Monster Hunter Wilds Explains Cooking System

Enhanced Culinary Realism in Monster Hunter Wilds: A Feast for the Eyes

Monster Hunter Wilds is set to redefine in-game food presentation, prioritizing appetizing visuals through a blend of realism and stylized exaggeration. Developers Kaname Fujioka and Yuya Tokuda aim to surpass mere realism, focusing on what truly makes food look delicious, drawing inspiration from anime and commercial food presentations. This approach involves strategic lighting and exaggerated food modeling.

The game boasts a diverse culinary selection, ranging from meat and fish dishes to vegetable options. The development team has meticulously crafted each dish to appear incredibly savory, exceeding the boundaries of photorealism.

Building upon the series' long-standing cooking mechanic, Monster Hunter Wilds introduces a novel approach to dining. Unlike previous iterations, players can enjoy their meals anywhere, creating a more casual, campfire-style experience rather than a formal restaurant setting. This is exemplified by a previously showcased, mouthwatering cheese pull, and extends to simpler dishes like roasted cabbage, which, through the use of realistic puffing effects upon unveiling, achieves surprising visual appeal.

Director Tokuda, a self-proclaimed meat enthusiast, hints at a secret, extravagant meat dish, adding to the game's already impressive culinary offerings. The overall focus is on a wide variety of dishes and the expressive reactions of characters enjoying their meals, amplifying the sense of culinary delight within the game's cooking sequences. The game launches February 28, 2025.