In the history of video games, many series were first born in Japan before seducing Western audiences. But for some of them, it took a long time before Japanese publishers deigned to take the risk of distributing them in the United States and Europe. This is the case for Monster Hunter.
The legend is now known, but Final Fantasy VII on PlayStation is the one that democratized the RPG genre in the West. The same goes for Dragon Quest, which waited until the eighth episode on PlayStation 2 to say hello. There is another saga adored in Japan that took a long time to resonate with us. It's called Monster Hunter and this Sunday, Phonandroid tells you its story.
To find the trace of the very first episode of Monster Hunter, you have to go back to 2004 and look at the Japanese PlayStation 2 game library. At the time, Capcom was looking for an idea to highlight the technical potential of the console, but also its network interface. Alongside those that would become Auto Modellista and Resident Evil Outbreak, a team began working on a completely new concept. Launched in 1999, the Monster Hunter project (a code name that would become the official title of the series) revolves around hunters who fight against gigantic creatures for the simple purpose of feeding their village and forging ever more powerful weapons and equipment. The principle is not revolutionary in itself, but the contribution of the PlayStation 2 and online gaming allows us to imagine incredible adventures where unity is strength.
Animal Crossing as inspiration?
By imagining imposing creatures, the notion of a group became essential, as Kaname Fujioka reminds us: "As monsters move within their environment, it takes real teamwork to be able to defeat them. Then, you can collect materials, such as the skin or tusks of monsters, and make new equipment for your character. That was the concept from the very first phase of development." As surprising as it may seem, Monster Hunter also draws on a much less muscular series: Animal Crossing. In addition to the creature battles, Capcom's staff wanted the game to be free, accessible to as many people as possible, and to allow fishing, cooking, etc. "We made sure that the player didn't need too much time to be able to play.", confides Kaname Fujioka. "So, each quest takes no more than an hour. Online games at the time tended to take a lot more time." Mainstream and not time-consuming, that was what Monster Hunter was supposed to sum up when it was released.
When it was released in Japan, Monster Hunter was a curiosity that would ultimately become a resounding success thanks to word of mouth. The series would thus develop for many years and become one of Capcom's essential licenses in the Japanese archipelago (notably on PSP, Sony's first portable console). In the West, however, the recipe has a hard time getting fans of online games who swear by World of Warcraft, Final Fantasy XI Online, and many others to salivate.
Also read – World of Warcraft is 20 years old: how did Blizzard bring one of the most important video games in history to life? We tell you about this extraordinary adventure
The episode that will change everything
While the Japanese are having a blast with the Monster Hunter games, Capcom is measuring the incredible growth potential of the Western market for the series. A first surge occurs with Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate and Monster Hunter 4 on Nintendo 3DS. Technically very clean and pleasant to play, the games remain, despite everything, niche works and face a reality that has been the same since the advent of the PSP episodes of Monster Hunter: the West loves portables, but its preferred market remains home consoles and computers. The Japanese publisher understands that the saga needs a new lease of life, capable of convincing Americans and Europeans. They will then wait until the next generation of machines and strike hard with Monster Hunter World on PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.
Director Yuya Tokuda recalls: "When producer Ryozo Tsujimoto first contacted me about creating a next-gen Monster Hunter game on Xbox One and PS4, I thought back to when I was a student and first saw the trailer for the original Monster Hunter. Not only did the epic action between monsters and hunters look fun, but I was really impressed by the fact that the monsters were not just enemies, but part of an ecosystem. That's why, when it came to creating the next generation of Monster Hunter, I wanted to go back to that original vision." To complete this ambitious project, the team first worked on designing a prototype that allowed them to see what was possible. They then realized that they could play with the environments and create organic fights and activities that responded to the conditions of the setting. It then became possible to use a torrent to make a creature fall below. The contribution of the new generation also allowed the display of huge areas without loading times.
A galaxy of small teams
To avoid spreading themselves too thin, the staff decided to form groups led by a team leader. Each section (decor, characters, animation, programming, sound, etc.) was supervised by a leader and this allowed Capcom to develop the game without encountering major management difficulties. Better still, the leaders – who were from the team of the very first Monster Hunter – were sometimes surprised by the excellent ideas of young, less experienced employees. This led to the development of an exceptional game that is to this day the best-selling Monster Hunter of all time. Monster Hunter World has sold over 21 million copies worldwide (making it Capcom's second best-selling series after Resident Evil) and has made the franchise more accessible to Western gamers.
And now, the sequel?
Planned for February 28, Monster Hunter Wilds is, as you might expect, a highly anticipated episode. Following Monster Hunter Rise (a generally appreciated episode, but perhaps more arcade, less immersive), this episode promises to be very spectacular and worthy of next-gen platforms. We can’t wait to be there, especially when we devour Ryozo Tsujimoto’s lyrics: “One of the main themes of this opus is the human as an integral part of the natural ecosystem. Not a separate being, but rather a native and living being in this world. This applies as much to the lives of the hunters, as to the daily lives of the other characters you will see and the civilizations you will meet and their way of life…. It seemed important to us to take this into consideration because, in the end, humanity is part of the natural cycle.” Gigantic monsters, incredible animal reactions, organic environments, group synergy, hostile conditions, beautiful French voices… Monster Hunter Wilds is looking very promising and you can count on Phonandroid to tell you more about it very soon.
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