Technologies

Wild Hearts Tries Too Hard to be Like Monster Hunter

Commentary: Sure, it’s fun to smash monsters with ridiculous weapons, but not when it feels like you’ve done it before.

Wild Hearts, developed by Koei Tecmo’s Omega Force and published by EA, tries its best to take the monster-hunting genre crown from Capcom’s long-running franchise, Monster Hunter. The problem is it copies Capcom’s homework a bit too much.

Despite fast action and a stacked variety of enemies, Wild Hearts is a carbon copy so blatant that fans of the Capcom series may find it hard to ignore. Those new to the genre, however, should find battling giant monsters to be a fun, if somewhat shallow, experience.

Hunting down monsters

In Wild Hearts, you play the role of a nameless hunter in Azuma, a world that closely resembles feudal Japan. You’ll seek out giant monsters, known as Kemonos, upgrade equipment and complete quests for characters. At your disposal is a stockpile of weapons with unique moves, such as the outlandish Bladed Wagasa, an umbrella-looking weapon that makes the hunter into a deadly Mary Poppins as they float while slicing away at monsters.

Weapon options are similar to Monster Hunter, but the toolsets feel slightly different. Called Karakuri, players can create different objects that aid in traversal but can also be used in battle. The first Karakuri available to players is a box that can be used to reach higher ledges or as a platform to deal extra damage when doing plunging attacks. Later, players will learn to combine six of these boxes together to create a bulwark, a fortified wall that will stop a charging monster, causing them to fall on their back leaving them open to attacks. The Karakuri is essentially a Swiss Army knife-like tool that unlocks more options as players progress.

Combat in Wild Hearts feels more frantic than in Monster Hunter, but there’s a sluggishness to the controls. Attacks, healing, dodging, using Karakuri and other actions come with a hint of input lag, leading to some frustration while playing.

Enemies range from smaller monsters that are only a few sizes larger than the hunter to giant behemoths that tower over the player. Fights come in phases. When an enemy’s health is taken down enough, the monster will roar and escape to another part of the map. Players will have to find them again and start the second phase, which has the monsters unleashing new and more powerful attacks making them far more dangerous.

This heart is too familiar

I can’t stress this enough: Wild Hearts plays so much like Monster Hunter. It’s almost distracting. And unfortunately, Wild Hearts copies some of the most monotonous parts of Monster Hunter wholesale.

Like in Monster Hunter, enemies have roars that indicate the start and end of a battle, which is a lame mechanic that shouldn’t have been copied. Then there’s the tedious and pointless action of the monster running away after losing a certain amount of health. There’s even the incorporation of a 30-second timer after hunting down quest-related monsters to take you back to camp instead of letting you continue to hunt other monsters or immediately start another quest.

The world of Azuma is split into islands where there is a variety of terrain, but only so many locations are actually intended for fighting. The rest allows you to gather items for crafting or healing, as well as provide a safe space to set up camp. This also feels exactly like Monster Hunter.

Even the tone of the game is similar. Wild Hearts’ feudal Japan setting isn’t that much different from Monster Hunter, although the latter is a bit more playful with its characters and setting.

Wild Hearts isn’t going to take the monster-hunting crown. Fans of the Capcom series won’t find much new to explore in the game, while those new to the genre will see the same notes repeated again and again. Who may enjoy Wild Hearts the most are those new to the genre and never had the experience of beating up on giant beasts with ridiculous weapons.

Wild Hearts launches on the PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC for $70 on Feb. 17.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Friday, Dec. 26

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for Dec. 26.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? Some of the clues are tough today — I thought maybe 1-Across was referring to the Grinch, or even Oscar the Grouch, but was I ever wrong! Read on for all the answers. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: Furry and green, say
Answer: MOSSY

6A clue: State known for its potatoes
Answer: IDAHO

7A clue: Like a faithful friend
Answer: LOYAL

8A clue: Had a beverage
Answer: DRANK

9A clue: Pronoun frequently paired with «her»
Answer: SHE

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Not spicy, as salsa
Answer: MILD

2D clue: Reasons for wrinkled noses
Answer: ODORS

3D clue: Words from a doctor checking your tonsils
Answer: SAYAH

4D clue: Comedian Gillis
Answer: SHANE

5D clue: Part of an egg used to make hollandaise sauce
Answer: YOLK

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Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for Dec. 26, #459

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for Dec. 26, No. 459.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections: Sports Edition is a tough one. That purple category once again has players looking for a different, but related, hidden word in four of the clues. If you’re struggling with today’s puzzle but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by The Times. It doesn’t appear in the NYT Games app, but it does in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Big Apple jock.

Green group hint: College football fun.

Blue group hint: On the road.

Purple group hint: Hunt down a word in other words.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: A New York athlete.

Green group: Bowl games.

Blue group: Associated with a team road trip.

Purple group: Ends in a movement verb.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is a New York athlete. The four answers are Islander, Net, Ranger and Yankee.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is bowl games. The four answers are Alamo, Gator, Liberty and Pinstripe.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is associated with a team road trip. The four answers are bus, flight, hotel and visiting locker room.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is ends in a movement verb. The four answers are foxtrot (trot), newsprint (sprint), terrace (race) and thunderbolt (bolt).

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for Dec. 26, #929

Here are some hints and the answers for the NYT Connections puzzle for Dec. 26 #929

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s NYT Connections puzzle is full of fun pop-culture references. Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including the number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Golden state cliches.

Green group hint: Funny films.

Blue group hint: Rock on.

Purple group hint: Not white.