Monster Hunter: World gets spooky for Halloween tonight, plus a big patch
Hunter pumpkin-carvings are INTENSE
Monster Hunter: World is gearing up for the Autumn Harvest Fest, a halloweeny in-game event beginning tonight and running until October 18th. In preparation, Capcom have rolled out a massive patch for the game, fixing a slew of bugs and making some quality-of-life tweaks as well as carving the pumpkins and writing up the new event quests. The update comes with patch notes so long, Capcom broke it in to four parts. Below, a (PS4) trailer for this most Skeleton Appreciation Month of events.
'Trick or treat' might lose some of its edge when your job is being chased by fire-breathing murdersaurs, but that's no excuse not to show a little festive spirit. By completing goals and event quests during the festival, you can earn some spooky new gear, including outfits for your Palico and Poogie, and a new dress for your Handler. There's something for hunters of all levels, with a one-star quest called "Up at the Crack of Dawn" and a five-star one called "Every Hunter's Dream". Plus, the previously spring-only event quest "Vespoid Infestation!" is included, and is a two-star job.
Pay no heed to the dates in the trailer above - they're for the PS4 version.
Everyone on October 5th will find a little gift in their inbox - a free character edit voucher, allowing you to redesign your character once and only once. The extensive patch notes detail a slew of bugs fixed, including fixes to eight different weapon types. Capcom also reckon they've reduced the strain on their matchmaking server, so hopefully there'll be fewer connection issues from now on. Due to there being some issues with it previously, the event quest "Relish the Moment" will be around for longer. Originally planned to disappear on October 18th, it'll now stay until the 25th.
While the patches are nice and extending event quests is a thoughtful choice, Capcom still haven't addressed a few long-standing issues with the game, such as the PC version's textures being seemingly lower resolution than on consoles. While there are mods to work around this such as this fix here by modder "MHVuze", it would be nice to hear Capcom acknowledge that they've heard about it. Still, you're probably not going to be noticing the fine detailing on your chain-mail while a Rathalos is trying to make you into a snack, and I'd not trade this PC version for any other build.
The Autumn Harvest Fest starts tonight at midnight UTC (5pm Pacific) and runs until October 18th. You can read the full patch notes here, and the official event page here.
If you're still making your way through the game's roster of enemies, check out our huge and detailed Monster Hunter World guide.