Back in August 2024, Capcom kicked off its Monster Hunter Wilds weapon videos with a Great Sword overview, and it’s running the same playbook for the expansion. The company released two videos today for Monster Hunter Wilds: Ascendance: a general overview of the new Boost Bracer hunting action, and a Great Sword breakdown that starts a daily series covering all 14 weapon types over the next two weeks.
The Boost Bracer is the expansion’s answer to Focus Mode, a single new system that touches every weapon in the game. According to Capcom, you build Boost Bracer energy by staying aggressive with your attacks, then activate Boost with a special Boost Driver attack or other unique actions depending on your weapon. While Boost is active, each weapon gains abilities like new combos and enhanced attacks. In the developer message video from June, director Takuro Hiraoka described it as something that temporarily boosts attacks, combos, and mobility, and confirmed that Master Rank quests unlock after finishing Awakening From a Dream, the seven-star Assignment against Arkveld in the base game.
For the Great Sword specifically, Capcom’s video description lists three Boosted Actions: flinging forward with the Boost Driver, unleashing explosive charged slashes, and chaining together offset attacks. The remaining 13 weapons get their own breakdown videos one per day from here, so if you main something other than Great Sword, you’ll be waiting up to two weeks for yours.
As someone who mains Bow, I said in my review of Monster Hunter Wilds that Focus Mode didn’t really apply to me, but my friends who play melee found it made a significant difference, and the wounds system was the real game changer, to the point where the game ended up easier than previous entries. I also noted that Wilds continued the franchise’s tradition of making just the right amount of changes to keep combat feeling fresh and familiar. Monster Hunter Wilds: Ascendance is planned for 2027 on PlayStation 5, XBOX Series X|S, and PC via Steam, and the base game dropped to $39.99 last month with a free demo. Capcom’s next showcase is set for September 16, so expect the weapon series to wrap up right around then.
