Monster Hunter’s evolution over the years has been nothing short of exceptional. It went from being a niche title to a household name among mainstream gaming audiences, opening its doors to a much wider market that enjoys its endless monster-hunting grind. But while the series has grown in terms of core mechanics and systems, the visuals have also received a massive upgrade.
The franchise transitioned from using an unnamed engine in the early 2000s to Capcom’s in-house MT Framework, and now, to their most ambitious engine yet, the RE Engine. The question is, did Monster Hunter benefit from moving to the RE Engine? Let’s find out.
A Brief History
In the earlier Monster Hunter titles, before Capcom developed the MT Framework, an unnamed engine powered the hunts we enjoyed on PlayStation 2 and PlayStation Portable titles. It brought us stunning backdrops like looming fortresses, ruined castles, snow-capped mountains, and volcanic landscapes. More importantly, it introduced us to iconic flagship monsters like Rathalos, Zinogre, and many others.
Fast forward to the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 era (and some of the Wii U), Capcom introduced the MT Framework. This marked a turning point in the franchise’s development, sparking the rapid evolution we see today. Monster Hunter: World and Iceborne were among the first games to showcase this leap forward.
Both titles demonstrated how the franchise could evolve in terms of both visuals and gameplay. The difficulty ramped up, but the graphics became more immersive than ever. Seamless exploration with no loading zones added a new level of depth to Capcom’s vibrant world full of monsters and endemic life.
Problems with the Engine
However, transitioning to MT Framework wasn’t without its issues. Monster Hunter World launched first on PlayStation 4, with the PC version arriving a year later. When it launched on PC, it caused a slew of problems for excited hunters as they encountered persistent performance issues and game-breaking crashes that disrupted the experience.
It took several months, well into the release of Iceborne, before Capcom was able to fix most of the major performance and optimization problems on PC. Eventually, the game found its stride, earning critical acclaim, positive word-of-mouth, and becoming Capcom’s best-selling franchise of all time.
The RE Engine
With Monster Hunter Wilds, Capcom has moved on from the MT Framework and embraced the RE Engine, the same one that powered the modern Devil May Cry and the Resident Evil remakes. This engine delivered iconic, realistic character models for Dante, Nero, Leon, Claire, and Ada, and it was widely praised for its optimization and visual fidelity. But the key takeaway here is that RE Engine’s first uses were for linear games, not a seamless open world.
Then the cracks began to show when Capcom tried adapting it to an open-world format. Dragon’s Dogma 2, their most ambitious open-world RPG, was intended to be a bold new step forward. But the engine struggled. PC players reported major performance issues, and many pointed out that the RE Engine couldn’t handle the demands of a fully open-world game. It was clearly being pushed to its limit.
Monster Hunter Wilds
Now that Monster Hunter Wilds has been out for almost six months, players have had time to see what the RE Engine can really do for the series. Wilds offers a semi-open world experience, with streamlined controls, stunning visuals, and intense, satisfying combat that’s more accessible to a wider audience. It was simply the best-looking Monster Hunter game to date.
Unfortunately, it also suffers from the same performance problems that plagued Dragon’s Dogma 2. The game stretches the RE Engine too far, resulting in widespread optimization issues on both PC and consoles.
Six months in, Monster Hunter Wilds continues to face major problems on PC. Poor performance has led to a wave of negative reviews, and the game currently holds an “Overwhelmingly Negative” rating on Steam, with over 15,000 user reviews.
It feels like history is repeating itself. Just as the move from the unnamed engine to the MT Framework brought growing pains for the franchise, the transition to the RE Engine is proving to be another uphill battle.
Capcom is trying to make it work, but the RE Engine is clearly being strained by Wilds’ expansive world and fast-paced gameplay.
In time, Capcom may resolve these performance issues, just as they did with Iceborne. But for now, there’s no telling how long it will take to reach a truly stable and “playable” state on PC. The good news is that Capcom is actively working on fixes and improvements.
Was the transition to the RE Engine worth it? Well, Wilds is still shaping up to be Capcom’s fastest-selling title in a long while, with over 8 million copies sold. It’s a stunning game, packed with one of the most interesting and attractive casts of NPCs the series has ever seen. While we can’t say for certain if the move was the perfect choice, one thing’s clear: we likely wouldn’t have had epic monster battles like Jin Dahaad, Zoh Shia, Lagiacrus, and Arkveld on an older, more dated engine.
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