Two months after its release, Monster Hunter Rise is still the top-selling game in all of Japan. Rise is already among the top 20 best-selling games on the Nintendo Switch, selling 5 million copies in its first month. Capcom recently released its first free title update for Rise in April, adding the original three Elder Dragons (Kushala Daora, Chameleos, and Teostra), new Apex monsters, layered armor, and more.
Capcom has already announced a subsequent title update to release at the end of May. While no teases for new monsters are up yet, the developer promises a new story ending for the game. The first ending left on a cliffhanger as the Wyverian twins, Hinoa and Minoto, are seen resonating with Wind Serpent Ibushi and Thunder Serpent Narwa. Fans anticipate more returning Elder Dragons and new Apex monsters to be in the next update, but it is almost a certainty a never-before-seen Elder Dragon will be in it.
As reported by Famitsu and translated by Siliconera, Monster Hunter Rise held its spot at the top in Japan with 668,239 units sold, dwarfing the second place spot held by the remastered NieR Replicant’s 108,838 units. Famitsu also said that Switch console sales in Japan remained at the top, selling 431,225 units. Capcom was ranked as the highest-selling developer in the country for April, ahead of Nintendo and Square Enix, thanks to Rise. With this report, Rise has sold just under 2 million units in Japan alone.
Monster Hunter has always done well in Japan. During the PSP era, the series was synonymous with the handheld console due to the Freedom (known as Portable internationally) series of games. It makes sense that Rise would also do well since the Switch’s portable nature is the gaming method of choice for most East Asian countries. While the game is already selling very well as a Switch exclusive, the PC port scheduled for 2022 is expected to be just as profitable.
May 2021 doesn’t have any big releases coming for the Switch, and the most significant releases for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S are the Mass Effect: Legendary Edition and Resident Evil Village. Because of these factors, it’s possible Monster Hunter Rise has another top-selling performance in Japan. Coupling the fact that the Switch is far more popular (and available) than the PS5 in the country and the immense popularity of Monster Hunter, it will be hard for another developer to dethrone the title.
Source: Famitsu, Siliconera
Monster Hunter Rise is available now on Nintendo Switch.