A yr faraway from its twentieth anniversary, Capcom’s monster-hunting franchise returns in 2025 with Monster Hunter Wilds. The prolific sequence has lived by a number of generations of dwelling and moveable consoles, reaching new peaks with 2018’s Monster Hunter World and 2021’s Monster Hunter Rise — the sequence’ best-selling video games to date and Capcom’s two best-selling games of all time.
With Monster Hunter Wilds out on February 28, we’re wanting again on the franchise’s historical past with a listing of the sequence’ most necessary video games, ordered chronologically by launch date.
There are upwards of 25 Monster Hunter video games when contemplating all base video games, spinoffs, cell entries, and enhanced variations. Nonetheless, for this listing, we have compiled the 12 most related Monster Hunter video games. Our listing excludes mobile- and arcade-exclusive video games (Monster Hunter i, Monster Hunter Spirits, and so forth.); beforehand shuttered MMOs (Monster Hunter Frontier, Monster Hunter On-line); and the FromSoftware-developed, Japan-exclusive, Animal Crossing-like sport Monster Hunter Diary: Poka Poka Airou Village.
There isn’t a steady story all through the Monster Hunter franchise, so you possibly can take your decide of which sport to begin with. If you happen to’re leaping into the world of Monster Hunter in 2025, you may want to wait and and see reactions to the newest sport, Monster Hunter Wilds, which will likely be launched on February 28. If you happen to’re keen to attempt the sequence earlier than investing in Wilds, we suggest Monster Hunter World or Monster Hunter Rise. World ought to attraction extra to those that worth exploration and immersion; Rise is healthier suited for individuals who put a better worth on pace and fluidity.
Monster Hunter Wilds – Commonplace Version
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 basis for the franchise, introducing a lot of the sequence’ defining techniques. 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 battle, effectively, stronger monsters.
An expanded model referred to as Monster Hunter G was launched solely in Japan the following yr.
Monster Hunter Freedom (2005)
The sequence discovered its dwelling 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 in the franchise offered over 1,000,000 copies, in accordance to Capcom, starting a development in which Monster Hunter’s moveable variations handily outsold its dwelling console counterparts — a development that held till the breakout success of Monster Hunter World in 2018.
Monster Hunter 2 (2006)
Capcom returned to dwelling console for the sequence’ 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 sport in the sequence, Monster Hunter Freedom 2 once more took the core of its dwelling 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 capacity to have a Felyne fighter be 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 sport was initially in improvement for the PS3, although it will ultimately be launched as a Wii unique. As well as to new monsters, weapons, and places, Monster Hunter 3 launched the sequence’ 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 Transportable third (2010)
Like the two mainline entries earlier than it, Monster Hunter 3 was tweaked and ported to PSP as Monster Hunter Transportable third. In contrast to the two moveable variations earlier than it, this sport additionally acquired a console launch on PS3 as Monster Hunter Transportable third HD Ver.
Regardless of by no means being launched in the West, Monster Hunter Transportable third is the best-selling sport 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 enhanced version, Monster Hunter 4 Final (Monster Hunter 4G in Japan), was launched globally as a launch sport for New Nintendo 3DS. This era 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 evaluate acknowledged, “the attraction of a biggest hits album,” mixing outdated and (at the time) new mechanics from the sequence’ then-10-year historical past. Most notably, Generations featured new wrinkles to customization and fight by Looking Kinds and Arts.
Generations later acquired an enhanced version, often called Monster Hunter Generations XX in Japan and Monster Hunter Generations Final internationally. It was the first Monster Hunter sport launched on Nintendo Swap.
Monster Hunter Tales (2016)
Monster Hunter Tales is a by-product that takes the motion sequence into the world of RPGs. True to the style, Tales trades in 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, Swap, PC, and cell.
Monster Hunter World (2018)
Monster Hunter World is, to date, the sequence’ excessive level from each a vital and business perspective. With 27 million copies offered, it’s the sequence’ (and Capcom’s) best-selling sport, and with a Metascore of 90, it’s additionally the sequence’ best-reviewed sport.
With World, Capcom moved the major improvement of Monster Hunter again to dwelling consoles, particularly PS4 and Xbox One. For the first time, it made a concerted effort to attain a wider Western viewers by shifting to a extra seamless open-world design, decreasing the studying curve of the sequence’ intricate techniques, absolutely supporting on-line play with world servers, and releasing concurrently throughout all areas.
An enormous enlargement, Monster Hunter World: Iceborne, was launched the following yr. Comparable to the Final variations of previous video games, Iceborne added new monsters and mechanics to the base sport, in addition to an all-new story that rivals the measurement of the marketing campaign in World.
Monster Hunter Rise (2021)
Monster Hunter Rise is the sequence’ second best-performing sport, rating solely behind World in phrases of gross sales and Metascore. As the subtitle ‘World’ denotes the earlier sport’s extra world strategy, ‘Rise’ signifies a higher deal with verticality, a design determination supported by the introduction of the Wirebug, a brand new mechanic that enabled wall-climbing and general extra fluid traversal.
Rise builds off of the earlier Swap entry, Generations Final, as a lot because it does World, given World and Rise had been, for a time, being developed in tandem. As acknowledged in our evaluate, “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 capacity to tweak a weapon’s playstyle a bit return from older Monster Hunter video games.”
Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak was launched the following yr. The enlargement features a new storyline, monsters, and places.
Monster Hunter Tales 2: Wings of Break (2021)
Capcom adopted Rise with Monster Hunter Tales 2: Wings of Break, a sequel to the 2016 RPG. Co-developed by Marvelous Inc. (Story of Seasons), Wings of Break leans into tried-and-true JRPG techniques like turn-based fight, character customization, and an emphasis on story. Tales 2 once more helps you to battle alongside monsters (aka Monsties) as an alternative of strictly searching them, creating a celebration system that needs to be acquainted to anybody who’s performed a Pokemon RPG.
Monster Hunter Wilds (2025)
Monster Hunter Wilds will likely be the newest sport in the sequence when it’s launched on February 28 for PS5, Xbox Collection X|S, and PC. Wilds is a mainline Monster Hunter sport that builds on the design ideas of World and Rise. It boasts “dynamic, ever-changing environments” and the sequence’ “most developed motion and improved immersion,” in accordance to Capcom.
As famous in our 2024 Monster Hunter Wilds preview, it’s shaping up to be “a Monster Hunter that embraces the elements of Rise that made it a lot extra inviting but additionally doesn’t draw back from the bigger scale and spectacle that helped make World the extra enduring entry.”
Upcoming Monster Hunter Games
Subsequent up for the franchise is the aforementioned Monster Hunter Wilds, due out February 28 for PS5, Xbox Collection X|S, and PC. You’ll be able to learn up on all we learn about Wilds by our in depth 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 cell sport with multiplayer hunters and “a large open world.” A launch window for Outlanders has not but been introduced.
Jordan covers video games, exhibits, and flicks as a contract author for IGN.