A yr faraway from its twentieth anniversary, Capcom’s monster-hunting franchise returns in 2025 with Monster Hunter Wilds. The prolific collection has lived by a number of generations of residence and moveable consoles, reaching new peaks with 2018’s Monster Hunter World and 2021’s Monster Hunter Rise — the collection’ best-selling video games thus far and Capcom’s two best-selling video games of all time.
With Monster Hunter Wilds out on February 28, we’re trying again on the franchise’s historical past with a listing of the collection’ most vital video games, ordered chronologically by launch date.
There are upwards of 25 Monster Hunter video games when contemplating all base video games, spinoffs, cellular entries, and enhanced variations. Nevertheless, for this checklist, we have compiled the 12 most related Monster Hunter video games. Our checklist excludes mobile- and arcade-exclusive video games (Monster Hunter i, Monster Hunter Spirits, and many others.); beforehand shuttered MMOs (Monster Hunter Frontier, Monster Hunter On-line); and the FromSoftware-developed, Japan-exclusive, Animal Crossing-like recreation Monster Hunter Diary: Poka Poka Airou Village.
There is no such thing as a steady story all through the Monster Hunter franchise, so you possibly can take your decide of which recreation to begin with. For those who’re leaping into the world of Monster Hunter in 2025, you may wish to wait and and see reactions to the newest recreation, Monster Hunter Wilds, which will probably be launched on February 28. For those who’re desirous to strive the collection earlier than investing in Wilds, we suggest Monster Hunter World or Monster Hunter Rise. World ought to enchantment extra to those that worth exploration and immersion; Rise is healthier suited for many who put the next worth on velocity and fluidity.
Monster Hunter Wilds – Normal Version
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Each Monster Hunter Sport in Launch Order
Monster Hunter (2004)
Monster Hunter, alongside Auto Modellista and Resident Evil: Outbreak, was developed as a part of a three-game plan to discover the market potential of the PS2’s on-line community, Capcom’s Ryozo Tsujimoto informed Eurogamer in 2014.
The primary Monster Hunter laid the inspiration for the franchise, introducing lots of the collection’ defining programs. Gamers, on their very own or with others on-line, are given quests to hunt monsters, after which they use supplies harvested from the world and the monster’s stays to craft and improve weapons and armor earlier than embarking to struggle, effectively, stronger monsters.
An expanded model referred to as Monster Hunter G was launched solely in Japan the next yr.
Monster Hunter Freedom (2005)
The collection discovered its residence on moveable consoles in 2005 with Monster Hunter Freedom, an enhanced port of Monster Hunter G tuned for single-player play on the PSP. This primary moveable entry within the franchise offered over 1,000,000 copies, in response to Capcom, starting a pattern during which Monster Hunter’s moveable variations handily outsold its residence console counterparts — a pattern that held till the breakout success of Monster Hunter World in 2018.
Monster Hunter 2 (2006)
Capcom returned to residence console for the collection’ second correct entry, Monster Hunter 2 (aka Monster Hunter Dos). It was launched solely in Japan for PS2. Monster Hunter 2 launched a day-night cycle and gems, additional enhancing your alternatives for weapons and armor customization.
Monster Hunter Freedom 2 (2007)
The second handheld recreation within the collection, Monster Hunter Freedom 2 once more took the core of its residence console counterpart (MH2) and constructed upon it with new content material and a single-player focus. The sport was expanded additional in 2008’s Monster Hunter Freedom Unite, which added new monsters, missions, maps, and the flexibility to have a Felyne fighter be a part of the participant in battle.
Monster Hunter 3 (2009)
Monster Hunter 3 (aka Monster Hunter Tri) debuted in Japan in 2009, earlier than being launched internationally in 2010. The third mainline MH recreation was initially in growth for the PS3, although it might finally be launched as a Wii unique. Along with new monsters, weapons, and places, Monster Hunter 3 launched the collection’ short-lived underwater fight.
It later got here to Wii U and 3DS as Monster Hunter 3 Final with new monsters, a reworked single-player expertise, up to date graphics, and a brand new multiplayer space.
Monster Hunter Moveable third (2010)
Like the 2 mainline entries earlier than it, Monster Hunter 3 was tweaked and ported to PSP as Monster Hunter Moveable third. In contrast to the 2 moveable variations earlier than it, this recreation additionally bought a console launch on PS3 as Monster Hunter Moveable third HD Ver.
Regardless of by no means being launched within the West, Monster Hunter Moveable third is the best-selling recreation amongst Capcom’s handheld-exclusive Monster Hunters with 4.9 million copies offered.
Monster Hunter 4 (2013)
Monster Hunter 4 was initially launched solely for 3DS, solely in Japan. Solely the improved version, Monster Hunter 4 Final (Monster Hunter 4G in Japan), was launched globally as a launch recreation for New Nintendo 3DS. This technology of Monster Hunter video games most notably improved traversal by pairing elevated verticality with extra fluid participant motion. It additionally improved the single-player expertise with a deeper story and extra NPCs.
Monster Hunter Generations (2015)
Capcom adopted up MH4 with Monster Hunter Generations (Monster Hunter X in Japan), one other installment launched solely for 3DS. Generations had, as our evaluation acknowledged, “the enchantment of a best hits album,” mixing previous and (on the time) new mechanics from the collection’ then-10-year historical past. Most notably, Generations featured new wrinkles to customization and fight by Searching Kinds and Arts.
Generations later obtained an enhanced version, referred to as Monster Hunter Generations XX in Japan and Monster Hunter Generations Final internationally. It was the primary Monster Hunter recreation launched on Nintendo Change.
Monster Hunter Tales (2016)
Monster Hunter Tales is a by-product that takes the motion collection into the world of RPGs. True to the style, Tales trades within the real-time motion of the mainline video games for a turn-based fight system and places extra emphasis on story and exploration.
It was initially launched for 3DS, although it’s since come to PS4, Change, PC, and cellular.
Monster Hunter World (2018)
Monster Hunter World is, thus far, the collection’ excessive level from each a vital and business perspective. With 27 million copies offered, it’s the collection’ (and Capcom’s) best-selling recreation, and with a Metascore of 90, it’s additionally the collection’ best-reviewed recreation.
With World, Capcom moved the first growth of Monster Hunter again to residence consoles, particularly PS4 and Xbox One. For the primary time, it made a concerted effort to succeed in a wider Western viewers by transferring to a extra seamless open-world design, lowering the training curve of the collection’ intricate programs, totally supporting on-line play with international servers, and releasing concurrently throughout all areas.
A large enlargement, Monster Hunter World: Iceborne, was launched the next yr. Just like the Final variations of previous video games, Iceborne added new monsters and mechanics to the bottom recreation, in addition to an all-new story that rivals the dimensions of the marketing campaign in World.
Monster Hunter Rise (2021)
Monster Hunter Rise is the collection’ second best-performing recreation, rating solely behind World when it comes to gross sales and Metascore. Because the subtitle ‘World’ denotes the earlier recreation’s extra international strategy, ‘Rise’ signifies a better deal with verticality, a design choice supported by the introduction of the Wirebug, a brand new mechanic that enabled wall-climbing and total extra fluid traversal.
Rise builds off of the earlier Change entry, Generations Final, as a lot because it does World, given World and Rise have been, for a time, being developed in tandem. As acknowledged in our evaluation, “a lot of the streamlining World did has been carried ahead” in Rise, whereas “different issues like separate Village and Hub questlines for single- and multiplayer and the flexibility to tweak a weapon’s playstyle a bit return from older Monster Hunter video games.”
Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak was launched the next yr. The enlargement features a new storyline, monsters, and places.
Monster Hunter Tales 2: Wings of Destroy (2021)
Capcom adopted Rise with Monster Hunter Tales 2: Wings of Destroy, a sequel to the 2016 RPG. Co-developed by Marvelous Inc. (Story of Seasons), Wings of Destroy leans into tried-and-true JRPG programs like turn-based fight, character customization, and an emphasis on story. Tales 2 once more permits you to struggle alongside monsters (aka Monsties) as an alternative of strictly searching them, creating a celebration system that ought to be acquainted to anybody who’s performed a Pokemon RPG.
Monster Hunter Wilds (2025)
Monster Hunter Wilds would be the newest recreation within the collection when it’s launched on February 28 for PS5, Xbox Sequence X|S, and PC. Wilds is a mainline Monster Hunter recreation that builds on the design ideas of World and Rise. It boasts “dynamic, ever-changing environments” and the collection’ “most developed motion and improved immersion,” in response to Capcom.
As famous in our 2024 Monster Hunter Wilds preview, it’s shaping as much as be “a Monster Hunter that embraces the components of Rise that made it a lot extra inviting but in addition doesn’t draw back from the bigger scale and spectacle that helped make World the extra enduring entry.”
Upcoming Monster Hunter Video games
Subsequent up for the franchise is the aforementioned Monster Hunter Wilds, due out February 28 for PS5, Xbox Sequence X|S, and PC. You’ll be able to learn up on all we find out about Wilds by our intensive IGN First protection:
Capcom can be working alongside TiMi Studio Group (Name of Obligation Cell, Pokemon Unite) on Monster Hunter Outlanders, a free-to-play cellular recreation with multiplayer hunters and “a large open world.” A launch window for Outlanders has not but been introduced.
Jordan covers video games, exhibits, and films as a contract author for IGN.
