Eternal Strand's Monster Hunter-like progression explained

Before Eternal stringsreleased, much attention has been paid to how closely Yellow Brick Games' debut title resembles beloved action-adventure games such as The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Shadow of the Colossus. And while there are definitely elements of those titles in the Eternal stringsgame, it may surprise players to learn that one of the title's core inspirations was originally Capcom's Monster Hunter series. As it turns out, a lot of Monster Hunter DNA that inspired Eternal strings remains in the upcoming final product.

During a recent conversation with Game Rant, Eternal strings directors Mike Laidlaw and Frederic St-Laurent discussed the game's combat and development, which should feel familiar to everyone Monster Hunter fans. The core of the game Eternal strings is centered around the feel of an expedition, and character development is entirely driven by the loot from those expeditions. As such, it relies more on the loot that can be created rather than more traditional RPG systems. Along with the massive, kinetic beasts that roam Eternal strings' enclave, the game's progression and mechanics should feel right at home for fans of Monster Hunter series.

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Every Feature Confirmed For Eternal Strands So Far

Eternal Strands is an upcoming action-adventure game from Yellow Brick Games, a studio comprised of BioWare, Ubisoft, and overall industry veterans.

Eternal Strands' Gear is the cornerstone of character development

While Eternal strings may have some instantly recognizable influences based on moment-to-moment gameplay, how the game handles character development and power curve differs from what many might expect given its Breath of the Wild and Shadow of the Colossus comparisons. Laidlaw and St-Laurent were ready to repeatedly point out that the general flow of battle and how Eternal strings handles character development is actually more similar Monster Hunter. As St-Laurent notes, “…we don't have an XP system, so it's not by completing missions and earning XP that you level up. It's all based on loot and gear that you craft. You don't find all weapons or armor in the game, everything is created by your crew in the base camp.

Thanks to Brynn's thermodynamic powers, players also have a degree of strategy when it comes to influencing the all-important loot pool. St-Laurent further develops the dynamic nature of harvesting material i Eternal strings:

…if you burn, say, a dog or something, all the fur change will be destroyed in the process…If you go after enemies that are made of metal, you use ice and you embrittle them, and they go break, then you will break any metal components you can forge or carve…If you look for certain things, you will bet on certain monsters, and you will defeat them in certain ways.

Like Monster Hunter, Eternal Strand's gameplay is built around the idea of ”The Expedition”

Aside from its gear-based progression and emphasis on harvesting materials and crafting, Eternal strings is also built around the idea of the “expedition”, something that is of great importance to both Monster Hunter and The Dragon's Dogma. Laidlaw notes that “…a sense of expedition and then coming back home and kind of resting up” is one of Monster Hunter and The Dragon's Dogmas core elements that are “quite present” in Eternal strings' game.

Eternal strings still has several elements that help set it apart from the two Capcom franchises from which it takes a lot of inspiration, but it still manages to resonate with fans of those games. As Laidlaw puts it, “…we are not spot-on Monster Hunterbut the kineticity of the creatures and so on is a big part of Eternal strings. I think, honestly, Monster Hunter players will be very familiar with how we've decided to do progression.”