Monster Hunter World: Iceborne Alatreon update delayed due to COVID-19

The Monster Hunter World: Iceborne title update containing Alatreon the elder dragon has been postponed due to complications from the coronavirus pandemic. 

Capcom announced the delay in a post on its company blog. "Unfortunately, coronavirus (COVID-19) related impacts on production have made it necessary to postpone the release of the fourth free title update for Monster Hunter World: Iceborne," says community manager Yuri Araujuo. "Voice over production for the Italian, Spanish and French language versions have also been affected, and will be replaced with simplified recordings." 

The Alatreon update was originally scheduled for the middle of the year, presumably sometime in June, but it looks like it will now arrive later in the summer. We don't know exactly when - perhaps because Capcom doesn't know either - but July is a reasonable placeholder for now. The good news is that, as previously reported, Iceborne just got a heaping helping of new weapons to grind thanks to Master Rank Kulve Taroth, and with Arch-Tempered Namielle coming in May, hunters will have plenty to chew on for a while. Still, Alatreon is bringing some likely meta-changing weapons and armor, so it can't come soon enough. 

The other good news is that Capcom is extending many of Iceborne's current event quests to help tide players over until Alatreon's arrival. Several event quests rewarding high-tier decorations and armor spheres were released to help players prepare for the Alatreon fight, so now everyone will have plenty of prep time. 

Alatreon is the last new monster that Capcom has revealed for Iceborne, but the game's updated roadmap confirms that there are more monsters and other content planned for the future. We may see another title update this fall, but the big stuff will likely be reserved for the game's winter festival. 

Iceborne recently passed five million copies shipped, further cementing Monster Hunter World as Capcom's best-selling game ever.