Niantic and Capcom to release Monster Hunter NOW in September

Niantic, the developer of popular Augmented Reality game Pokémon GO is partnering with Capcom to bring fantasy-action game Monster Hunter to iOS and Android with Monster Hunter NOW.

The announcement was made on Tuesday (18 April).

The closed beta test will begin on 25 April, while the full version is set to be released in September. Registration for the beta test is open at the Monster Hunter website.

Monster Hunter NOW players can explore the real world in search of monsters and materials, meet new friends form alliances with others to hunt monsters, and craft weapons and armour.

The game is said to be a simplified yet authentic version of the Monster Hunter series’ combat adapted for mobile, with taps and swipes on the touchscreen.

It can also be played in both portrait mode and landscape mode, depending on whatever the player might prefer. Monster Hunter fans, however, might be more used to the latter, which is the configuration available on PC and console.

The game is free-to-play and will be supported by in-app purchases.

“The notion of majestic monsters roaming around city streets was extremely compelling as a real-world game,” Niantic’s chief product officer Kei Kawai said at an online press briefing, which was reported by Polygon.

According to Kawai, an AR for Monster Hunter seems quite natural that Capcom immediately accepted the pitch at their first meeting. The game is currently under development in Niantic’s Tokyo studio.

Each battle will only last 75 seconds, and you, as the player, will have a few moves to choose from. Players can still expect the series' signature weapon classes to significantly alter the gameplay, but they should expect to do so more frequently.

"We hope users will try out different types of weapons," said Tatsuo Nomura, executive director of Niantic Tokyo.

And if you defeat the monster, you gain some rewards like resources and others.

Instead of Pokéstops, Monster Hunter NOW will have wayspots which will be resource-gathering points. On top of that, the real world will have ecological zones with unique monsters and materials, much like the Pokémon nests and spawn points in Pokémon GO.

With the help of a "paintball" item, players can mark monsters they come across in the real world for later, solo or cooperative, hunting in-game. On the other hand, their adorable, feline-like Palico companions can automatically tag monsters with paintballs, even when the app is closed, to gather hunts for later.

This isn’t the first time that Niantic has attempted to replicate Pokémon GO’s success. Most notable was Harry Potter: Wizards Unite, which shut down less than three years after release.

Monster Hunter NOW is not yet available and will be officially released in September. However, if you want to participate in the beta, you can sign up through the official website.

Last November, Capcom and a subsidiary of China's Tencent, TiMi, had announced an unnamed Monster Hunter game for mobiles.

Anna is a freelance writer and photographer. She is a gamer who loves RPGs and platformers, and is a League of Legends geek. She's also a food enthusiast who loves a good cup of black coffee.

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