Though the structure is similar, and the plot is nearly identical between these two 'monster'-based franchises, the biggest difference between the two comes in the form of gameplay. However, the structure also makes it necessary to take time off from leveling your characters, as you'll have to visit the hub world quite frequently to gather supplies and heal your monsters. The structure of Monster Hunter makes it a little bit more difficult, as you don't have a Pokémon center never more than ten steps away to heal your creatures. The only real difference between the two is that while Pokémon sees you travelling to nearly-identical towns along a world map, Monster Hunter has a central hub world from where you can jet off to different mission areas. The objective, to find all the Pokémon/Monsters in each game, makes a quest-based structure the easiest fit for both. The structure of the games is also similar. With both of these franchises, it's all about the gameplay, so you won't find much narrative in either. Sure, Pokémon throws in a little bit of coming-of-age in there, and you might have a few childhood rivals, but if someone came up the street and asked you what Pokémon was about, you probably wouldn't say much more than "catching Pokémon." The same thing goes with Monster Hunter, though instead of a young kid, you are a grown adventurer who ventures deep into the wilds of.wherever.to find monsters. So, which of these franchises is better? Let's find out!Īs far as storyline goes, Monster Hunter and Pokémon are on equal footing, as neither of them really have much of a narrative.
A series that gets people to stand up and buy nearly-outdated hardware has to be a big deal, right? But then again, Pokémon is a phenomenon on a global scale, and more people know Pikachu than Tigrex. Why? Because a new Monster Hunter game was released.
Need proof? Despite the PSP's successor, the NGP, coming later this year, the PSP was at the top of the hardware sales charts for the past two weeks in Japan. Though most people would assume I'm talking about Pokémon right off the bat, these statements can also apply to the Monster Hunter series, which is just as popular (if not more so) in Japan. These little creatures can be found anywhere (but tall grass is their most likely environment), and they live to do your bidding and fight off other creatures.