Monster Hunter: A Global Gaming Phenomenon

In the lead-up to its global launch, Monster Hunter Wilds shattered pre-order records on both Steam and PlayStation. Following in the footsteps of its incredibly popular predecessors, 2022's Monster Hunter Rise and 2018's Monster Hunter: World, it achieved sales that solidify Capcom's unique and esoteric RPG series as one of the biggest video game franchises globally.

However, the journey to such widespread acclaim wasn't always smooth. Just a decade ago, the idea of a Monster Hunter game reaching such global heights would have been unthinkable. Flash back to the series' inception in 2004, and the original game received mixed reviews. It wasn't until a year later, with the transition to the PSP, that Monster Hunter truly took off—but primarily in Japan.

For a long time, Monster Hunter epitomized the "bigger in Japan" phenomenon. This was due to several factors, as this story will explore, but Capcom never ceased their efforts to crack the international market. The success of Monster Hunter: World, Rise, and now Wilds, demonstrates that their persistence paid off.

Here's how Monster Hunter transformed from a domestic hit to a global powerhouse.

Around the time of Street Fighter 5's launch in 2016, Capcom underwent an internal reorganization to prepare for a new generation of games. These games would utilize the company's brand new RE Engine, replacing the aging MT Framework. This shift was not just about technology; it was accompanied by a mandate to create games for a global audience, not just territory-specific fans.

"It was a combination of factors," says Hideaki Itsuno, a former game director at Capcom known for his work on Devil May Cry. "The engine change and the clear goal set for all teams to make games that appeal to a global market. Games that are fun for everyone."

During the PS3 and Xbox 360 era, Capcom's games seemed to chase Western trends, such as the action-heavy Resident Evil 4, the gun-focused Umbrella Corps, and the sci-fi shooter series Lost Planet. However, these efforts were largely unsuccessful. Capcom realized they needed to craft games that would appeal to a broad, global audience, not just fans of Western genres.

"We had a clear goal of focusing on making good games that would reach people from all over the world," Itsuno emphasizes. "The time leading up to 2017 was crucial. The organizational changes and the engine upgrade all came together then," he adds. This paved the way for the Capcom renaissance that began with the launch of Resident Evil 7 in 2017.

No other series exemplifies Capcom's new goal for global success better than Monster Hunter. Although it had its dedicated fans in the West, the series was significantly more popular in Japan for decades. This wasn't intentional but rather a result of real-world factors.

Monster Hunter found immense success when it transitioned from the PlayStation 2 to the PSP with Monster Hunter Freedom Unite. Japan's strong handheld gaming market, driven by the success of the PSP, Nintendo's DS, and later the Switch, played a significant role. According to the series' executive producer Ryozo Tsujimoto, the key was Japan's advanced wireless internet network, which allowed players to connect and play with friends easily.

"Twenty years ago, Japan had a very solid network environment that enabled people to connect and play online together," Tsujimoto notes. "Moving to handheld systems allowed us to expand our player base that enjoyed multiplayer experiences."

Monster Hunter, built around cooperative play, thrived on the ability of friends to quickly join hunts together. Japan's advanced internet infrastructure meant the game was initially developed for a local market, even if unintentionally. This created a feedback loop where Monster Hunter became a best-seller in Japan, leading to Japan-only content and events, reinforcing the "Japan-only" brand perception.

Despite this, Monster Hunter had fans in the West who envied the exclusive content Japanese players received. As Western internet infrastructure improved and online play became standard, Tsujimoto and the team saw an opportunity to launch their most 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. Instead of targeting handhelds, it offered large-scale, AAA console quality action with enhanced graphics, expansive areas, and larger monsters.

"Our approach to globalizing the series ties into the themes we had when designing the game," Tsujimoto reveals. "The name 'Monster Hunter: World' itself is a nod to our desire to appeal to a worldwide audience."

It was crucial for Monster Hunter: World not to favor one market over another. The game was released simultaneously worldwide, without exclusive content locked to Japan. "This comes with aligning ourselves to meet global standards that people expect from titles around the world," Tsujimoto explains.

Tsujimoto and the team conducted focus tests and user tests globally, using the feedback to refine game systems and enhance global appeal. One significant change was displaying damage numbers when players hit monsters, which helped demystify the game for new players.

Monster Hunter: World and its 2022 follow-up, Monster Hunter Rise, both surpassed 20 million copies sold, a stark contrast to the 1.3 to 5 million copies sold by previous games.

This growth was no accident. Rather than altering Monster Hunter to fit Western tastes, Tsujimoto and the team preserved the series' unique nature while making it more accessible to a wider audience. This approach continues with the latest installment, Monster Hunter Wilds.

"At its core, Monster Hunter is an action game, and mastering that action is key to the sense of accomplishment," Tsujimoto says. "For new players, reaching that point involves steps we carefully strategize. With World and Rise, we analyzed where players got stuck, what was hard to understand, and implemented new systems based on that knowledge 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 promises of more content, Monster Hunter Wilds is poised to continue the series' mission to conquer the world.