About Monster Hunter Now
Niantic will be developing and publishing Monster Hunter Now, a new location-based game for mobile devices based on Capcom's popular Monster Hunter series. The game is set to launch on the iOS App Store and Google Play in September, and beta testing will begin on April 25. Players can register for the beta now.
In Monster Hunter Now, players will be able to find monsters from the series in real-world locations using the in-game map. Niantic's chief product officer, Kei Kawai, described Monster Hunter as a "perfectly natural fit" for the company's style of games, given its emphasis on collecting with friends and making new friends.
The game has been in development for almost four years, since Niantic proposed the idea to Capcom in March 2019. Niantic has made efforts to differentiate Monster Hunter Now from its previous title, Pokémon Go, by dividing the map into different ecological zones and introducing a Paintball item that allows players to tag monsters they encounter and battle them later from home. The game also features "tap and flick" battle controls instead of virtual buttons, and multiplayer is a big focus.
Monster Hunter series producer Ryozo Tsujimoto expressed excitement about the collaboration with Niantic and the potential of the new game.
