"Monster Hunter: A Global Phenomenon"

In the lead-up to its global launch, Monster Hunter Wilds shattered pre-order records on both Steam and PlayStation, effortlessly following the footsteps of its extraordinarily popular predecessors, Monster Hunter Rise (2022) and Monster Hunter: World (2018). This achievement cements Capcom's unique and esoteric RPG series as one of the biggest video game franchises worldwide. However, this wasn't always the case. Less than a decade ago, the idea of a Monster Hunter game achieving such global acclaim would have seemed far-fetched. When the original game debuted in 2004, it received mixed reviews, and it wasn't until its leap to the PSP in 2005 that the series truly took off... but only in Japan.

For a long time, Monster Hunter epitomized the "bigger in Japan" phenomenon. The reasons for this were straightforward, as this narrative will elucidate, yet Capcom persistently sought ways to penetrate the international market. The success of Monster Hunter: World, Rise, and now Wilds demonstrates that their efforts were well-rewarded. Here's how Monster Hunter transformed from a domestic hit to a global force.

Around the time of Street Fighter 5's launch in 2016, Capcom underwent an internal reorganization to prepare for a new generation of games that would run on their brand new RE Engine, replacing the aging MT Framework. This shift was more than just about tools; it included a new mandate to create games for a global audience, not just existing territory-specific fans.

"It was a few factors that came together," says Hideaki Itsuno, a former game director at Capcom best 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 seemed to focus heavily on capturing the Western market, evident in games like the action-heavy Resident Evil 4, which was a hit, and less successful ventures like Umbrella Corps and the Lost Planet series. Realizing the need to appeal to a broader audience, Capcom set a clear goal for all teams to create universally appealing games.

"I think that we had that clear goal of just focusing and not holding anything back," Itsuno says. "Towards making good games that would reach people from all over the world."

The period leading up to 2017 was pivotal, with changes in organizational structure and engine technology aligning. The launch of Resident Evil 7 in that year marked the beginning of a Capcom renaissance. No other series embodies this new goal of global success better than Monster Hunter, which, despite its dedicated Western fanbase, was significantly more popular in Japan.

The series found tremendous success moving from PlayStation 2 to the PSP with Monster Hunter Freedom Unite. The handheld gaming market has always been stronger in Japan, largely due to the popularity of devices like the PSP, Nintendo's DS, and later, the Switch. According to Ryozo Tsujimoto, the series' executive producer, Japanese gamers benefited from a highly developed wireless internet network, allowing them to play with friends seamlessly. This was years ahead of the infrastructure available in the United States at the time.

"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 explains. "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, built on cooperative play, thrived in this environment. However, this focus on the local market inadvertently branded Monster Hunter as a "Japan-only" series, with Japan-exclusive content and events reinforcing this perception.

Despite having fans in the West, they often felt excluded as Japanese players enjoyed exclusive tie-ins and quests. As internet infrastructure improved globally and online play became standard, Tsujimoto and the 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. Designed for larger, more capable consoles, it offered AAA-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."

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

Tsujimoto and his team conducted global focus tests and user tests, using feedback to refine the game systems and enhance its global appeal. One significant change was the inclusion of visible damage numbers when players hit monsters, which helped broaden the game's appeal.

Previous Monster Hunter games typically sold between 1.3 to 5 million copies, not including re-releases and special editions. In contrast, 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 the essence of Monster Hunter to cater to Western tastes, Tsujimoto and his team found ways to make the series' unique, sometimes complex nature accessible to a wider audience without compromising its core.

"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 achieved 738,000 concurrent players on Steam, a figure 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.