We are just days away from the release of Wild Hearts, the upcoming monster-hunting game from EA and Koei Tecmo. We’ve already learned a lot about Wild Hearts’ gameplay, from its open(ish) zones to its mystical trap-building karakuri, and of course, many of the terrifying monsters that you’ll face defending the town of Minato.
But the biggest (and probably scariest) monster just got its full reveal in the latest story trailer. It’s a bear that’s so huge it’s basically a living mountain. There’s no possibility of carving this thing’s craggy face using a blade or an umbrella, and it seems like the only possible defense the player will have against this enormous foe will be explosives. You can see later in the trailer that the town’s defenders create catapult karakuri that launch explosive crates into the face of bear mountain and the player themselves will use a giant cannon.
These attacks all seem so futile in the face of such an enormous enemy, but there’s got to be some way of taking this massive beast down. And if anyone can figure out karakuri powerful enough to defeat this bear, it’ll be Suzaran, Minato’s resident scientist. Suzuran understands the ancient karakuri technology that lets the player build seemingly anything, from launch pads that will let them helicopter into the sky to giant bonking hammers to explosive mines.
Elsewhere in the town, you’ll meet Natsume, the blacksmith and likely the person you’ll turn to in order to upgrade your gear. Ujishige is described as a former soldier that is “forced to confront his past,” while Seren is probably the loyal town architect, although the trailer doesn’t clarify what his role is in Minato’s defense.
One thing we do know is that you’ll need to restore the celestial thread, which is obtained by defeating Kemono. That same green thread seems to spring from karakuri devices during their construction, so it seems likely that the two are related somehow.
Wild Hearts arrives on PC and current-gen consoles on February 17.