Monster Hunter Headed to iPhone, Doesn’t Look Very Good

Monster Hunter is a beloved action RPG franchise in Japan, and with the launch of Monster Hunter Tri on the Wii to complement previous PlayStation 2 and PSP releases, it seems as if Capcom wants North American gamers to fall in love with the series. The company has every reason in the world to promote Monster Hunter, as it is definitely a gripping franchise worthy of praise. Now the monster-slaying series is being reformatted for the iPhone in Japan. How does the upcoming Monster Hunter: Dynamic Hunting for the iPhone look so far? Pretty crummy, actually.

In Dynamic Hunting, players encounter many of the massive beasts seen throughout the Monster Hunter series. You must take them down using giant weapons and enforce your best iPhone gaming skills to evade and attack these imposing monsters. Obviously, the game uses the iPhone’s touch screen interface for gameplay and controls, but this isn’t a problem. The main issue in Dynamic Hunting is its shallow, monotonous gameplay. All players have to do is engage the beasts in one-on-one battles, circling around them to defend against attacks and tapping away at the touch screen to strike.

I love Monster Hunter Tri, but the upcoming Monster Hunter: Dynamic Hunting looks like a poor cash-in of this revered franchise. The game is scheduled to launch in Japan this June. No word yet on whether the game will be localized for North America, though there’s a good chance it will. Let’s hope it doesn’t make its way to our side of the world.

To see the boring gameplay of Dynamic Hunting for yourself, check out Famitsu’s YouTube channel. At least the graphics are good.