Monster Hunter (video game)

This article is about the first video game in the series. For the series, see Monster Hunter.

Monster Hunter (video game)
Publisher(s)	Capcom
Designer(s)	Capcom
Composer(s)	Tetsuya Shibata Masato Koda Mitsuhiko Takano
Platform(s)	PlayStation 2
Release date(s)	JP March 11, 2004 NA September 21, 2004 PAL May 27, 2005
Genre(s)	Action role-playing game
Mode(s)	Single-player, online multiplayer
Rating(s)	CERO: 15 ESRB: T PEGI: 12+
Media/distribution	DVD-ROM
System requirements Online play requires broadband internet access. Shutdown December 31, 2007　expect Japan. [1] It closed down July 1, 2011 in Japan.

Monster Hunter is an action game for the PlayStation 2. The game was developed and published by Capcom. Monster Hunter was released in North America on September 21, 2004. It was later remade and expanded in Monster Hunter G, which was released in Japan and was brought to North America and Europe as Monster Hunter Freedom for the PlayStation Portable.

Although much of the game can be played offline through single-player, the majority of the content is in the online section of the game. Not all of the monsters are found in single-player and the player's rewards are smaller when they are offline. The goal for players online is not to defeat the most monsters but to reach the highest hunter rank, which is the storyline that is carried out online by NPC characters.

Gameplay

Monster Hunter places the player in the role of an up-and-coming hunter who must accomplish various quests to achieve glory. Armors, weapons, and other items are created from the remains of slain monsters by carving off their horns, scales and bones. Monster Hunter plays in a similar fashion to Phantasy Star Online allowing the player to team up with up to three other hunters online to take down stronger monsters.

Quests

Monster Hunter is played through quests given to the hunter by the Village Elder or the Town Guild. Village Quests can be classified into four categories: hunting, gathering, capture and event. They are also categorized into different levels, ranging from 1 to 8. Higher level quests become available after quests in the previous level are completed. There are three types of quests:

• Hunting: Hunting quests make up the majority of the missions. As the name implies, the hunter will track, provoke, and eventually slay a monster or a number of monsters.
• Gathering: Gathering quests are missions in which the hunter must "gather" items like herbs or monster parts.
• Capture: The hunter must weaken, but not kill the prey, and then capture it with a trap.

Event

The Event quests are an online-only feature. Every week, a new Event quest is available to hunters of any rank. These quests vary in style and difficulty. Some of the rarer weapons can be made only through Event quest rewards. Event quests are not vital to a hunter's success in the game, but are a useful way to gain experience and to obtain some rare items. Contract fees and time limits vary.

All of the quests allow two deaths, but the third death marks the failure of the quest. Regardless which player actually dies, three deaths will still fail the quest. The only exceptions to this rule are some of the Event quests, which are failed with just one death.

Weapons

Hunters can be classified by either Blademasters, or Gunners. The Blademaster classification consists of five sub-categories: Sword and Shield, Great Swords, Lances, Hammers, and Dual Swords (Dual Swords are unavailable on Japan version). Blademaster weapons can also be of a certain element, be it fire, water, thunder or dragon as well as status effects such as poison, stun or sleep. Gunners have two choices: Light bowgun, and Heavy Bowgun. Classifications and use of sub-category weapons are not chosen and solidified into a file; hunters are able to choose to use any weapon they want, before the start of any quest or event, as long as they have the proper money and/or supplies to do so.

Armor

Armor is always dependent on whether one chooses to use a Blademaster or Gunner weapon (excluding some few which can be worn either way). Blademaster armor usually focuses on stronger physical protection, while Gunner armor usually focuses on elemental protection. Certain armor combinations provide the user with skills such as fast eating (drinking potions faster) or being able to sharpen your weapon fast and better.

Combinations

Combining ingredients to make even better items is a very important feature in Monster Hunter's gameplay, be it combining a blue mushroom and herb to make a health healing potion or a net and trap tool to make the infamous pitfall trap. Although many of the combinations must be discovered by the player, some combinations are hinted at throughout the game. Success is dependent on many factors, such as rarity of the items to be combined and amount of "combo books" a player has on hand or even certain armor skills. Some of the items in the game of the highest rarity can only be obtained by combining. You may also shoot a paintball to track the monster it shows blue on the map and red when its attacking

Creatures

• Apceros, a desert-dwelling, herbivorous, Ankylosaurus-like Reptile.
• Aptonoth, a common, Parasaurolophus-like cousin of the Apceros.
• Bullfango, a long-tusked Suid. Herd leaders are called Bulldromes (which will be seen later in the series).
• Cephadrome, a large, fearsome, carnivorous Piscine Wyvern with a Diplocaulus-like head. A youngster is called a Cephalos. A very odd-looking Dragon.
• Diablos, a very large, extremely dangerous, omnivorous Flying Wyvern with an axe-shaped tail, two large forward-pointing tusks and horns over the eyes as well as a bony head frill like that of a Triceratops. It is found in deserts.
• Fatalis, a dark-purple Dragon that breathes fireballs that can kill a Human in an instant.
• Felyne, one of the two intelligent, Cat-like Lynians. This type is colored like sand.
• Genprey, a desert-dwelling, vicious, pack-hunting, Dromaeosaur-like Bird Wyvern that cannot fly. Pack leaders are called Gendromes.
• Gravios, one of the largest Wyverns. It has a resemblance to a stone statue. A juvenile is called a Basarios.
• Gypceros, a poisonous Bird Wyvern with a very strangel-shaped, beak-like mouth.
• Hornetaur, a Neopteron Insect resmbling a combination of a Beetle and a Cricket.
• Ioprey, a salamander-like red cousin of the Genprey that lives in volcanic regions. Pack leaders are called Iodromes.
• Kelbi, a common, Antelope-like Deer. Males are green and females are blue.
• Khezu, a large, pale Wyvern that lurks in caves and has no eyes and has visible veins, just like most cave dwellers. It resmebles a mix between cave salamaders, bats, and a wyvern. The Khezu also has the power of electricity.
• Kirin, a white, Unicorn-like Creature with red eyes. It is in the group of Monsters known as Elder Dragons (same group as the Fatalis).
• Lao-Shan Lung, a gigantic, wingless Elder Dragon with an appearance like a combination of an Armadillo Lizard, Godzilla and a Chinese Dragon.
• Melynx, one of the two intelligent, Cat-like Lynians. This type is dark-colored and is more mischievous than the Felyne.
• Monoblos, Monoblos ruber, a cousin of the Diablos that is also a desert-dweller. It is omnivorous like the Diablos and it has a very Styracosaurus-like head.
• Mosswine, a Pig with a Pachycephalosaur-like dome and a symbiotic relationship with Moss and Mushrooms.
• Plesioth, a large Piscine Wyvern with a Shark-like head. It swims in a very unique fashion.
• Rathalos, a red-colored Flying Wyvern that looks like a very typical Dragon with the ability to breath fire. A female is gray-green, weaker and called a Rathian.
• Velociprey, a blue cousin of the Genprey and Ioprey that is more common than them. Pack leaders are called Velocidromes. The name is a reference to Velociraptor.
• Vespoid, a large and dangerous Wasp. Leaders are Vespoid Queens (which will be seen later in the series).
• Yian Kut-Ku, a omnivorous, Pterosaur-like Bird Wyvern with large frill-like ears that dwells in swamps and jungles. Its movements and cries are not unlike a chicken.

Online game support

Monster Hunter's Online servers outside Japan were closed down on December 31, 2007.^[1] The server that displayed the "service termination notice" was taken down April 1, 2008.^{[citation needed]}

"After more than 3 years of online service, the external company providing server hosting for both Resident Evil: Outbreak and Monster Hunter has decided to exit the PlayStation 2 online business altogether, with no possibility of outsourcing either the service or the technology."^[1]

Monster Hunter's online servers in Japan closed down on July 1, 2011. (PlayStation 2 versions only)

Monster Hunter G

Monster Hunter G
Developer(s)	Capcom
Publisher(s)	Capcom
Series	Monster Hunter series
Platform(s)	PlayStation 2, Wii
Release date(s)	PlayStation 2 JP January 20, 2005 South Korea January 20, 2005 [2] Wii JP April 23, 2009
Genre(s)	Action game
Rating(s)	CERO: ages 15 and up
System requirements Online play requires broadband internet access and Nintendo Point Card

Monster Hunter G is a video game released in Japan for the PlayStation 2. It was meant to be an expansion for the original Japanese Monster Hunter. It was later ported to the PlayStation Portable in Japan and released in America and Europe under the title Monster Hunter Freedom. Some of the expanded content included Dual Swords (import from North America version "Monster Hunter"), monster color changes and other monster varieties with varying difficulty. Monster Hunter G was released on April 23, 2009 for the Wii with the Monster Hunter Tri Demo. There was also an extra package which included a Special Edition MHG Classic Controller. Underground attempts have been successful in translating and porting this game to the NTSC region.

New Creatures

• Ashen Lao-Shan Lung, an ashen-colored Lao-Shan Lung subspecies.
• Azure Rathalos, an azure-colored Rathalos subspecies. Females are pink and are called Pink Rathians.
• Black Diablos, a female Diablos in the breeding season.
• Black Gravios, a black-colored Gravios subspecies.
• Blue Yian Kut-Ku, a blue-colored Yian Kut-Ku subspecies.
• Crimson Fatalis, the crimson-colored member of the Fatalis brethren.
• Green Plesioth, a green-colored Plesioth subspecies.
• Purple Gypceros, a purple-colored Gypceros subspecies.
• Red Khezu, a red-colored Khezu subspecies.
• Silver Rathalos, a silver-colored Rathalos subspecies. Females are yellow and are called Gold Rathians.
• White Monoblos, a white-colored Monoblos subspecies.

Sequels

Monster Hunter 2 was released in Japan on February 16 in 2006, Monster Hunter Freedom 2, a partial port, on August 28, 2007. Monster Hunter Freedom Unite is another expansion to the PSP Monster Hunter game.

Monster Hunter Tri was originally announced for the PlayStation 3 but was switched to the Wii.^[3] It features new mission modes as well as new monsters and items. This information was revealed in 2007 at Nintendo's Japanese press conference.

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} "Sad News: Monster Hunter and Resident Evil: Outbreak servers shutting down". blog.capcom.com. 2007-11-30. http://blog.capcom.com/archives/613. Retrieved 2009-02-20. 
2. ^ "KDDI announces "Multi-Matching BB" service for Korea -Capcom to release "Monster Hunter G" on January 20th-". Capcom and KDDI. 2005-01-14. http://www.capcom.co.jp/ir/english/news/html/e050114.html. Retrieved 2011-05-26. 
3. ^ "Japan's Nintendo wins exclusive deal for Capcom's Monster Hunter 3 title". www.sharewatch.com. 2007-10-10. http://www.sharewatch.com/story.php?storynumber=49593. Retrieved 2007-11-03. 

External links

• Monster Hunter official website for North America
• Monster Hunter official website for Europe
• Monster Hunter Wiki