Final Fantasy XIV’s New Monster Hunter Crossover Is Already A Needed Crowd-Pleaser
The hunt is on.
Just when it needed it, Final Fantasy XIV is getting a huge crossover with one of the biggest (and most divisive) games of the year. After its announcement at Gamescom Opening Night Live this summer, a crossover between Final Fantasy XIV and Monster Hunter Wilds is now implemented in both games, bringing new fights and rewards to each. While Monster Hunter Wilds added its half of the collaboration on September 29, the new additions to Final Fantasy XIV are brand-new, coming with the game’s Patch 7.35 update on October 7.
The biggest addition for Patch 7.35 is the arrival of Arkveld. After appearing in Monster Hunter Wilds, this massive winged beast is now the target of a new Trial in Final Fantasy XIV. Taking down the new monster will earn you a weapon from a set of new Monster Hunter-inspired armaments, as well as a new mount, minions, and housing decorations.
Players are already on board for the new Guardian Arkveld fight in Final Fantasy XIV.
Unfortunately for anyone who’s hoping to dive into the massively multiplayer RPG for the first time for the crossover, it’s going to take some work to reach. To start the Guardian Arkveld fight, you’ll need to be at the game’s current max level, 100, and complete the main story of the latest Dawntrail expansion. Square Enix hilariously laid out the process for a new player to prepare for the hunt in two steps, leaving out the fact that doing so is a feat that can easily take hundreds of hours of dedicated play.
Square Enix less-than-helpfully tells players how to prepare for the new crossover.
For anyone not starting from scratch, though, the new Guardian Arkveld fight has been pretty well received. Players on social media say they’re enjoying the fight, with some calling it a good introduction to the game’s highest-level content. Unlike Final Fantasy XIV’s previous Monster Hunter collaboration, Guardian Arkveld more closely follows the typical pattern of endgame raid battles, with attacks telegraphed in advance and the same rules for how the boss targets players as fights native to the MMORPG. That’s a change from the Rathalos crossover, which featured a boss fight that feels more like Monster Hunter than Final Fantasy XIV due to its lack of attack telegraphs and the way it randomly targets players. As much as I enjoy the change of pace that Rathalos brings, players largely seem to be enjoying the way Guardian Arkveld sticks more closely to the rules.
One advantage the Rathalos fight has is its rewards. Fighting Rathalos enough can earn you a smaller version of the winged monster as a mount, and some players were hoping the same would be true of Arkveld. That’s not the case, however. The new collaboration offers Monster Hunter Wilds’ Seikret as a mount, as well as the cart that carries you back to camp when you’re knocked out in a fight, but not the big boss itself.
Arkveld may not be available as a mount, but another great Monster Hunter Wilds creature is.
Despite that disappointing note, Patch 7.35 is giving players a lot of reasons to stick around in Final Fantasy XIV. Along with the Monster Hunter Wilds crossover, it also includes a new Deep Dungeon, which features a leveling system separate from the rest of the game, plus new missions for a few popular side quests.
The well-received patch comes just when Final Fantasy XIV needs it. The most recent expansion for the game kicks off a new story after the end of the MMORPG’s decade-long previous storyline finished in Endwalker, and a lot of players abandoned ship in that transition. The new collaboration might not turn Final Fantasy XIV’s fortunes around for good, but it’s a solid reason to jump back in for one of the more exciting content drops the game has had in a while.
