Like many people in Japan and around the world, Yoko Taro has been spending some time with Monster Hunter Rise in 2021. And while Monster Hunter games aren’t known for their narrative depth, the creator of the NieR and Drakengard series had a few “delusional” ideas for a plot to share via Twitter:
モンハンライズの村クエ途中までプレイして、妄想した物語。 https://t.co/q9QesVGIfZ
— yokotaro (@yokotaro) May 9, 2021
It’s worth pointing out that Yoko Taro is not currently involved with Monster Hunter Rise or Capcom, and this shouldn’t be taken as an announcement of any sort. Indeed, the results of these idle musings are a version of the game that would feel more appropriate sold as an unofficial NieR or NieR: Automata spin-off. Bitter sacrifice, revenge, and leveraging the power of both background music and utter silence all play out to devastating effect in what could be called Yoko Taro’s Monster Hunter Rise. We even learn the dark secret behind why the player hunter has more of a voice in Rise compared to other Monster Hunter entries.
Perhaps the most interesting bits are the way these twists would express themselves through alterations in the game’s structure. One development, translated by Monster Hunter expert Adam “Gaijinhunter” Evanko, even posits an organic, story-led way to ramp up the difficulty:
– As main characters die out, they are replaced by the store generic NPCs, and they start to come to the conclusion that the player is a danger to the village. They start restricting items and weapons, making the game more difficult.
You can check out Evanko’s full translation here.
The canonical version of Monster Hunter Rise is immediately available on Nintendo Switch. Check out Siliconera’s guide series to get started with the game.
