The Monster Hunter series has been rising in popularity since the release of World brought in a new western audience, and with Rise coming fast on the horizon. A lot of players may have started with World, due to its greater accessibility relative to the older games, while more still jumped on earlier in the franchise’s life with the Playstation or 3DS titles.
Wherever players stand in the timeline, new or old, their love for the series stands strong. It was impossible to predict how popular the charming Japanese titles would become in recent years, and just how many new players would be joining guilds and hunting their way to the top. A lot of these same players, however, may not have experienced the series prior to World, and may not know where to start. Monster Hunter, now nearly two decades old, has plenty of wonderful titles to explore. For anyone looking to fill the gap before Rise releases in a couple of weeks, this compilation may shed light on some of the best ports and releases well-deserving of a second look.
11 Monster Hunter Freedom – PSP
The first game, on the Playstation 2, and its counterpart Freedom on the PSP, released back-to-back with the latter being an upgraded and enhanced version of its console sibling. Freedom added to the overall experience, providing slightly more content as opposed to the PS2’s release.
Newcomers to the series found themselves slightly more at home with the handheld port, which provided them with more accessibility on the go, and felt more like what the developers intended from the multiplayer mechanics. Now, almost 20 years after its release, the original game may be clunky and dated, but it still holds a surprising amount of charm for what it is.
10 Monster Hunter Freedom 2 – PSP
The franchise’s second entries, Monster Hunter 2 and Freedom 2 were much-welcome upgrades to the first game’s formula, fine-tuning the mechanics and adding new equipment and quests to enhance the experience. While these two followed the same cycle as the first, releasing on the PS2 and PSP respectively, MHF2 had to sacrifice more of its predecessor’s components in order to make room on the handheld console’s drives, instead vouching for new quests and minor content to fill the gaps.
Regardless of its downfalls, the second entries’ additions to the game’s quickly-growing fanbase were impressive, and left players excited for future installments.
9 Monster Hunter Freedom Unite – PSP
Where Freedom 2 left off, Monster Hunter Freedom Unite picked up and carried. Intended as an enhanced edition of MHF2, proposed to fill in the empty space of its predecessor, Unite added an enormous amount of refurbishment to the series’ previous entry.
With Monster Hunter’s gameplay growing more and more addictive, and Unite’s additions to the roster (including fan-favorite Tigrex, alongside new questlines and equipment) brought this title into a lot of players’ top-ten lists. Unite was also the last mainline entry to release on a Sony console, instead moving toward new horizons with Nintendo’s hardware suiting the company’s needs more sufficiently.
8 Monster Hunter Tri Ultimate – Wii U & 3DS
Monster Hunter Tri was not only the first in the series to release exclusively on Nintendo consoles, with Tri releasing on the Wii only to be followed by its enhanced “Ultimate” editions on the Wii U and 3DS, but also a stepping-on point for a lot of new players.
With new mechanics, new monsters, companions, and an intriguingly beautiful setting, MH3 became a favorite for Nintendo gamers looking for a more dedicated multiplayer experience, which later grew into a much bigger crowd with the Ultimate’s portability and general upgrades from the original.
7 Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate – 3DS
Following MHTri‘s success on Nintendo hardware, Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate was a perfect next step for Capcom, releasing exclusively on the 3DS with quite a few new elements to keep fans interested. MH4U traded in Tri‘s swimming mechanics for a much more vertical experience, a gimmick amplified by the newly added Insect Glaive alongside more in-depth environments.
Alongside the aerial playstyle, 4U provided players with a much more visually striking style, and brought in quite a few tie-ins with other games, including palico costumes and player armor modeled after famous Nintendo characters and Capcom classics.
6 Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate – Switch
Monster Hunter Generations, releasing at the end of the 3DS’ cycle, was a wonderful look back at the series’ origins. Aptly titled Generations for its larger-than-ever roster, and world map spanning several of the previous games’ locales and villages. In opposite fashion from the original titles, MHG was ported to the Switch as an enhanced ultimate edition, adding more quests and upgraded accessibility.
While Switch players loved the game for its top-tier culmination of all the previous games, the release of Monster Hunter World between MHG and MHGU meant that a lot of players who started with World were disappointed to see that Generations was a more difficult approach to the series’ core.
5 Monster Hunter Stories – 3DS
Monster Hunter Stories on the 3DS was a surprising spin-off for the series, taking a solid departure from the franchise’s staple tone. Where the original games have a lot of charm, they’re still grounded in a more harsh realism as opposed to Stories’ more Pokemon-esque appearance.
Stories surprised players with its beautiful story, and appealed to casual gamers with its simplified turn-based gameplay and vivid art style. The first entry was popular enough that Capcom decided on producing a sequel, Wings of Ruin, releasing on the Switch later this year after Monster Hunter Rise.
4 Monster Hunter World – PC, PS4, Xbox One
Nobody could have predicted just how popular Monster Hunter World would be. World took the series in a much different direction with its advanced graphics and mechanics, as well as upgraded accessibility for new players who were unfamiliar with Monster Hunter’s core difficulty. Hitting the community by storm on PC, PS4, and the Xbox One, MHW became one of the best-selling and most popular games in the series, let alone the decade.
With its numerous additions to the universe, and breathtaking scale, it’s hard to imagine how future entries will advance, but it’s equally exciting to watch the community grow in the core of Monster Hunter’s fellowship.
3 Monster Hunter Rise – Switch, PC
Coming off the popularity of World, one can imagine how hard it would be for Capcom to live up to its western audience’s expectations with a new title. Much to the surprise of newcomers, Rise was announced to be a Switch exclusive on launch, and would come to PC much later.
From what Capcom has shown so far in their numerous presentations and demonstrations this last month, Rise appears to be a wonderful homecoming for the series, returning to its peak on Nintendo consoles. As Rise releases later this month, the community is excited to see what the new monsters and companions have to offer, and how the franchise will continue to evolve with its future releases.
2 Mobile Games
Though the mobile market never really took off for Monster Hunter, seeing as it’s not exactly the type of game players wanted on their phones, Capcom still delivered on a handful of spin-off titles. A few of these were region-locked, though the rest didn’t find the player base they were looking for regardless of location or release date, and most (if not all) went completely under the radar for fans.
Among the few that were released are Monster Hunter Explore, Monster Hunter Riders, Monster Hunter Dynamic Hunting, and a Japanese exclusive Monster Hunter i. None of the mobile games released to rave reviews, most actually getting quite the opposite.
1 Japan-Exclusive Spin-Offs
Before Capcom realized how big the potential for the series was, Japan got a fair bounty of exclusives, from games to merch to a full-on Universal Studios exhibition with animatronics and actors.
One of the more popular series revolves around Airou, the felyne icon, there are also several experimental titles using the classic formula. Frontier Online/G were 360-Live-exclusive versions, similar to the originals with a flowier, floatier design. The Monster Hunter Diary games were a lot more favorable in concept, following a cuter, more simplified adventure taking place in a village of felynes (and poogie) working together to defeat their monstrous foes. The first two Diary games released on the PSP, and the third on the 3DS alongside Generations.
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