Cheaters Tarnish Monster Hunter Wilds’ Arena Speedruns

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Even when I dive into any gaming world, I can’t escape the fact that there’ll always be cheaters around. Yet, I thought Monster Hunter World was an exception, a place where fair play reigned supreme. Guess what? They’ve managed to sneak their way in here too.

Ignoring numerous cautions from Capcom about penalties for altering game files and data manipulation, these individuals persisted and swiftly established a dominance – particularly within the latest Arena Mode.

In addition to unveiling the Leviathan Mizutsune and the high-rank variant of Zoh Shia with Title Update 1, Monster Hunter Wilds also rolled out a fresh battleground, allowing players to engage in speed-based hunting challenges within a new competitive arena.

Participating in speed runs of monster hunting has long been an integral aspect of the Monster Hunter series. Although skilled speedrunners often favor open-world hunts that cater to their playstyle, the introduction of Arena Mode introduces a new dimension by presenting a carefully chosen assortment of monsters to vanquish.

In Arena Missions, the challenges differ significantly from regular hunts. Unlike usual situations where players can fine-tune their gear for optimal performance, here you are given pre-selected armor and weapons. This means that the focus shifts away from gear optimization and onto raw player skills. In these missions, your carefully crafted builds become less relevant; it’s all about demonstrating your raw talent.

In The Arena, you’ll encounter common creatures such as Doshaguma and Rathian. You have the option to face these monsters alone or join forces with a friend for Duo hunts. Hunting solo is frequently seen as a show of skill—the one who completes the hunt fastest gets to claim the glory.

Generally, a monster can only be given an A Rank if it’s defeated within five minutes; otherwise, the rank will be either B or C.

However, this leads us back to the main problem: cheating. It’s peculiar because in games where performance is personal and there isn’t a player-versus-player (PvP) aspect, finding cheaters seems odd. Yet, they have been present in every Monster Hunter installment since the series began.

In the game “Wilds,” some players have manipulated their weapon information to enhance raw damage significantly, making hunts end in a single strike. A quick look at the rankings shows unnaturally fast completion times—some even under 10 seconds, which is statistically improbable without meddling.

Even though Capcom repeatedly cautions against it, unscrupulous players persist in finding ways to cheat, especially those using PC platforms due to the ease of obtaining mods and third-party tools. On console systems, altering the gameplay is more challenging, making it simpler for bans to be implemented.

For persistent cheaters, there’s not much optimism regarding their future involvement with Capcom games, given that they appear to be doling out suspensions regularly. However, since there’s no integrated anti-cheat mechanism in place, these penalties might not entirely deter them.

If we find ourselves in another scenario similar to World and Iceborne, where the leaderboards are dominated by cheaters, it can be challenging not to suspect that the Wildspire team may be choosing to ignore such activities.

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2025-04-10 17:12