The Monster Hunter franchise has often been known to crossover with different game series, and Monster Hunter Wilds is no exception to this rule. The Free Title Update Roadmap for Monster Hunter Wilds revealed that new events, quests, and monsters would be added to the game, as well as a Capcom collaboration to close the update out, and this has since been revealed to be Street Fighter.
Players have been eagerly anticipating what quests and items the collab could reward them with, but what was shown goes against what previous Monster Hunter games have established. As with past collaborations, Monster Hunter Wilds players can expect to be challenged in new quests to receive free rewards, but some of these items have interesting mechanics that could change the Monster Hunter series moving forward.
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What the Street Fighter Collab Adds to Monster Hunter Wilds
The contents of the Street Fighter collaboration with Monster Hunter Wilds have finally been revealed, adding new themed armor and stickers to the game for free. By completing the Demonic Strength and True Strength collab arena quests and the Ultimate Strength side mission, hunters will be given access to the Akuma armor, Blanka-Chan Palico armor, and other Street Fighter collaboration items. After being added to Monster Hunter Wilds on May 28, 2025, they will be permanently available to all players.
By equipping the full Akuma set as either armor or layered armor, players are able to transform into the raging demon, complete with his special moves from the Street Fighter series. They still have access to Monster Hunter Wilds’ different weapon types, but by using the new Assisted Combo: Akuma item, hunters can take down the various monsters in the game using combo attacks and the Gou Hadoken. Using Street Fighter special moves isn’t just restricted to the Akuma armor set either; the Hadoken, Shoryuken, and Tatsumaki Senpu-kyaku gestures available as paid DLC also have attack properties.
While this isn’t the first time that Street Fighter’s Akuma has been featured in Monster Hunter, it is the first time that players are able to use the moves from his own series as their own attacks. Monster Hunter Rise featured Akuma as a layered armor set, but his moves were just animation replacements for the Sword and Shield and Throwing Kunai, as opposed to the unique abilities found in Monster Hunter Wilds, giving players an experience closer to Street Fighter than before.
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Akuma’s Inclusion Could Hint at Monster Hunter’s Future
Hunting Without a Weapon
Now that the Street Fighter collab has added new combat abilities to the Monster Hunter franchise, Capcom has made a decision that it cannot step back from. The close-quarters fighting style introduced by Akuma could pave the way for a melee combat that doesn’t use a weapon in future Monster Hunter games. Other game series offer barehanded combat for players that wish to face off against fearsome foes with only their fists. Making this available to use against the colossal creatures of Monster Hunter could let players feel victorious against impossible odds, besting beasts without a weapon in hand.
With this fighting style being introduced within a collaboration, it’s possible that fans might not have to wait long for this to become a fully-fledged weapon type of its own. The Street Fighter gestures could be giving players a taste of what may be to come, and the Assisted Combo: Akuma item specifically being attributed to Akuma could hint that other Street Fighter characters' special moves will arrive in future updates. Adding a new Monster Hunter Wilds weapon type in an update could help to keep the game alive, giving players different ways to hunt and capture the game’s bestiary of monsters.
Possible New and Returning Monster Hunter Weapon Types
A close-ranged weapon would not be out of the question for the Monster Hunter series. In the G Genuine expansion of the Japan-only Monster Hunter Frontier, the Tonfa was added as a new weapon. Until the inclusion of Street Fighter abilities in Monster Hunter Wilds, this weapon was the closest players could get to fighting with their fists. Reintroducing the Tonfa in Monster Hunter Wilds as an update or expansion could be a great opportunity to add a new close-ranged weapon to the game that is already established as part of the series.
The bare-knuckle attacks introduced by Akuma and the Street Fighter gestures may instead be testing the waters for a new weapon type entirely. The power of special moves that players can use when the Akuma armor is equipped is determined by their equipped weapon, but using fists could be a unique weapon of its own for players to forge and upgrade. This could be anything from hand wraps to boxing gloves, eventually progressing to resemble the late-game weapons available from hunting High Rank monsters. A new Monster Hunter weapon type hasn’t been introduced in years, but the Street Fighter collaboration may serve as the perfect inspiration.
The content added to the Street Fighter event of Monster Hunter Wilds should be exciting for fans of both series, but the Akuma armor and Assisted Combo: Akuma item have the potential to change the franchise for good. Now that fist-based fighting abilities have been established, the next step for Capcom to take would be to turn this into a fully-fledged weapon type of its own. This wouldn’t need to wait for a new installment either, as it could be a great inclusion for a future update or expansion, or a potential Monster Hunter Wilds Ultimate edition. By testing how well players receive a fighting style like this from the collab rewards, it may incentivize Capcom to finally add a new barehanded weapon type. Until then, players will be able to put their Street Fighter skills to use in the world of Monster Hunter Wilds with the new Akuma armor set and Street Fighter gestures.
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