When Phoenix Labs first announced that they were looking to bring their Monster Hunter styled game, Dauntless, to the PC, it was like Christmas. For the longest time, PC gamers have asked for Capcom to bring the Monster Hunter series to the PC. Of course, that never happened, which prompted Phoenix Labs to rise to the challenge.
Dauntless, is basically their envisioning of Capcom’s title. During PAX East 2017, I had the chance to check out the title and enjoyed what I played. While it wasn’t a carbon copy of Monster Hunter, there was more than enough similarities to draw comparisons between the two. Ever since then, Phoenix Labs has been taking community feedback on what the players want to see with Dauntless. While I didn’t get a chance to get more hands-on at E3 2017, from what I heard for those who did, the game is shaping to be an amazing game.
However, it would seem that Capcom has changed their tune regarding Monster Hunter. After all these years of asking, begging and pleading, the company is now bringing Monster Hunter to the PC, as well as Xbox One and PlayStation 4.
Suddenly, we’re getting the game we asked for with Monster Hunter World, but what about Dauntless? What about the game that was going to fill the void thanks to Capcom now wanting to bring their hunting title to the PC? I’ll be honest, I was even a bit concerned. I’ve followed Dauntless since the original announcement and I don’t want all the work that Phoenix Labs did, go down the drain.
Well, apparently, nothing is going to happen. In fact, Phoenix Labs are “excited” that Monster Hunter World is coming to the PC. According to an interview that Polygon conducted with Dauntless executive producer Jesse Houston, is a win for everyone.
“The more AAA products that are coming into this genre, the wider it’s going to get,” “Historically, the hunting action community has been fairly niche in the West. I’m personally super excited that we’re going to get more than one title in the space on non-mobile platforms.”
I tend to agree with Jesse. This would be no different than having multiple MOBA titles, or fighting games being available. The more competition that’s out there, the better the experience is going to be for the gamers. I for one think that both Dauntless and Monster Hunter World will have their respective communities and have more than enough going for either title to do well.
And so far, Dauntless has impressed me. I loved playing Monster Hunter back on the PlayStation 2, Wii (Monster Hunter Tri) and even on the 3DS. While it seemed that Capcom was settled on only releasing the title on the portable gaming device. Since Capcom was neglecting other platforms, Dauntless was the obvious choice. I’m really pulling for the game, so much that I already picked up the Dauntless Founder’s Pack.
As for Monster Hunter World, while I haven’t had any hands-on yet, I know Capcom isn’t slouching with the title. In fact, they already announced that the PC version will be released after the console versions, for a good reason. They want to make sure that the PC version is fully optimized and that everyone will have a good experience.
If this doesn’t tell you they’re committed to their first Monster Hunter PC title, I don’t know what else does. I’m also pretty sure they’re aware of what Dauntless has done so far. I’m even willing to bet that they’ve been following Dauntless and seeing how much popularity the title has gained. I’d wager that we have Phoenix Labs to thanks for Capcom suddenly changing their minds.
Either way, it’s a win/win for all monster hunting fans, no matter which game you back.
Dauntless is set for a 2017 release, while Monster Hunter World won’t be released until sometime in 2018.
