Monster Hunter Wilds: Ascendance’s new combat gimmick is putting some Devil May Cry stink on hitting dinosaurs with hammers

Back in June, Capcom revealed Monster Hunter Wilds: Ascendance, a “massive,” Iceborne-style expansion promising new and returning monsters, new regions to hunt in, and—of course—new combat options. In the announcement trailer, Capcom offered a brief glimpse at the Boost Bracer, an enigmatic new mechanic that seemed to augment hunter fighting styles with additional jolts of combustion-fueled power.

Three months later, we’re now getting our first real insight into how the Boost Bracer works and how we can expect it to alter the flow of hunting in Wilds. Earlier today, Capcom uploaded both a video overview of Boost Bracer mechanics and a great sword-focused boost action breakdown, with similar videos expected for each other weapon type.

Having watched both, I feel safe in saying Capcom’s borrowing some pages from one of its other flashy action franchises: With the Boost Bracer, Ascendance has more than a little Devil May Cry in the mix.

The overview video sticks to the broadest possible strokes, but from what we can tell, early impressions of the Boost Bracer as being ‘a thing on your arm that makes your attacks go crazy’ seem right on the money.

The most basic component of Boost Bracer combat is the Boost Driver: a new kind of attack that each weapon type will have its own version of. Based on a gauge seen in the great sword video, Boost Drivers seem to operate on a charge system similar to the wirebug charges that powered switch skills in Monster Hunter Rise.

In fact, some of the Boost Drivers shown in the videos appear to be returning switch skills; as a hammer main, I’m extremely pleased to see Impact Crater making a reappearance. Unlike wirebugs, however, deploying a Boost Driver will temporarily enter the hunter into a new Boost state, which is—by all appearances—a sort of sicko mode for lizard swordfights.

As the videos explain, being boosted offers a number of benefits: Guarding will be more effective. Some weapon combos will be extended with dramatic new attacks, like an explosive final shot that bow users will be able to tag onto their power volley combos. Some existing attacks will be enhanced with greater impact: a boosted dual blade demon combo was augmented with echoing slashes after each attack, while the charge blade’s elemental discharge produced… even more discharge. (Sorry.)

Capcom says “boost can also be activated during certain actions,” with footage indicating that the boost state input can be woven on command into great sword charges, sword and shield plunging thrusts, gunlance guards, and likely many more maneuvers.

As a system for layering explosive, enhanced variations into combat—and a healthy dose of added visual flair—there are some undeniable shades of Devil May Cry in the Boost Bracer. It’s not quite the Exceed system, but I think Nero would approve. Maybe? I don’t know. The boy is troubled.

I’m withholding judgment until I can try the Boost Bracer for myself, but so far, I’m pleased with what I’m seeing. It seems like a bit more of an intuitive concept for adding over-the-top attacks than Rise’s bug-powered ninja maneuvers, and it looks like less of a disruption to the moment-to-moment flow of MonHun combat than the Clutch Claw proved to be in Iceborne.

I just hope those boosted actions aren’t too effective—if the combination of the Boost Bracer and Focus Mode trivializes Master Rank, it’ll feel like a pretty major misfire. But something tells me an elder dragon will be making me regret those words by this time next year.

Monster Hunter Rise: Ascendance will launch sometime in 2027. You can wishlist it on Steam now.