Monster Hunter Wilds: Unveiling the Cooking System

Summary

• Monster Hunter Wilds prioritizes visually appealing in-game food, employing exaggerated realism.
• Dining is flexible, embracing a campfire cooking aesthetic rather than a formal restaurant setting.
• The game boasts a diverse culinary selection, including a secret, extravagant meat dish, designed to heighten the enjoyment of food-related gameplay.

Monster Hunter Wilds is raising the bar for delectable-looking in-game food, according to key developers Kaname Fujioka and Yuya Tokuda. The game features a wide array of meat, fish, and vegetable dishes meticulously crafted to look incredibly appetizing, exceeding even realistic standards.

Food has been a staple in the Monster Hunter franchise since 2004, starting with simple monster meat. This mechanic has evolved, with food's benefits growing increasingly crucial and the menu expanding significantly. Since 2018's Monster Hunter World, the focus on realistic dining experiences has intensified, aiming to create meals players genuinely crave.

This trend intensifies in Monster Hunter Wilds (launching February 28, 2025), according to Fujioka and Tokuda. They believe few games showcase truly appetizing food. "Realistic isn't enough," Fujioka stated in an IGN interview. "You need to consider what makes food look delicious." This involves a blend of realism and exaggeration, drawing inspiration from anime and commercials, incorporating special lighting and stylized food models.

Monster Hunter Wilds Devs Employ Exaggerated Realism in Cooking Scenes

Unlike previous entries, Monster Hunter Wilds allows players to dine anywhere, creating a campfire cooking experience instead of a restaurant setting. A December preview showcased an enticing cheese pull, hinting at the culinary delights to come. Even simple dishes, like roasted cabbage (a challenge for Fujioka), are made appealing through effects like realistic puffing as the lid is lifted, as seen in accompanying video showcasing a roasted egg topping.

Tokuda, a self-proclaimed meat enthusiast, teased a secret "extravagant" meat dish, though he remained tight-lipped about the specifics. The game emphasizes a wide variety of dishes and the joyful expressions of characters enjoying their meals around a campfire, creating an exaggerated yet realistic sense of culinary bliss in its cooking scenes.