Despite its popularity, I had never actually played a single entry in the Monster Hunter franchise. I had seen the outrageous line at the Tokyo Game Show and was well aware that it’s basically selling the PSP in Japan, but, for whatever reason, it never really collected my interest.

Regardless, I elected to give it a show during my stop by Capcom this afternoon. In my demo I was paired with three other players, and we were given the task of going to a specific part the map and annihilating some sort of dragon monster. What followed was a pretty basic and by-the-books assault on a boss enemy. Each player had a different skill set and, along the lines of something like Gauntlet, everyone used their talents (specifically their special, stamina consuming moves). I had to heal myself, someone died and had to respawn somewhere else, and the enemy frequently changed position. Pretty straightforward stuff but, as with any competently designed title, even doing the most simple of activities is always a bunch of fun with your friends around. 

The main game also apparently lacks the traditional experience acquisition system found in so many other RPG's. Rather than kill monsters and gain exp, your statistics and appearence are altered via items and equipment. Monster Hunter is very much a loot collecting game, which, along with the multiplayer focus, sort of makes it akin to an offline MMO. Cool stuff.