Niantic and Capcom team up for Monster Hunter Now: Aiming to replicate the success of Pokémon GO

Niantic, the creator of Pokémon GO, has announced its collaboration with Capcom to create a new augmented reality game called Monster Hunter Now. The game is an action and role-playing game set in the real world where players hunt monsters and gather resources to create weapons and armor. The game's augmented reality feature allows players to immerse themselves in the game, providing a more immersive gaming experience. The sign-up for the private beta is available now, allowing players to provide feedback and improve the game before its official release in September 2023.

Players can join other users of the app to hunt monsters and gather resources in the game's real-world setting, and use waypots or points of interest to help players collect resources in this augmented reality world. The game's announcement came months before its release to allow players to sign up for the beta version and provide feedback to improve the game before its launch.

Image by Niantic

The game is free to play, but it will have microtransactions, so players will be able purchase additional in-game items. The game's development team is being led by Niantic's Tokyo studio, who has collaborated with various brands in the past, including Marvel, NBA, Harry Potter, and Pikmin. However, the success of none of these collaborations has matched the success of Pokémon GO. Therefore, Niantic aims to emulate the success of Pokémon GO with Monster Hunter Now, one of the most successful video game franchises, with Monster Hunter World being the top-selling game for Capcom.

Our take: It is certainly interesting to see the Monster Hunter IP find its way to new media. The game has never been a stranger to handhelds dedicated to gaming such as PSP or Switch, but its inclusion in mobile phones could further boost the fame of this excellent franchise.