Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection’s launch date is correct across the nook, and IGN had the prospect to talk to the builders in depth a few model new locales trailer launched at IGN Fan Fest. We’ve bought never-before-seen idea artwork of the three major bases within the recreation – Azuria Fortress, Sheparden, and Galyad – and insightful commentary from director Kenji Oguro, artwork director Takahiro Kawano, and lead recreation designer Daisuke Wakahara.
Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection is shaping as much as be a phenomenal recreation, which is wholly supported by the varied surroundings you’ll encounter in your journey as an environmentalist Ranger. The Monster Hunter Stories 3 group allotted a whole lot of time and analysis into making the areas pleasant for gamers, and their consideration to element exhibits. You’ll be able to watch the brand new locales video with commentary direct from the builders above, or, should you’d prefer to immerse your self within the surroundings with no commentary and a number of bonus scenes, take a look at the trailer beneath.
Azuria
If you happen to’ve performed the free demo model of Monster Hunter Stories 3, you’ve seen Azuria. This land options fields, forests, and picturesque mountains on the horizon with a citadel city on a lake, lending a traditional storybook backdrop.
“Within the design course of, we needed to make the stereotypical fantasy citadel sort of design to depict how peaceable Azuria is, and to depict the attractive nature of the world of Azuria and the citadel itself,” Kawano stated.
The group had some real-world inspiration that made its means into the idea artwork for the encircling space of Azuria and its citadel, particularly, a Spanish citadel referred to as Alcazar de Segovia. This wouldn’t be the primary time the citadel has impressed a creator – as a part of its one hundredth anniversary, The Walt Disney Firm revealed in 2023 that it was the inspiration for Snow White’s citadel. A magical locale, certainly.
Kawano additionally described how the wing-like flags symbolize the wings of Rathalos to indicate the particular bond Azuria has with the endangered species. The city even has a runway of types for monsters to take flight, one thing uniquely logical for the Stories sequence, the place Riders type bonds with monsters referred to as Monsties and, because the identify suggests, trip them.
The eye to element within the surroundings carries into the connection of Twisted Reflection’s story as nicely. The primary catalyst of the plot in Stories 3 is the “Crystal Encroachment,” a phenomenon with unknown origins affecting each the surroundings and monsters, however the crystals it leaves behind is utilized by the residents of Azuria and elsewhere as a supply of sunshine.
Sheparden
Sheparden is the second locale the protagonist and the rangers will go to, and should you’ve performed a sure entry within the common Monster Hunter lineup, you could acknowledge the luxurious surroundings.
“One key characteristic of [Sheparden] is that monsters from Monster Hunter Rise inhabit the realm round it,” revealed Kawano. “So primarily based on Monster Hunter Rise, as you’ll have recognized, it has a really Jap, Asia-like style. So Sheparden and the encircling space can be designed after that artwork model.”
You may additionally discover a construction on the base of the steps to the village elder’s place impressed by Japanese torii gates, clearly recognizable as orange, angular arches. Proper beneath that torii gate are masks caught into the bottom, which symbolize the graves of the previous elders of the village, defined Kawano.
One other Sheparden element the group needed to think about is that this village just isn’t constructed for Riders the way in which Azuria is. As such, there aren’t stables – so Ratha, the protagonists’ Rathalos, is caught into a really small area that’s a part of an unused residence.
Galyad
Galyad is a bustling, affluent city surrounded by desert and comparatively desolate lands in comparison with Azuria and Sheparden. It’s lined in ornament, stones, and jewellery, considerably fueled by the residents’ profitable commerce of Egg Quartz. Kawano described that as you get deeper into town of Galyad, you may uncover a boundary between the affluent residents and the not-so-fortunate residents, and discover slum-like areas.
Town’s structure and design is definitely impressed by Mediterranean areas and even has a Lagiacrus fountain within the metropolis middle. It is particularly fascinating given the desert surroundings – Lagiacrus is, in spite of everything, a Leviathan monster recognized to inhabit the water.
“Galyad was an ocean port metropolis that was floating on high of the ocean,” Kawano defined. “So all the jewellery and the decorations had been primarily based off of the Mediterranean sea theme, however desertification has brought on town to lose all of the water and it’s at present barren, sandy. So that’s the reason why there is a distinction between the decorations and the precise cityscape itself.”
Monster Hunter 3: Twisted Reflection Q&A
In fact, I needed to reap the benefits of the time I had talking with the Monster Hunter 3: Twisted Reflection builders, so I requested a number of questions unrelated to the brand new trailer I assumed is perhaps fascinating. We bought into the sport’s extra mature protagonist, the weapon availability, the habitat restoration mechanic, and dual-element monsters.
The interview beneath has been frivolously edited and condensed for readability.
IGN: I would say habitat restoration is likely one of the greatest new gameplay mechanics in Monster Hunter Stories 3. Are you able to describe the inspiration behind constructing the system and why you included it?
Kenji Oguro: The primary motive we needed to implement this characteristic into Stories 3 is due to the protagonist. She or he is the captain of the Ranger Corps and their goal is to guard and protect the surroundings. So we needed to precise the preservation of the surroundings, not simply solely within the storyline, however within the precise gameplay cycle itself.
Tthe second motive we applied habitat restoration is to develop on the Monster Hunter Stories sequence components, the place deepening bonds with the monsters is essential. Within the earlier entries, you’d accumulate monster eggs from dens, hatch them, and elevate them, however the locations the place you would get these eggs had been very restricted and had been the identical throughout all gamers. However for Monster Hunter Stories 3, by implementing this habitat restoration characteristic, each participant may have their very personal surroundings. So your surroundings and my surroundings may differ so much.
By restoring the monster populations and sending them off again to the wilds, you may be capable of discover some uncommon eggs with dual-element monsters, in addition to Deviant Monsters. [Deviant Monsters] are widespread monsters from the earlier Monster Hunter mainline sequence video games. You may be capable of discover eggs of the Deviant monsters by elevating the ecosystem rank throughout the habitat restoration characteristic. We needed to reward gamers for serving to to guard the surroundings and restoring the endangered species and rising their inhabitants on this planet by offering uncommon monsters which may hatch from the eggs.
IGN: Within the first Monster Hunter Stories, altering a Monstie’s factor labored in another way, and was achieved by swapping genes to vary their stats. Are you able to inform us the explanation behind altering this methodology to the brand new one?
Kenji Oguro: Within the first Stories recreation, if you change the genes of the monster and get a dual-element monster, the factor that monster possesses fully modifications. So which may find yourself as an obstacle for a participant should you get the improper mixture. However for Stories 3, the group needed to develop the consumer’s choices extra and additionally make habitat restoration extra distinctive. So that they applied habitat restoration and by elevating the ecosystem rank and getting the uncommon eggs, you’re rewarded with the dual-element monster.
For Stories 3, the dual-element monster will retain their authentic factor. So if the unique monster has a fireplace factor, they’ll hold the hearth factor, and on high of that, they’re going to get their second new factor. So within the fight, gamers may need to hold the unique hearth factor and get a brand new factor on high.
This provides gamers a bonus and extra choices when they’re forming their events. Often for RPG video games, gamers are likely to go for the strongest character or strongest monster with the best stats and skills. However growing Monster Stories 3, with the dual-element characteristic, you get particular monsters with totally different appearances. Considered one of [my] favorites is the Velocidrome imbued with the dragon factor. So that you get a pitch black Velocidrome, very badass. And that was [my] favourite monster throughout the improvement cycle.
After discovering [my] favourite dual-element monster, [I] discovered that, “Hey, perhaps I can simply play with my favourite monster as a substitute of specializing in the stats or the power expertise.” In order that’s one of many ways in which the gamers can benefit from the recreation. It isn’t simply going for the strongest, strongest monsters, however as a substitute discovering a real associate that you just love and need to bond with.
IGN: I performed the Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflections demo, and I did discover that the Lengthy Sword was added to this recreation. It hasn’t been in Monster Hunter Stories but. However I did not see the Sword and Defend in my bag. Are you able to inform me if the Sword and Defend is in Monster Hunter Stories 3, and why you determined so as to add the Lengthy Sword?
Daisuke Wakahara: So first off, we applied the Lengthy Sword as a result of the Lengthy Sword itself all through the Monster Hunter sequence may be very widespread amongst hunters and riders. Nevertheless, we did have some hassle implementing the weapon itself into the RPG components within the earlier video games. However in Monster Hunter Stories 3, we had been in a position to give you a components to have the Lengthy Sword be a part of the weapon roster.
And when it comes to Sword and Defend, sadly, it’s not going to be included in Monster Hunter Stories 3 this time round. The rationale why we got here to this resolution is as a result of we needed to fastidiously take into consideration the weapon steadiness.
When wanting on the total weapon roster for Stories 3, we’ve got Slash, Blunt, and Piercing weapon varieties. And having each Lengthy Sword and Sword and Defend would change the roster to go in the direction of the Slash weapon varieties a bit too closely, so we needed to take out the Sword and Defend from the roster, sadly.
IGN: The primary character this time round is extra of an grownup than the earlier protagonists within the Monster Hunter Stories sequence. Are you able to inform me why you made that call to make the protagonist extra mature this time round?
Takahiro Kawano: We needed to distinguish this with the earlier entry tales, Monster Hunter Stories and Monster Hunter Stories 2, the place the main target was on a toddler rising right into a younger adolescent. We determined to begin the story off with a full-grown grownup because the elite rider. So when it comes to the setting for Monster Hunter Stories 3, the protagonist truly begins off already grown up as a prince or a princess of Azuria, and is an elite rider.
IGN: Is there anything you need to say to the followers watching earlier than we allow you to go?
Takahiro Kawano: As you have seen within the video, we put a whole lot of effort into the background character designs for Monster Hunter Stories 3. So we’d prefer to have the gamers have enjoyable and benefit from the stunning surroundings and the characters in Monster Hunter Stories 3.
Daisuke Wakahara: Thanks to all of the gamers for supporting the Monster Hunter Stories sequence from the primary title. You may be shocked at how a lot the Monster Hunter Stories sequence has developed all through Stories 2 and the latest entry, Monster Hunter Stories 3. We’re very assured on this recreation and that any participant can take pleasure in it as an RPG title. So even when you have not tried out the Monster Hunter Stories sequence but, we extremely encourage new gamers to check out the Monster Hunter Stories sequence.
Kenji Oguro: [I’ve] performed by way of Monster Hunter Stories 3 10 to twenty occasions throughout the improvement course of. And each time I’m going by way of the gameplay, there’s one thing new that the participant can discover. I’m very shocked that there is many, many playing cards up the event group’s sleeves. So we extremely encourage you, the gamers, to have enjoyable with the sport.
Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection is coming to PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Collection X|S, and Nintendo Swap 2 on March 12, 2026. You’ll be able to play a free trial proper now that includes an enormous portion of the primary space, Azuria, and proceed your progress within the full launch.
Casey DeFreitas is Deputy Editor of Guides at IGN, and is a primary fleet Monster Hunter. Catch her on Socials like Bluesky @ShinyCaseyD.