When Pokémon GO came out, it seemed like everyone with an iPhone was playing the game. Developer Niantic had gold in its hands and the game remains popular to this day. Now the company is coming out with a similar concept, this time based on the gaming franchise Monster Hunter.
There have already been a number of games released in recent years that have a similar concept to Pokémon GO. Think Jurassic World Alive, The Witcher: Monster Slayer and Pikmin Bloom. So Monster Hunter now belongs to that club as well.
Monster Hunter is coming to your iPhone
The game, incidentally called Monster Hunter Now, marks a collaboration between Niantic and Capcom, the studio behind the franchise. The iPhone game uses the same Augmented Reality techniques that Niantic is so familiar with thanks to Pokémon GO.
Monster Hunter One is all about (hang on) hunting monsters. By collecting the right armor and weapons, you can take on increasingly stronger and more imposing monsters. Niantic has already revealed that, for example, the iconic Rathalos can be found in the iPhone game.
Working together to defeat such giant creatures is also a big part of what makes Monster Hunter interesting for many. Therefore, in the game you will be able to team up with other players who have the game on the iPhone to defeat the monsters.
Pokémon GO’s trick in a different sauce
So we can expect this new game from Niantic to once again use the AR techniques also seen in Pokémon GO. With this, you use your iPhone to view (and fight) the creatures from Monster Hunter as if they were in the real world. The developer has also stated that the game should be pickable by anyone, even if you’ve never played a game from the franchise before.
Monster Hunter Now is due out in September of 2023, but you can already sign up for a closed beta of the iPhone game. According to Niantic, it is available to about ten thousand people.