At long last, Monster Hunter Wilds launches on Friday, February 28th. The game will have a rolling launch, meaning some regions will get it earlier than others. Here’s how to play Monster Hunter Wilds early with the New Zealand trick.
Recommended Videos How To Play Monster Hunter Wilds Early with the New Zealand Trick on Xbox Series X|S
By far, the easiest platform to play Monster Hunter Wilds early on is the Xbox Series X|S. Xbox makes it super easy to change your console’s region, essentially tricking your system into thinking you’re in a different time zone so you can play earlier. Here’s how to change your region on Xbox and dive into Monster Hunter Wilds before others.
To use the New Zealand trick and play games early, you'll need to adjust the Xbox’s system language and location settings. Navigate to the Xbox settings, go to the System tab, select Language and Location, and set the Location to New Zealand. After making this change, you’ll need to restart your Xbox for the settings to take effect. Once your console is back on, you should be able to play Monster Hunter Wilds at the same time as the earliest region where it launches.
How To Play Monster Hunter Wilds Early on PlayStation and PC
While it's not as straightforward to use the New Zealand trick on PC and PlayStation, it's still possible despite some hurdles. Unlike the Xbox Series X|S, changing your region on PS5 and PC won't suffice; you'll need to create a separate account.
To play Monster Hunter Wilds – or any game – early using the New Zealand trick on PlayStation 5 and PC, you must set up a PSN or Steam account with a New Zealand address and purchase the game on that account. You’ll also need to buy the game using NZ$, which might be a bit pricier. While the base edition of Monster Hunter Wilds is around $70 USD, the equivalent in NZ$ comes to about $77 USD. Depending on how your credit or debit card handles international purchases and exchange rates, you may need to purchase New Zealand-specific PSN or Steam gift cards from a third-party site.
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When Can I Play Monster Hunter Wilds? Regional Rollout, Explained
As the image above illustrates, there are over a dozen different regions with varying release times for Monster Hunter Wilds. The earliest region to launch the game is Auckland, New Zealand, at 12 AM NZDT. This translates to 6 AM the previous day in New York and 3 AM on the West Coast. By using the New Zealand trick, players in the United States can enjoy nearly an entire extra day to play Monster Hunter Wilds on Thursday, February 27th.
And that’s how to play Monster Hunter Wilds early with the New Zealand trick.
