Published , by Bill Lavoy
Published , by Bill Lavoy
Monster Hunter World: Iceborne has introduced several new mechanics for players to wrap their heads around, and one of the most initially confusing will be the Steamworks. This is a minigame found tucked away in Seliana where players can earn valuable rewards depending on their success in the minigame.
The Steamworks is in the northwest part of the Seliana hub in Monster Hunter World: Iceborne and is supervised by the Tech Chief. The first time players approach Steamworks there will be a three-page tutorial that explains how it works, but Hunters will be forgiven if it’s not immediately clear.
The first thing that players need to know is that the Steamworks requires fuel to use. Fuel is generated by doing quests, or by choosing the Add Fuel option to convert items into fuel. If the Steamworks is already sufficiently fueled, players can choose to Help the Steamworks to begin, then press to corresponding prompt to kick things off.
The goal is to generate steam power by correctly guessing a three-part sequence using button inputs. This is random and changes each time a correct or incorrect guess is made. While guessing, players will notice a gauge at the top of the Steamworks moving from left to right. Correct guesses will move this more than incorrect guesses, and each guess will eat up 10 fuel. If you start with 100 fuel, you get 10 guesses. Once the meter is full, the Steamworks will go into overdrive. You need to hit overdrive before running out of fuel, as a lack of fuel will end the minigame.
Once the Steamworks enters overdrive special item rewards can be earned for each correct guess of the button inputs. Luckily, there isn’t much guessing, as three Felynes will hop up next to the button inputs and give away the correct order. From this point, simply keep pressing the button tipped off by a Felyne until the round of overdrive ends.
Once you’re done with the Steamworks, a list of the items you obtained will appear on screen to recap all the useful stuff you got. On my first ever run, I snagged three Mega Barrel Bombs, two Max Potions, three Dust of Life, three Tranq Bombs, and seven Advanced Armor Spheres.
At certain points during the Steamworks minigame players may enter Bonus Time. Bonus Time is when more steam is earned through correct guesses, although you only have four tries to earn that extra steam. If players can make one correct guess, Bonus Time will begin and the Felynes will hop up and start calling out the correct answers. This is where the big rewards are earned.
That should help you understand Steamworks better, and if you’d like to learn more about Iceborne be sure to check out our Monster Hunter World: Iceborne topic for all our guides and news from Seliana.