According to Ryozo Tsujimoto, the success is due to the PSP game. The future Monster Hunter Wilds will be the result of 20 years of development.
If you ask a Monster Hunter fan when the series changed forever, they'll likely mention the last two games. Logic suggests so, as more than 60% of the series' total sales have occurred since Monster Hunter: World's release in January 2018. However, Ryozo Tsujimoto, the series' producer for 20 years, disagrees. According to him, it wasn't even one of his games that brought about this change. Instead, he believes it is part of a process that is beginning to unfold with the Progressive Socialist Party.
Monster Hunter's big win on PSP
In an interview published in the Sankei Shimbun, Tsujimoto explained that the early games in the Monster Hunter series suffered because the technology was not yet up to par. According to him, the idea was always to enjoy games as a social experience, but the PlayStation 2's online features were too complex for users to operate. The head of the series explains that many players fell in love with the series because of the novel concept, but that ruled out many other options for him.
Tsujimoto has repeatedly emphasized that the Monster Hunter series can only be understood from a social gaming perspective, which is why the PSP plays such an important role. Sony's machine was the first console to offer Wi-Fi and a game from the series at the same time. “It allowed people to play together at a time when they were less willing to go to friends' houses and play late at night,” the producer said.
The PSP versions proved that the Monster Hunter concept was viable, and Capcom continued working on it. And here we are, almost two decades later. Monster Hunter: Wilds is currently the most anticipated game on Steam, compared to giant games like Deadlock, Hollow Knight: Silksong or STALKER 2. Social gameplay plays an increasingly important role, and it would be very bad if the new part of the series fails. Don't prove once again what a bright future lies ahead when it comes out on February 28, 2025.