Omega in Monster Hunter Wilds is exactly what I would expect as a Final Fantasy XIV raider, and that's cool

Checking out Monster Hunter Wilds' new Final Fantasy XIV collaboration during Tokyo Game Show was an odd feeling for me - not because the collaboration is weird. It's not, and in fact Final Fantasy XIV already had a Monster Hunter collaboration all the way back in Stormblood with Monster Hunter: World. No, what made it feel weird was knowing that the first collaboration is part of what got me to play Final Fantasy XIV in the first place, yet now as a Final Fantasy XIV raider its a stark reminder how things have swapped.

Omega Planetes is an adaptation of a boss with a similar name from Final Fantasy XIV. Behemoth in Monster Hunter: World was based off an encounter from A Realm Reborn's 24-player Alliance Raid series, yet Omega is notable for being from the Stormblood 8-player Normal Raid series of the same name. While it wasn't the case at the time of the original collaboration, anyone that is currently playing Final Fantasy XIV will have encountered Behemoth due to A Realm Reborn's Alliance Raid now being required to proceed through the main story to Heavensward and beyond. Omega is entirely optional, outside of a short appearance in the post-Heavensward patches. 

In modern Final Fantasy XIV, Omega is rather infamous. The hardest raid in Final Fantasy XIV, The Omega Protocol (Ultimate) is a relatively recent retelling of the Stormblood raid series, and as such is a rather stark difference from Arkveld - the standard flagship monster from Monster Hunter Wilds - being included in Final Fantasy XIV's half of the collaboration. As a Final Fantasy XIV player, and as a raider, there's a certain level of expectations for what an Omega fight in Monster Hunter Wilds might look like. Even acknowledging the fact that these are two entirely separate games, and what might work in one may not necessarily translate well to the other, unlike Behemoth in Monster Hunter: World there are multiple elements of Omega that feel necessary to include in order to accurately portray it as an encounter.

Thankfully, the Monster Hunter team has delivered. Omega's fight is unlike anything else in Monster Hunter Wilds, and while that might end up being a bit contentious for the average player - they've absolutely succeeded at translating the fight. Telegraphed AOEs that require the player to quickly move from a safe spot into a previously dangerous area to avoid a follow-up attack, targeted attacks that require players to spread out to avoid overlapping - and move away from a blast once the charge has been set. Sweeps that target a specific side of Omega, much like the fights' most infamous mechanic in Final Fantasy XIV.

In addition to Omega itself, players get access to special abilities such as the Soul of the Pictomancer, which lets players fulfill a rotation straight out of Final Fantasy XIV by summoning a painted Moogle to deal damage. This isn't exactly an essential tool on your belt, but it takes very little time to cast on the cooldown, so in a group it's probably in your best interest to make use of it when you don't have enmity - returning from both the Behemoth fight in Monster Hunter: World, and of course what was a normal mechanic for specific fights in Monster Hunter Wilds.

Omega's fight is difficult, as you'd expect from a post-launch update, and quite cinematic with all the different phases it introduces throughout the fight, as well as its frame breaking down as you get closer and closer to its demise. One phase about halfway through the encounter is actually an add phase - a holographic Nerscylla is summoned, and you must defeat it before Omega's laser is fully charged up in order to drop a barrier that will defend you from certain death. If you've played Final Fantasy XIV, this is of course a very common mechanic from multiple fights in the game, and even if you haven't it's reminiscent of the meteors you would have to hide behind in Monster Hunter: World.

I don't think on its own Omega solves my problems with Monster Hunter Wilds - they're a bit too numerous and fundamental to the identity of the game for a singular endgame fight to shift the calculus much - but I do think it's the first post-launch Monster that will get me interested in returning for more than an hour or two. It's difficult, engaging, and the rewards rule - a mini Omega following me around, just like the minion from Final Fantasy XIV proper? A morbol costume for my Palico? I really couldn't ask for much more.

Omega Planetes drops for Monster Hunter Wilds on September 29. I can't wait for the chance to tackle the fight on my own save once I'm back from Japan in the coming days; despite my qualms with some of the decisions that Capcom made with Monster Hunter Wilds, I can't find any room to complain about this.