Monster Hunter: A Global Gaming Phenomenon

In the leadup to its global launch, Monster Hunter Wilds shattered pre-order records on both Steam and PlayStation, following in the footsteps of its highly successful predecessors, Monster Hunter Rise from 2022 and Monster Hunter: World from 2018. These staggering sales figures firmly establish Capcom's unique and esoteric RPG series as one of the world's premier video game franchises.

However, the path to global acclaim was not always smooth. Just a decade ago, the notion of a Monster Hunter game achieving such widespread popularity seemed improbable. Flash back to the original game's release in 2004, and the idea would have been even more far-fetched, given its mixed reception. It wasn't until the series transitioned to the PSP in 2005 that it truly exploded in popularity—but only in Japan.

For years, Monster Hunter epitomized the "bigger in Japan" phenomenon, with its success primarily rooted in its home country. Yet, Capcom persistently sought ways to expand its reach internationally. The success of Monster Hunter: World, Rise, and now Wilds proves that their efforts were more than worthwhile.

This is the story of how Monster Hunter transformed from a domestic sensation to a global powerhouse.

Monster Hunter Wilds is already proving to be immensely popular. | Image credit: Capcom

Around the time of Street Fighter 5's launch in 2016, Capcom underwent an internal reorganization to prepare for a new era of gaming powered by their new RE Engine, which replaced the aging MT Framework. This shift was about more than just technology; it included a new directive to develop games that appealed not only to existing, region-specific fans but also to a global audience.

"It was a few factors that came together," says Hideaki Itsuno, a former game director at Capcom known for his work on Devil May Cry. "The change of the engine and also all teams were given a very clear goal at that point to make games that reach the global market. [Games] that are fun for everyone."

During the PS3 and Xbox 360 era, Capcom's games often seemed tailored to an imagined "Western games market." While Resident Evil 4 was a hit, other efforts like Umbrella Corps and the Lost Planet series, which chased Western trends, didn't fare as well. Capcom realized they needed to create games that appealed to everyone, not just fans of specific genres.

"All teams were given a very clear goal to make games that reach the global market," Itsuno explains. "I think that we had that clear goal of just focusing and not holding anything back, towards making good games that would reach people from all over the world."

Itsuno notes that the lead-up to 2017 was crucial. "The changes in organization and the changes in the engine, all these elements came together around that time," he says. The launch of Resident Evil 7 in 2017 marked the beginning of a Capcom renaissance.

No series better represents Capcom's new goal of global success than Monster Hunter. While the series had a dedicated following in the West, it was significantly more popular in Japan. This wasn't by design, but rather due to real-world factors.

Monster Hunter's success on the PSP with Monster Hunter Freedom Unite was pivotal. The handheld gaming market was much stronger in Japan than in the West, a trend seen with the PSP, Nintendo's DS, and later the Switch. Ryozo Tsujimoto, the series' executive producer, credits Japan's advanced wireless internet network, which allowed gamers to play with friends reliably, as a key factor in the series' success.

Monster Hunter Freedom Unite saw the series arrive on PSP, a pivotal moment for Japanese gamers. | Image credit: Capcom

"20 years ago, Japan was in a very, very solid state in terms of the network environments available to people, and being able to connect and to play online together," Tsujimoto says. "And of course, we’re not speaking for everyone there, because we realize that there are people who may not have had the chance to play with friends back then. But by moving over to handheld systems, we were able to grow that player base that was interacting and playing multiplayer together."

Monster Hunter's core pillar of cooperative play thrived on handheld consoles, which were ideal for quick multiplayer sessions. This focus on the local market inadvertently reinforced Monster Hunter's image as a "Japan-only" brand, as Capcom released Japan-exclusive content and events.

Despite this, Monster Hunter had fans in the West who eagerly watched as Japanese players enjoyed exclusive content. As internet infrastructure improved globally and online play became standard, Tsujimoto and his team saw an opportunity to launch their most advanced and globally accessible Monster Hunter game yet.

In 2018, Monster Hunter: World was released on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC, marking a significant shift for the franchise. It offered large-scale, AAA console-quality action with enhanced graphics, expansive areas, and larger monsters.

"Our approach to the globalization of the series and Monster Hunter in general really ties into not only the themes that we had going into designing the game, but also in the name of the game," Tsujimoto reveals. "The fact that we called it Monster Hunter: World is really kind of a nod to the fact that we wanted to appeal to this worldwide audience that we wanted to really dig into and experience Monster Hunter for the first time."

Monster Hunter: World was a turning point for the series, turning it into a true global phenomenon. | Image credit: Capcom

It was crucial that Monster Hunter: World did not favor one market over another. The game was released simultaneously worldwide, with no Japan-exclusive content, aligning with global standards.

Tsujimoto and his team conducted extensive focus and user tests worldwide to refine Monster Hunter's formula for broader appeal. "We did focus tests and user tests across the world, and some of the impact of those — the feedback and the opinions that we got during that really affected how we designed our game systems and really affected how much success we had as a global title for that game," Tsujimoto says.

One significant change resulting from these tests was displaying damage numbers when players hit monsters. These small adjustments to an already successful formula propelled Monster Hunter to unprecedented heights. While previous games sold between 1.3 to 5 million copies, Monster Hunter: World and its 2022 follow-up, Monster Hunter Rise, both surpassed 20 million copies sold.

This growth was no accident. Rather than altering Monster Hunter's essence to cater to Western tastes, Tsujimoto and his team found ways to make the series' unique and complex nature more accessible to a wider audience without compromising its core.

This approach continues with Monster Hunter Wilds. "At its heart, Monster Hunter really is an action game, and that sense of accomplishment you get from really mastering that action is an important aspect of Monster Hunter," Tsujimoto explains. "But for newer players, it's really getting to that point. The steps involved in getting to that sense of accomplishment is really what we're trying to strategize for, in terms of designing for new players. So with World and Rise, for example, we were taking really great care to analyze where players got stuck, what was hard to understand, what they were having trouble with, getting player feedback, and also doing our own kind of research into that. And all of that kind of knowledge has impacted how we've implemented new systems into Wilds."

Within 35 minutes of its release, Monster Hunter Wilds reached 738,000 concurrent players on Steam, more than double Monster Hunter: World's all-time high. With glowing reviews and the promise of more content, Monster Hunter Wilds is poised to continue the series' mission to conquer the world.