The release of a new Monster Hunter game is a big deal in Japan. Copies sell out regularly, and companies declare release day a holiday. The series is very popular in Japan, but it hasn't gotten nearly that amount of attention in the West. So, why isn't the series bigger in America?
In Monster Hunter games, players spend most of their time killing monsters to harvest materials for weapon and armor upgrades. Players typically progress through a relatively straightforward quest system with various weapon types until they are introduced to the meat of the game: completing High Rank and G Rank Hunts for better gear. This gameplay loop is central to the addicting nature of the game and gives players hundreds of hours of content to grind out so they can build their perfect gearset. While Japan has taken a great liking to the series, the West has only recently gotten interested in these games, mostly due to the release of the universally acclaimed Monster Hunter: World. That sudden interest makes sense; it was one of the first games in the series to remove the innate clunkiness of some of the mechanics.
Older Monster Hunter titles were intentionally clunky in some aspects to encourage deliberate gameplay. Drinking potions, for instance, forced hunters to stand still until their health was restored. This was only one of many time-consuming moves present, and it wasn't until the release of World that many of these mechanics changed. Potions could now be drank while on the move, and resource nodes only took one button press to harvest everything inside. The reduction of downtime let players refocus on their ultimate goal of hunting monsters. In fact, these changes are but one of the reasons as to why World was Capcom's fastest selling game at one point.
Why America (& The West) Is Finally Embracing Monster Hunter
Deliberate clunk aside, the series struggled to find a large audience in the United States and the West due to the series' mobile focus. Japan and North America have very different gaming habits. Fans in countries like the U.S. have historically been more interested in non-mobile consoles, while Japan is very mobile centric. Knowing this, it's no wonder the West hasn't become enamored with the series: Until World, a lot of people may have not had the chance to play it.
Finally, more gamers in the West appear to be embracing Monster Hunter. The huge sales numbers for Monster Hunter Rise, the most recent release in the series, shows that the international market for this franchise is expanding. Now, perhaps there's a chance for Monster Hunter to rise to the levels of fame in America that it's had in Japan.