Monster Hunter World‘s incredible sales are a landmark moment for the series, with it now becoming Capcom’s best-selling title worldwide, overtaking Resident Evil 5 with a whopping 7.5 million units shipped. Now that Monster Hunter World has pushed the franchise into the mainstream in the west, with it enjoying some semblance of its overwhelming popularity in Asia, all eyes are on how Capcom plans to handle Monster Hunter moving forward. So what can we expect to see from Capcom in the coming years?
Monster Hunter World 2 is Inevitable
Capcom is unlikely to return to the regular Monster Hunter series following World, with it being more likely that we’ll see the release of Monster Hunter World 2 within the next few years. Excluding Monster Hunter Generations, the next entry in the mainline series would technically be titled Monster Hunter 5, though Capcom should rightly capitalize on the success of the 2018 game by releasing a direct sequel to World.
Truthfully, there isn’t a great deal of difference between the previous Monster Hunter games and World, aside from its more “realistic” presentation and release on the PS4/Xbox One. However, this has been exactly what it needed to introduce it to a new audience, and this audience is much more likely to invest in Monster Hunter World 2 than a return to the style of the 3DS/Wii U games.
A Separate Nintendo Switch Series?
Monster Hunter World may not be released on the Nintendo Switch, with Capcom pointing to technical limitations as the reasoning behind it not being ported to the handheld/home console hybrid (though the studio behind the Skyrim port wants to see it happen). However, Capcom has previously expressed that it wants to spend more resources on developing games for the Switch, so maybe Monster Hunter’s collaboration with Nintendo isn’t over just yet.
Logically, Capcom could return to the style of the 3DS/Wii U games for a Switch spin-off series. Monster Hunter XX already released on the Switch in Japan, though the west has yet to receive a Monster Hunter Switch game, which could be set to change following the success of World. Developing another Monster Hunter game alongside a potential Monster Hunter World sequel may be too much work, though the heightened level of interest surrounding Monster Hunter right now could make it a possibility.
Focus on Multiplayer
In many ways, Capcom dropped the ball with Monster Hunter World‘s multiplayer. Though undoubtedly popular, the game’s weirdly unintuitive co-op offering put many roadblocks in front of players’ enjoyment of it, making it a headache to navigate for those just wanting to play with their friends. Considering that many dropped games such as Destiny 2 to instead enjoy Monster Hunter World‘s multiplayer, Capcom making it more accessible and player-friendly would have been beneficial.
Monster Hunter has always had a weird approach to multiplayer, but now that Monster Hunter World has introduced the series to a wider audience, it’s arguably time for it to move away from some of the odd design choices that may be off-putting to those just getting to grips with it. Introducing a co-op campaign that allows players to complete it in its entirety alongside their friends would be a big positive step, and would drastically improve the longevity of the game.
