Monster Hunter Wilds, Capcom’s latest game in the long-running series, is scheduled to launch next February. During a preview event for the game’s latest build, the game’s director Yuya Tokuda revealed that the team is still fine-tuning the weapons with a focus on balancing them with each other while still preserving the cathartic fun of wielding your favorite.

Although the devs are planning to make an official announcement about the changes in the near future, Tokuda revealed that the “Lance, switch axe, insect glaive, and sword and shield in particular will have some significant differences in the finished game. On the other hand, some weapons, like the long sword and bow, are too easy to use and overpowered. We will be adjusting the damage range so that they are more balanced compared the other weapons, while making sure they still feel good to use.”

Monster Hunter Wilds weapon changes in full game

For those worried about their favorite weapon from the beta getting nerfed, the director comments that “our policy is to increase the strength of weak weapons rather than to decrease the performance of strong weapons.”

Monster Hunter veterans may have noticed that some of Wilds’ attacks, especially those of the gun lance, weren’t as destructively explosive as in previous entries. Tokuda explains that this was a conscious decision: “The reason we implemented explosions that can blast you away in Monster Hunter in the past was because we wanted people to play the game while taking into account both the positive and negative repercussions this can have. However, we perceived that players’ attitude towards friendly fire has changed, and this is one of the reasons.” After all, it’s no fun if one of your teammates blows you up in multiplayer (either by accident or on purpose) just as you were about to bring down a large monster.

Likewise, the Hammer’s rising attack will not feature in the final game. The Hammer is a fan-favorite weapon that has often been championed by series producer Ryuzo Tsujimoto in interviews, so Tokuda notes humorously that, “Of course we also talked to Tsujimoto, who is believed to have won over the most people in the world with his dedication to the hammer, about whether we could change it.”

Monster Hunter Wilds has already introduced some interesting changes to weapons compared to previous entries in the series. For example, there is now a dual weapon system that allows you to equip two weapons and swap between them on the fly, which allows for a more strategic approach to taking down monsters, as you are no longer stuck with one weapon for the entire hunt. It also allows for more fluid and natural freedom of movement while fighting, as hunters can now use weapons in more dynamic ways while mounted or running.

According to Tokuda, there were also some planned adjustments that were not made in time for the beta test, as well as aspects of the game that didn’t work as well as planned in the beta. Players can also expect to see more Skills in the final game. It will be interesting to see what tweaks and extra features Monster Hunter Wilds will offer players when it is released in February.

For more fresh info about Monster Hunter Wilds, check out what the devs have to say about how the game’s new monster Lala Barina will shake up gameplay, as well as how the final game’s performance will be optimized.

Monster Hunter Wilds is scheduled to be released on PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC (Steam) on February 28.