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I tried and failed to love a 'Monster Hunter' game
It was roughly two months ago that I received a midnight email from our gaming editor Ben Gilbert. The subject: "Review Code -- Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate for 3DS." The email: "Assuming you want this?" I didn't. Sure, I'd played an older Monster Hunter on the Wii a few years back, but I gave up 15 hours in, shortly after the grueling tutorials ended. I've always felt like I should be into the series, though. I'm into RPGs; I'm into grinding. I use up the precious few vacation days I have crawling through Persona Q's dungeons or leveling up familiars. So I decided to offer up 100 hours of my free time to see if I could learn to love Monster Hunter. I tried so hard to love it. But I failed.
Great Responsibility: Nintendo's role as a leader in Japanese RPG development
This is a column by Kat Bailey dedicated to the analysis of the once beloved Japanese RPG sub-genre. Tune in every Wednesday for thoughts on white-haired villains, giant robots, Infinity+1 swords, and everything else the wonderful world of JRPGs has to offer. It's always Nintendo, isn't it? When E3 rolls around, they're the ones who always seem to have me waiting on pins and needles for an RPG announcement, whether it's Dragon Quest, Xenoblade Chronicles, or in this year's case, Fire Emblem. Only Nintendo seems to be able to do this to me anymore. More than ever, it's Nintendo of America that holds the keys to the most compelling RPGs on the market today.There are exceptions, of course. I really enjoyed what I played of Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch (it looks like the next Dragon Quest VIII to me), and I would love it if Inazuma Eleven were brought over to North America. Square Enix, for all the attention they have been lauding on shooters of late, is another major player. Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts number among the few franchises that still have the power to turn heads at home and abroad.But Nintendo's influence runs much deeper, to the point that they can have an impact on games that they aren't working on directly. Consider, for example, the Nintendo 3DS is rapidly becoming the de facto platform of choice for JRPG development. The shift began when Capcom threw in their lot with Monster Hunter 4, and it's continued apace ever since. That Shin Megami Tensei 4 – a very rare numbered sequel in the long-running series – will be released on the Nintendo 3DS speaks volumes on how Atlus feels about the platform's long-term prospects.
