Monster Hunter Now announced, an augmented reality game that follows in the wake of Pokémon Go

Niantic, a company widely known for Pokémon Go, has partnered with Capcom to develop Monster Hunter Now, an augmented reality role-playing game for iOS and Android mobiles. The title, of which we have a first trailer and details, will launch the closed beta phase for some 10,000 participants on April 25 and those interested can already register on the official website. The launch of the game is scheduled for September on the App Store and Google Play under the model free to play with in-app purchases.

“For anyone who has ever dreamed of hunting monsters in the real world, Monster Hunter Now makes that fantasy come true,” says Niantic. In the role of a hunter, players will adventure through their city or town and team up with other players to take down different monsters while interacting socially. You can also go solo. With these few sentences and taking into account that the title follows the Pokémon Go formula, it’s very easy to imagine what we can expect from Monster Hunter Now.

Monster Hunter Now offers a simplified but complete version of the combat system from the Monster Hunter saga. Matches will last a maximum of 75 seconds and the goal is to bring the fun and challenge of a Monster Hunter match to mobile in this short amount of time. As in the original title, the weapon classes will make the difference, but in this case players will be able to switch between them more frequently. The reward for hunting monsters will be materials to make better weapons and armor, which in turn can be used to hunt more challenging monsters.

The real environment will be divided into different ecological zones and in each of them you will be able to find different monsters and materials.

Among the outstanding features of Monster Hunter Now we find the Paintball, an object that allows you to tag the monsters you find on the street and then face them at home. Palico, the cat-like companion that accompanies Monster Hunter hunters, can automatically mark monsters with a paintball. Like Pokémon Go, Monster Hunter Now will have points of interest, which in this case become resource collection points. Regarding the paid elements, the details have not been announced.

This isn’t the first time Niantic has tried to replicate the Pokémon Go formula. With NBA All-World and Pikmin Bloom he has not managed to have the same success, while Harry Potter: Wizards Unite shut down two years after its release. Monster Hunter is not as well known as Harry Potter, but its sales have only grown over the years and it has always had a very good relationship with portable devices.