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Capcom has launched the early-game demo for the Switch 2 version of Monster Hunter Wilds, live today, October 20, on the Nintendo eShop. It’s free, and it covers character creation plus the prologue through Chapter 1-3, “To the Forest.”
What’s playable here is the real thing. You can fight Chatacabra and Quematrice, two monsters making their series debut in Wilds, and you get the hunting actions for all 14 weapon types. Lock in your weapon now and you can head out on day one of the full game without second-guessing yourself.
The most important detail this time is how save data is handled. Demo saves carry over to the full game, and your option settings transfer with them. The hunter you build here won’t go to waste.
There are hard limits, though. Online multiplayer isn’t supported. So is there really no way to hunt with friends in the Switch 2 demo? That’s the crux of it.
*Prices in this article are converted from Japanese yen at ¥153 = US$1 (October 2026 rate).
How much of the game does the Switch 2 demo let you play?
The demo runs from character creation and the prologue through Chapter 1-3, “To the Forest.” It went live today, October 20, and it costs nothing.
The monsters you can fight are Chatacabra and Quematrice. Both are new to the series in Wilds, and both are ideal for learning how to work the terrain and chain into wound hits. All 14 weapon types are unlocked from the jump, so — and I’ll say it twice — settling your weapon choice here is the smart play. Capcom lists 14GB or more of free space as a requirement.
| Detail | What you get |
|---|---|
| Release date | October 20, 2026 (Nintendo eShop, free) |
| Playable range | Character creation, prologue through Chapter 1-3, “To the Forest” |
| Monsters | Chatacabra, Quematrice |
| Weapons | Hunting actions for all 14 weapon types playable |
| Required free space | 14GB or more |
| Save data | Carries over to the full game, option settings included |
As demos go, this one is seriously generous. Chapter 1-3 is in there for free, and the data you make feeds straight into the full game. Calling it a trial undersells it — this is closer to Capcom handing out the opening stretch of the retail release early.
Is online multiplayer playable? What does local wireless require?
Online multiplayer isn’t supported. If you and your friends bring Switch 2 consoles with the demo installed, though, you can run local wireless multiplayer with up to four players.
Local wireless does come with conditions. Demos can only connect to other demos, and full games only to other full games — you can’t mix the two. The full game’s online features and Photo Mode are also unavailable in the demo. Playing solo, you can fire an SOS flare mid-quest to call in NPC Support Hunters.
I expect opinions to split here. For plenty of players, Monster Hunter on a handheld means everyone crowding into the same room to hunt. Capcom preserved that in the demo and held online back as a full-game perk. That’s a calculated line to draw, balancing distribution costs against the value of the retail release, isn’t it?
When does the full game launch, and how much is it?
The full game is scheduled for December 4, 2026. The digital Standard Edition is US$33, the digital Gold Edition is US$52, and the physical Deluxe Edition (a Game-Key Card) is US$33, all tax included.
| Edition | Format | Price (tax incl.) |
|---|---|---|
| Standard Edition | Digital | US$33 |
| Gold Edition | Digital | US$52 |
| Deluxe Edition | Physical (Game-Key Card) | US$33 |
The full game bundles in the update content released so far, including Mizutsune, Gogmazios and Omega Planetes from the Final Fantasy XIV collaboration. Everything that took more than a year to roll out on the platforms already shipped is there from the start, which makes that US$33 price tag hit hard.
If I have to name a concern, it’s that the physical edition is a Game-Key Card. The card doesn’t hold the game itself, so a download is mandatory — check your internal storage before you commit. Given the demo alone asks for 14GB or more, the full install won’t be light.
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Should you install the Switch 2 demo right now?
Short version: there’s no downside. It’s free as of today, October 20, it runs through Chapter 1-3, “To the Forest,” and your save data and option settings carry into the full game arriving December 4. All 14 weapon types are on the table, so you get roughly a month and a half to pick your main before launch.
The one thing to make peace with is multiplayer. Online isn’t supported, and local wireless caps at four players and only links demo to demo. If you’re testing solo, the Support Hunters you summon with an SOS flare are your company. Just carve out that 14GB or more ahead of time.
Unlocking everything up to Chapter 1-3 for free and then wiring that save data into the full game makes this less of a demo than an early release of the game’s opening hours. The split is clever too: online stays a full-game feature while four-player local wireless lives on in the demo. Add in a US$33 release that folds in every update released so far, and this is a remarkably well-built on-ramp for starting Monster Hunter on Switch 2.
It’s a free month and a half to choose between 14 weapons. Don’t waste it.
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Nokko Oda
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