Monster Hunter: World Producer and Directors on Loot Boxes

[gigastar]

So i was recently alerted to this article [https://www.gamespot.com/articles/monster-hunter-world-devs-weigh-in-on-loot-boxes/1100-6454539/] on Gamespot and i think theres some things in there people should read.

I think that Monster Hunter has already built that kind of randomized, item reward into the gameplay. Whenever you carve a monster after a hunt, you don't know what you're gonna get within a certain range. You've got certain rare parts that you almost never get. You've got some of the ones you don't need that you get a lot of. And then there are the rewards for the quest as well. There are some [rewards] that are standard, there are some that are randomized, and a bit bigger or smaller chance of getting them.

You've already kind of got loot as a core gameplay aspect without having to shove a microtransaction version of it in.

Our focus is on wanting to get people to play our action game and feel the kind of satisfaction that comes with the achievement you get with completing a hunt and getting rewards. We want people to have the experience that we've made for them rather than the option to skip the experience.

I wouldn't see a paid loot box or paid system for getting random items as fitting Monster Hunter because it isn't a game where the strength of the items is the key aspect of how you proceed.

The idea is that the time you spend hunting and the action part of the game is how you brush up on your skills. And then of course you get rewards of better items; but by skipping out on the part where you get better and hunt--if you're simply getting more items--I don't think that'll be a very satisfying experience for players because it wouldn't even necessarily make it that much more of a time saver if you haven't got the skill to use the items you've gotten.

I think the games that successfully do loot box systems are designed around them completely from the outside and they're a core part of the gameplay loot.

Whereas as our loop, it's more based on the gameplay action itself, then gathering items, then using that to create better gear, and then using that to go and do more action gameplay. We would have to fundamentally rethink our gameplay loop. When you're including loot boxes you have to make them desirable to players and make them want to have them by introducing them in basic gameplay. And then that leads to further opportunities for purchasing to save time or get cooler items. And with our gameplay, we can't just put them in there and have it work. We'd have to have a substantial re-think, which is not something we're particularly planning to do at this time.

In short, these people are (for now at least) more interested in building a game for people to enjoy playing than they are in building an virtual apparatus for drawing blood from rocks.

I think this kind of behavior should be rewarded, not that i was ever going to skip out on a Monster Hunter game.

What are your thoughts?

 

[aegix drakan_v1legacy]

If I could find a decent video of Thor going "YESSSSSS!" I would post it.

I'm super glad they understand the core appeal of Monster Hunter and aren't going to fuck up the formula over contrived loot box bullshit.

Seriously, I was already going to buy Monster Hunter World the second it dropped on PC, but now I'm just overhyping myself again! January is so far away, and the PC release is still a vague "After the console versions come out" ;_; I want my PC monster hunter game! I want to team up with a guild and plan out badass hunts and stuff!

Ah hell, I think I'm going to go back to 4 until then. I never fully finished it due to a thumb injury taking me out of being able to play action-intensive stuff for over 6 months. ;_;

 

[Neurotic Void Melody]

*coughy splurge cough*


Best of luck to the developer's launch success.

 

[sanquin]

Sad times we live in, where a developer that does what everyone SHOULD be doing anyway, should be rewarded. I agree though, they should receive recognition at least for doing this, as it'll send a message to the rest.

 

[Captain Marvelous_v1legacy]

I was going to get this game anyway. I've always been interested in Monster Hunter, but I never had the console for it, and I didn't want to play it on the 3DS. Now I'm probably going to buy it day one. I want to support any game I'm interested in that gives loot boxes the middle finger.

Sad times we live in, where a developer that does what everyone SHOULD be doing anyway, should be rewarded. I agree though, they should receive recognition at least for doing this, as it'll send a message to the rest.

Soon enough, publishers will come up with something worse than loot boxes. When that time comes, we'll cheer for the games that don't have this new awful thing, even though they still have loot boxes. It can only get worse from here.

 

[sanquin]

Soon enough, publishers will come up with something worse than loot boxes. When that time comes, we'll cheer for the games that don't have this new awful thing, even though they still have loot boxes. It can only get worse from here.

It already got worse with the new...Battlefield I believe? You can now get rewards for watching other people open loot boxes. Not only that, but there's a 'social hub' where you can see other players. Loot boxes will drop out of the sky when people buy them there. And you can see what loot they get from it. All to entice you to buy lootboxes as well.

Plus the ESRB showed they're corrupt as hell by saying lootboxes aren't a form of gambling "because you always get something in return for your money". As if slot machines always at least rewarding you with 10 cents or something would suddenly not make it gambling any more.

 

[Dreiko_v1legacy]

And yet more people will still buy the next call of duty game or sports game and not this. Ah well. This is more weird Japanese game stuff that most normal people shouldn't like, can't help it.



But yeah, it just goes to show how even Capcom can be smart about this sort of thing, and we all know there's no shortage of criticism aimed at them. If even they are above loot boxes, you know how far the other developers have fallen.

 

[aegix drakan_v1legacy]

Ugh, I spent a good 2 hours binge-searching for more information on the game and everything I find just makes me more hyped.

Wishlisting equipment so you have a better idea of how close you are to being able to make that awesome new weapon, more fun tracking mechanics, a "guild" system where you can not only form a large network of fellow hunters but also be a member of SEVERAL at once, the filler quests being turned into side-stuff you can do while out on any mission...

The PC release cannot possibly come soon enough. And it hurts because we STILL don't know when the PC version is going to happen. ;_;

 

[Canadamus Prime]

We want people to have the experience that we've made for them rather than the option to skip the experience.

What a novel concept.

 

[Tanis]

I wouldn't mind some loot boxes that helped BOOST thing like EXP, but only if they didn't purposefully fuck over the core game to require them.

Not everyone has time to grid for 60 hours just to beat the final boss.
Some of us are adults, with jobs n' shit.

 

[Bob_McMillan]

It already got worse with the new...Battlefield I believe? You can now get rewards for watching other people open loot boxes. Not only that, but there's a 'social hub' where you can see other players. Loot boxes will drop out of the sky when people buy them there. And you can see what loot they get from it. All to entice you to buy lootboxes as well.

That's the new CoD if I remember correctly.

 

[Dreiko_v1legacy]

Ugh, I spent a good 2 hours binge-searching for more information on the game and everything I find just makes me more hyped.

Wishlisting equipment so you have a better idea of how close you are to being able to make that awesome new weapon, more fun tracking mechanics, a "guild" system where you can not only form a large network of fellow hunters but also be a member of SEVERAL at once, the filler quests being turned into side-stuff you can do while out on any mission...

The PC release cannot possibly come soon enough. And it hurts because we STILL don't know when the PC version is going to happen. ;_;

MH is the game that they based souls-style gameplay on with stamina gauges, dodging a lot because single hits take out half your life and weighty strikes that need effort to land.

The gear is there more so as a trophy to show how well you did rather than as a way of making clearing the game easier since you always will be doing the same kinds of (limited) moves with all sorts of gear while facing huge dinosaurs and sand-sharks and gorillas flinging their poop at you (which causes a bad stat effect of stench) so even if they did add loot boxes, as they say, they wouldn't affect much.

I wouldn't mind some loot boxes that helped BOOST thing like EXP, but only if they didn't purposefully fuck over the core game to require them.

Not everyone has time to grid for 60 hours just to beat the final boss.
Some of us are adults, with jobs n' shit.

There's no EXP in monster hunter.

You're perpetually at lvl 1 and are expected to beat the entire game at lvl 1 with only slightly incremental buffs to your passive damage and defense. It's all about learning to use the game-systems to perfection and not grinding. If you don't suck you can beat the game with even the starting gear no problem.

Also, there's no real "final boss", you're just in a village and are trying to save off danger in perpetuity. There's always gonna be more (free dlc) bosses coming next. MH is more like an MMO in that sense where you can play it for near infinite hours or for as little as you like and still get something out of it.

 

[gigastar]

There's always gonna be more (free dlc) bosses coming next.

Just pointing out, the event quests system in World is going to be the same as in Tri.

If you dont know what that means, then there will be a few of them available at a time and theyll be on a rotation.

 

[deadish]

It's good to be king I suppose.

Monster Hunter is kind of a national pastime in Japan. Thus I believe Capcom leaves the development team to their own devices - why fix what isn't broke and risk killing the goose that lays the golden egg.

 

[Hyomoto]

Sad times we live in, where a developer that does what everyone SHOULD be doing anyway, should be rewarded. I agree though, they should receive recognition at least for doing this, as it'll send a message to the rest.

That I disagree with. Even if they lose people like yourself, they'll make it up by hunting the whales they have in their waters. I mean, it sound ridiculous but that's what I hate about a lot of the AAA market: you aren't a fan, you are a resource. And if your vein should go cold, they'll move on.

I think publishers that don't do this should be rewarded with our business but that isn't what is going to turn heads at EA. If anything it proves how big of a lie their $60 myth is: EA is doing it because of the obscene profits they can turn, not because they have to or need to. They are quite literally doing it because they can and other publishers making money isn't going to change that. The only thing that will change anything is if people stop buying their games. But if that DID happen it still won't change their minds because they'll still have made all the money up until then. They'll walk away with a smile on their face. Either way, EA is validated. It's disgusting, but it's true.

 

[sXeth]

MH is the game that they based souls-style gameplay on with stamina gauges, dodging a lot because single hits take out half your life and weighty strikes that need effort to land.

The gear is there more so as a trophy to show how well you did rather than as a way of making clearing the game easier since you always will be doing the same kinds of (limited) moves with all sorts of gear while facing huge dinosaurs and sand-sharks and gorillas flinging their poop at you (which causes a bad stat effect of stench) so even if they did add loot boxes, as they say, they wouldn't affect much.

There's no EXP in monster hunter.

You're perpetually at lvl 1 and are expected to beat the entire game at lvl 1 with only slightly incremental buffs to your passive damage and defense. It's all about learning to use the game-systems to perfection and not grinding. If you don't suck you can beat the game with even the starting gear no problem.

Also, there's no real "final boss", you're just in a village and are trying to save off danger in perpetuity. There's always gonna be more (free dlc) bosses coming next. MH is more like an MMO in that sense where you can play it for near infinite hours or for as little as you like and still get something out of it.

Is there some good preview or video guide to how Monster Hunter goes thats not in Japanese. Worlds has me and my buddies intrigued, but my grasp of how the game goes is pretty weak. Other then folks mentioning Dragons Dogma was similar on the combat side, which is a glowing recommendation, but not entirely descriptive.

Most of the stuff I find of people playing demos or whatever seem to be pretty hardcore players and delving way more into a specific weapon or something then generally discussing the game.

 

[Kaimax]

Most of the stuff I find of people playing demos or whatever seem to be pretty hardcore players and delving way more into a specific weapon or something then generally discussing the game.

Pro Jared's Beginner Guide series is a good place to start. It's about Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate, but you'll probably get a good gist of the series as a whole.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6iYOHaGGKk

 

[Dreiko_v1legacy]

MH is the game that they based souls-style gameplay on with stamina gauges, dodging a lot because single hits take out half your life and weighty strikes that need effort to land.

The gear is there more so as a trophy to show how well you did rather than as a way of making clearing the game easier since you always will be doing the same kinds of (limited) moves with all sorts of gear while facing huge dinosaurs and sand-sharks and gorillas flinging their poop at you (which causes a bad stat effect of stench) so even if they did add loot boxes, as they say, they wouldn't affect much.

There's no EXP in monster hunter.

You're perpetually at lvl 1 and are expected to beat the entire game at lvl 1 with only slightly incremental buffs to your passive damage and defense. It's all about learning to use the game-systems to perfection and not grinding. If you don't suck you can beat the game with even the starting gear no problem.

Also, there's no real "final boss", you're just in a village and are trying to save off danger in perpetuity. There's always gonna be more (free dlc) bosses coming next. MH is more like an MMO in that sense where you can play it for near infinite hours or for as little as you like and still get something out of it.

Is there some good preview or video guide to how Monster Hunter goes thats not in Japanese. Worlds has me and my buddies intrigued, but my grasp of how the game goes is pretty weak. Other then folks mentioning Dragons Dogma was similar on the combat side, which is a glowing recommendation, but not entirely descriptive.

Most of the stuff I find of people playing demos or whatever seem to be pretty hardcore players and delving way more into a specific weapon or something then generally discussing the game.

There's almost nothing akin to the gameplay in Dragon's Dogma to be found in MH, the closest thing I can come up with is the part where under specific conditions you can climb on top of giant-type monsters but that's not quite as easy to achieve as in Dragon's Dogma. There's almost no comboing and in a lot of fights you may be getting one or two swings at a monster max before you have to dodge multiple attacks.

What you should compare it to is Dark Souls with a larger emphasis on boss fights and on clearing boss fights with specific methods which give you more loot. For example, there's this one drop that's required to make part of a gear set that you only can get by cutting a dragon's tail off by hitting it with a slash type weapon enough during your fight. There's lots of body-part damage that you can achieve to either make the fights easier or to make good loot drop, also enemies have no health bars and you use their body language to figure out how much health they have left, if injured you'll see them limp or cower etc.

Also you have situations where you wanna capture the monster alive by hitting em with sleeping darts and trapping it such as to not damage its body which can yield more loot and when wounded monsters will often try to escape so you'll have to chase them all over the map and find their nesting spot where they go to rest. It has an actual feel of hunting them down and while the average boss fight isn't quite as hard as in Dark Souls, meeting the correct requirements to get your drops can be a test of skill, and there also are plenty of very hard fights too.