Monster Hunter Wilds: Ascendance has revealed a fearsome new Elder Dragon in its latest trailer.
Monster Hunter Wilds: Ascendance has revealed a new trailer in the PlayStation State of Play on Thursday (3 September), revealing two new monsters, including a new Elder Dragon, as well as new developments in the game's story.
Ascendance's latest trailer notably confirms that the expansion will be taking place after a time-skip following the events of the base game, as Nata and other younger characters can be seen to have grown up. Changes to the environment and the monsters that inhabit them can also be seen, with both deposits of Wylk and Guardian Monsters now popping up outside of the Ruins of Wyveria.
Monster Hunter Wilds: Ascendance
Release date: 2027
Platforms: PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S
Developer: Capcom
Monster Hunter Wilds: Ascendance reveals new Elder Dragon ‘Gundoraja’
Headlining the latest trailer for Ascendance is the reveal of a new Elder Dragon called ‘Gundoraja’. Gundoraja appears reminiscent of Eastern-style dragons, as it has a long, serpentine body and the ability to fly despite not having any visible wings. It is described as having the ability to control storms at will and has suddenly emerged amidst the inclement weather affecting the Skybound Eyrie.
In the world of Monster Hunter, Elder Dragons are powerful creatures that can alter their local ecosystem with their mere presence, and whose abilities set them apart from the usual classification of monsters. Monster Hunter Wilds' base game notably launched without a single Elder Dragon in its roster, with its first Elder Dragon Gogmazios only coming in a later update.
Aside from Gundoraja, the trailer also revealed a mysterious new monster that has yet to be named. This new monster is small, similar in size to a Jagras, and emerged from the corpse of a Guardian Doshaguma while seemingly expelling a mysterious gooey substance from it body. It is also able to distend almost the entire front half of its body to reveal an oversized set of jaws.
The new Flying Wyvern first revealed in the expansion's announcement trailer has also been finally named: Araketa. The Araketa inhabit the Skybound Eyrie and travel in packs, with each individual capable of high-speed flight across vast distances by controlling powerful air currents released from its wings. Leaders of Araketa packs can emit distinctive calls that enable them to command and coordinate the movements of the pack.
Monster Hunter Wilds: Ascendance tease new Lao Shan Lung hunt
Ascendance's latest trailer also teased how the hunt for the returning Elder Dragon Lao Shan Lung will look like. Players will apparently have access to a new home base called the ‘Stronghold’, which seems to have been built to protect the settlements in the Forbidden Lands against the rampaging Elder Dragon.
Similar to how Lao Shan Lung hunts worked in previous games, players will have to protect the Stronghold from being destroyed by the enormous Elder Dragon. Cannons and other heavy weaponry will help hunters toward this goal, though they will still have to face the mighty Lao Shan Lung head-on with their weapons in order to either repel or slay it.
Another returning Elder Dragon in Ascendance is Kushala Daora, seen in the latest trailer to be inhabiting the Windward Plains. Kushala Daora have the uncanny ability to control the wind and also boast a metallic skin, which causes attacks from weapons that are not sharp enough to simply bounce off.
What is Monster Hunter Wilds: Ascendance?
Ascendance will be the major expansion for Monster Hunter Wilds, adding a ton of new content to the base game in the same vein as Iceborne and Sunbreak for Monster Hunter World and Monster Hunter Rise, respectively.
One of the biggest additions coming with Ascendance is Master Rank, which introduces a higher tier of difficulty for monster hunts that lets players hunt stronger monsters from the base game and the expansion to craft new weapons, armour, and more. Existing monsters from Monster Hunter Wilds' base game will not be the only ones players can hunt in the expansion, as Ascendance is also set to add both new monsters and returning ones from previous games.
To help players face the more challenging hunts in Ascendance, the expansion also adds the new ‘Boost Bracer’ mechanic. Hunters can build up energy for the Boost Bracer through aggressive attacks, then activate Boost for new combos, enhanced attacks, and other weapon-specific actions.
As befitting the expansion's ‘Ascendance’ name, a new locale in the Eastlands is also being added. The series of floating ruins seen in the expansion's trailers being called the Skybound Eyrie. The ruins in the Skybound Eyrie seem to be held aloft by the mysterious technology used by Wyveria, the ancient civilisation that once reigned over the Forbidden Lands.
When is Monster Hunter Wilds: Ascendance coming out?
Capcom did not reveal the official release date for Monster Hunter Wilds: Ascendance, only that the expansion is set to come out sometime in 2027 on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S.
