If you've captured them for a minute, monsters in Monster Hunter Wilds are legally allowed to leave

Monster Hunter Wilds official art
(Image credit: Capcom)

In Monster Hunter Wilds, you can capture monsters—which is the slightly more humane alternative to lunging at them like a feral dog the moment your handler says it's OK to cut off all their tentacles and skin them for cool armour. Capturing involves laying down a pitfall or shock trap, then pelting the poor, wounded sod with tranq bombs when their health is low—which, depending on how much you've beaten the poor bugger, might actually be meaner.

Well, turns out, you've only tuckered out the monster for a minute maximum, as discovered on the game's subreddit by a flabbergasted hunter as the Nu Udra, a giant squid and apex monster of the game's third region, pops up from its power nap and slithers away like a director just called "cut!"

Fun fact: captured monsters just get up and leave within a minute of napping from r/MonsterHunter

I'm still churning through the game's 20+ hour tutorial known as its story mode, so I've not reached the tier of material min-maxing required to incentivise capturing, myself—and typically, this kind of thing would be hidden by a quest complete screen. Not to mention, the game takes its sweet time introducing you to the concept. But if you're just out doing ad-hoc hunts in the game's open world, then you'll absolutely be able to watch the critter just hop up and scurry away.

As for the in-universe justification, a few scholars in said Reddit thread have some theories: the major one being that, in Wilds, you're part of an expedition with limited resources, so there aren't really big cages or pens to house your brutalised octopi in. The idea being that your handler runs over to your target critter, jots a few quick notes, and sends them on their way. As for where the parts come from? Uh, don't think about it. Guild supplies or something.

Really, though, I can't help but feel like Capcom could've done more to keep the illusion up. Have some guild scholars scurry in and start scribbling stuff down or, better yet, just keep the monster penned down for more than a minute? I only say this because Wilds has been flooded with loving detail based on my current playthrough.

You're telling me you can have all sorts of cutesy animations and arduously-rendered lettuce munching cutscenes, but a quick pop-up study sesh is too much? Mind, I've argued in favour of efficiency and corner-cutting before, so I'm happy to let this one go.

TOPICS
Harvey Randall
Staff Writer

Harvey's history with games started when he first begged his parents for a World of Warcraft subscription aged 12, though he's since been cursed with Final Fantasy 14-brain and a huge crush on G'raha Tia. He made his start as a freelancer, writing for websites like Techradar, The Escapist, Dicebreaker, The Gamer, Into the Spine—and of course, PC Gamer. He'll sink his teeth into anything that looks interesting, though he has a soft spot for RPGs, soulslikes, roguelikes, deckbuilders, MMOs, and weird indie titles. He also plays a shelf load of TTRPGs in his offline time. Don't ask him what his favourite system is, he has too many.

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.

Read more
Monster Hunter Wilds capturing
Slaying monsters in Monster Hunter Wilds is fun and all, but I'm here to tell you that capturing is secretly the better option
Monster Hunter Wilds - a hunter faces off against Doshaguma in a field
Why did Monster Hunter Wilds dedicate so much effort to its environments, only to completely drop the actual 'hunting' from Monster Hunter?
Monster Hunter Wilds Seikret
Monster Hunter Wilds' Seikret makes travelling easier than ever, but I had a much better time when I dared to explore the old fashioned way: On foot
A hunter and their cat.
Capcom already has 'many things planned down the line' that reinforce Monster Hunter Wilds' core theme: the relationship between hunters and nature
A Palico with its mouth open in a manic grin in Monster Hunter Wilds.
You can save rare hunts for later in Monster Hunter Wilds, so you can come back for that Rey Dau gem when it's convenient
Nata points forebodingly at the camera in Monster Hunter Wilds.
I've been playing Monster Hunter for 10 years and even I'm terrified of this Wilds speedrunner deleting a Tempered Gravios in 37 seconds
Latest in RPG
Monster Hunter Wilds official art
If you've captured them for a minute, monsters in Monster Hunter Wilds are legally allowed to leave
A catgirl with long white hair and ears
At least it's not NFTs this time: The new Wizardry RPG is a gacha game
Path of Exile 2 showing the Warbringer ascendancy class bludgeoning his way through a pack of hyenas
Path of Exile 2 speedrunner dominates official race with the game's 'worst' class
Avowed art showing companions having a picnic together under sunny day
All the Avowed ending choices and epilogue-affecting decisions
The creepiest guy leans in front of an NPC mid-conversation in Starfield.
Starfield promises it still exists as silence drives fans to space-madness, but it mostly just annoys everyone: 'They are deliberately choosing not to communicate more'
Dry Devil holds a torch and grins.
Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2's upcoming 1.2 update has a ridiculous 34 pages of patch notes
Latest in News
Monster Hunter Wilds official art
If you've captured them for a minute, monsters in Monster Hunter Wilds are legally allowed to leave
A catgirl with long white hair and ears
At least it's not NFTs this time: The new Wizardry RPG is a gacha game
Staring eyes in a face covered in oil
Death Stranding 2's PS5 release date is in June, let's hope it doesn't take 8 months to hit PC this time
An evil-looking demon with red eyes and horns
You can theoretically beat Doom: The Dark Ages without using a gun, but 'You'd have a hard time, that's for sure,' says the game's director
Official Doom Guy art superimposed over Vault 666 Fallout-themed background.
Fallout-themed Doom mod Vault 666 has multiple endings, an OP Dogmeat companion, and a Ron Perlman-impersonating narrator so good, I was worried it was AI-generated at first
The Doomslayer in armor
Doom: The Dark Ages won't end with the Slayer in a coffin waiting for the start of Doom 2016: 'That would mean that we couldn't tell any more medieval stories'