Udra's movements posed a challenge to the art team led by Fujioka.
"We did quite a lot of work on depicting flexible bodies this time with Nu Udra,” he says. “At the start of development, we try coming up with pretty unreasonable ideas, whether or not we can actually achieve them. It's a challenge to ourselves in a way, and while it does cause a lot of challenges for our artists, the final product looks so amazing if we're able to actually make it take shape."
The team uses new technologies to make possible the ideal expressions they've accumulated as the series progresses. They give it a try even if they aren't sure they can make it happen. I even get a sense of what it feels like to be on the Monster Hunter development floor when I hear these two talk.
"When we first implemented the movement of it going inside a hole, an animator told me, 'When you weaken it and it starts heading back to its nest, please wait here for a moment!',” says Tokuda. “Apparently they wanted me to see it going into its little hole, and I still remember replying, 'Oh, that really is amazing!' The animator looked so satisfied as well."
"It might not be easy to get the chance to see it, but the way it squirms around while wrapped around a pipe is so well made too,” says Fujioka. “I do hope you check it out. Only games are able to depict things like that in real-time instead of as some premade scene. I'm incredibly proud of it as a crystallization of the staff's efforts."
Fujioka's tone of voice gives me a strong sense of just how satisfied he is with the level of detail of Wilds' monsters and how proud he is of the team who created this game.
Once I actually try taking on Nu Udra, I have significant trouble finding an opening on its flexible and ever-changing body. If I let my guard down and stick too close to it, it uses its head to launch a powerful counterattack. While I struggle, I somehow manage to focus enough of my attacks to successfully break a tentacle part, only for its severed tip to thrash around on the ground. Is it possible to destroy all of its many legs?
"You can cut off so many tentacles,” Tokuda explains. “While I suppose it depends on how you count them, all of the parts that resemble legs that touch the ground can be severed. While the tentacles do move right after they've been cut off, they begin to rot after some time passes. If you try to carve a part that's rotten and no longer moving, you won't get good materials from it. The same also applies for breakable parts of other monsters, like tails.”
“Nu Udra uses its tentacles to launch attack after attack on its target. We were conscious to give its attacks a unique tempo through a combination of focused attacks, and area-of-effect attacks using its head and flames. We wanted to make it a massive monster that still seemed to launch a barrage of attacks. With all of its tentacles, though, it's possible that it becomes difficult to tell who it's targeting in situations like multiplayer hunts. That's why we've made it so that it has sensory organs at the tips of its tentacles that use light to indicate when and who it's going to attack."
At times, Nu Udra will hold its tentacles in the air and slam them into the ground as an attack. Like Tokuda says, its area that would correspond to the palm of a human hand gives off light when it does this. This light-emitting section of its body is Nu Udra's sensory organ. But as it doesn't use vision to understand the world around it, Flash Bombs don't affect it.
Nu Udra poses a significant challenge. I ask Tokuda what players can do to start working toward defeating it.
"Its body itself is fairly soft, and it has lots of breakable parts,” he replies. “I think hunters should think about how to determine where to attack. Cutting off a tentacle will also shorten its area of effect attacks, making it much easier to move around. You could also call it a monster made for multiplayer, as that means its targets will be split up. You may be able to enjoy it even more by using SOS flares, Support Hunters included."
Fujioka expands further. "As we designed this monster, I thought it's one that can be tackled in a way that's very much like an action game in the sense that destroying its parts can help you get closer to defeating it. Gravios is another monster where you discover a way to defeat it as you destroy its tough armor, right? The ability to carefully watch a monster's movements and use that to make a decision fits perfectly with Monster Hunter's overall approach."
A welcome reunion
In his answer, Fujioka brings up the name Gravios. That's right, players can reunite with Gravios, who hasn't been seen since Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate, in the Oilwell Basin. As a monster covered in what looks like a rocky carapace and which emits hot gas, Gravios really is a perfect monster for the area.
I ask Tokuda what led them to decide to have Gravios make another appearance (for more details, check out this Gravios interview as well).
"When we were thinking of monsters that match the Oilwell Basin's environment, make sense in the game's overall progression and don't play too similarly to any other monsters, we thought that we could make Gravios seem like a fresh challenge and decided that it would reappear," he says.
As Tokuda says, the reappearing Gravios had become a monster with an even harder body than I remembered. Its massive presence is overwhelming when compared to the other monsters in the Oilwell Basin. When I somehow figure out a way to attack its rocky carapace, I'm able to form red wounds on its body like any other monster and unleash a Focus Strike.
"When bringing Gravios over to this game from previous titles, above all else, we wanted to make sure it still had its distinguishing features like its hardness,” says Tokuda. “From a game design perspective, we also wanted it to be a monster that appeared after you've progressed a good bit and had gone through everything the game's design has to offer. That's why I came up with the idea of it being a monster where it's difficult to figure out a way to defeat its hard body at first, only for hunters to find more and more clues as they make good use of the wound system and part breaking."
If Gravios is making an appearance, does that mean we'll also be seeing its juvenile form, Basarios? I ask the question, only for Fujioka to simply reply, "Sorry, but Basarios will be taking this one off." It seems like the time isn't quite right yet, and we'll have to wait longer before we see Basarios again.
As the two explained during our interview about monster selection, the Monster Hunter team is careful to not make offhanded decisions about having monsters reappear, only doing so if they can be used to their fullest in a game. That means that the team must have decided to not include Basarios in this game after multiple discussions. Though a bit unfortunate, many other monsters not touched on in this article will also make an appearance in the Oilwell Basin. I can't wait for the day when I get to go hunting there, Cool Drink in hand.
Monster Hunter Wilds is scheduled for release on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC on February 28. For more, check out our exclusive 4K gameplay videos hunting Ajarakan and Rompopolo in the new Oilwell Basin area, our interview with the development team on how Monster Hunter has evolved over the years, and details on the game’s delicious food system. And look out for more monstrous exclusives throughout January as part of IGN First!
Shuka Yamada is a freelance writer for IGN Japan. This article was translated by Ko Ransom.
