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10 years ago today Capcom released the first Monster Hunter game. It launched in Japan for the PlayStation 2 as part of a new initiative from Capcom's Production Studio 1 designed to test the waters of online console gaming. It was a triumvirate that included cel-shaded racing game Auto Modellista, the multiplayer-focused Resident Evil: Outbreak and, of course, Monster Hunter. Capcom hoped at least one would sell a million copies, what the company considered then to be the mark of a hit title. One did.The series exploded when it hit Sony's PlayStation Portable. Millions gathered at train stations and parks to play together over local wireless, hunting monsters, scoring loot, upgrading their characters. Monster Hunter became a Japanese social phenomenon and for Capcom, big business. Monster Hunter Freedom 3 for the PlayStation Portable is the fifth highest-selling Capcom game of all time, with 4.8m units sold. Monster Hunter 4, released last year in Japan for the Nintendo 3DS, is the seventh highest-selling Capcom game of all time, with 4m copies sold. And Monster Hunter Freedom Unite rounds out the series' dominance over Capcom's top 10 as the eighth highest-selling with 3.6m sold.
Now, 10 years after the release of the first game, Monster Hunter is Japan's Call of Duty. 28 million Monster Hunter games have been sold in the past decade, spread over some 28 titles. The release of a new Monster Hunter game is an annual event in Japan. Each year, thousands queue up outside shops in fevered anticipating. And each year, Monster Hunter's importance to Capcom grows, as more globally-renowned series, such as Resident Evil, falter.
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