The gaming world was already pretty certain that Monster Hunter Wilds was going to be a big deal, but today’s launch of the multiplayer RPG is even bigger than expected, as the opening hours of the game’s release saw huge player numbers on Steam – over 1.2M of them to be exact.
To put that number in context, the game rocketed its way to the second most-played spot on the platform so far and is effectively double the number of concurrent players for World and Rise at their respective all-time peaks combined. And in what’s likely most important for Capcom as a business, it’s at the top of the Steam sales charts as well.
The game’s launch was a big enough deal that Palworld developer Pocketpair gave its employees today off of work. Readers should also bear in mind that this game is on other console platforms and that it’s the first with crossplay available, so all of these figures are likely much higher.
However, the launch on PC is not without its woes, particularly in the case of performance, as multiple Steam users are expressing their deep discontent with negative reviews that complain about optimization and problems with some higher-end GPUs. Capcom has put out a troubleshooting guide for players in an effort to help, which offers suggestions like ensuring drivers for DirectX and graphics are up-to-date and ensuring the executable isn’t being run in compatibility mode.
Grumbling about the game being too easy has also prompted the developers to share some initial extra details about its first post-launch update, which promises two challenging monsters including “a monster of formidable strength at a level above Tempered” and a social hub where players can “meet, communicate, have meals together and more.” The post also confirms the first update will arrive in early April.
Meanwhile, players are being handed 100 armor spheres, being reminded of how to claim extra free goodies, and being asked to share their thoughts in a survey that will be open until March 27th.
