Highlights
- Monster Hunter Now and Pokemon GO come from the same app developer, Niantic.
- Both apps have a similar gameplay loop and make use of the same technology, which long-time fans of the Pokemon GO app will quickly notice.
- However, there are key differences in some of the features that set Monster Hunter Now and Pokemon GO apart.
Monster Hunter Now is the latest app from Niantic, developers of the well-received Pokemon GO. Players who are familiar with Pokemon GO will find that a lot of Monster Hunter Now feels familiar, and it is indeed a similar premise.
As with its predecessor, Monster Hunter Now is a game from a well-known IP, encouraging its players to walk around in the real world and making use of AR technology to blend its gameplay with the real world. Despite these similarities, there is a lot that Monster Hunter Now does differently to Pokemon GO, with the following being the most notable differences.
10 Item Space
A very simple difference, to begin with, is that inventory space has been done differently in Monster Hunter Now. In Pokemon GO, players have two main types of storage: item storage and Pokemon storage. Both of these start with a very small amount of available space, 250 slots for Pokemon and 350 for items, but these can be increased with in-game currency or by spending real-world money.
The item storage in Monster Hunter Now can only be increased by real-world money, but players have a lot more storage to play with. There are 5000 slots from the start. On top of that, collecting Pokemon and essential items is integral to the gameplay loop of Pokemon GO, while it is less essential to Monster Hunter Now, primarily being used for crafting.
9 Gathering Points
In some aspects, Gathering Points in Monster Hunter Now will be familiar to Pokemon GO players, as they are found in the same spots as some of the gyms and Pokestops in Pokemon GO, fulfilling similar roles to Pokestops. Instead of spinning them, as players do in Pokemon GO, Monster Hunter Now players will tap these gathering points to gain resources.
While the items that players gain from Pokestops are integral to continued gameplay, such as Pokeballs and potions, items collected from gathering points are more often used for crafting. There seem to be fewer gathering points than there are Pokestops and gyms, and they take much longer to replenish. On the other hand, in Monster Hunter Now, resources sometimes spawn in random locations in the world.
8 Palico Buddy
In Pokemon GO, players can choose one of their Pokemon to accompany them as a buddy. They prove increasingly useful as players develop a bond with them. Players in Monster Hunter Now, though, have a permanent buddy with them. In classic Monster Hunter fashion, this is a felyne or palico.
Palicoes prove very useful during exploration from the start. Players can direct them around the screen to gather resources, and they will even pick them up while the app is closed, so long as players are making use of adventure sync. Palicoes can also automatically paintball monsters, explained further down the list, while the app is running in the background.
7 Different Environments
As with Pokemon GO, Monster Hunter Now maps the real world. One of the unique features they've added for this game, however, is that the map is divided into different environments, such as forest, desert, and swamp. Different monsters can be found in each environment, and the environments seem to shift each day.
This ensures that players will always be able to access new areas to explore, no matter where they are. It's a very nice touch that makes Monster Hunter Now not only feel different from Pokemon GO but also feel distinctly like a Monster Hunter game.
6 Hunt 'Em All
The gameplay in Pokemon GO centers around the classic Pokemon goal to 'catch 'em all'. Players are most likely to spend their time collecting as many different Pokemon as they can.
While Monster Hunter Now does track all the monsters that players encounter in a journal, players will quickly realize that the core gameplay of Monster Hunter Now is not to collect as many as possible. It is to improve as a hunter. This makes it align much more with the gameplay and themes of Monster Hunter, placing an emphasis on combat and leveling gear and armor.
5 Combat
Speaking of this core gameplay, it makes sense that Monster Hunter Now vastly shakes up combat. Those familiar with Pokemon and Pokemon GO will be aware that pitting Pokemon against each other is a common occurrence in the gameplay, but Pokemon GO combat mainly comes down to tapping anywhere on the screen, occasionally tapping a central button for a big move, where players must trace certain patterns.
Combat in Monster Hunter Now has a little more to it. It is still mostly tapping to attack, but players should pay attention to where they tap, as certain monsters have specific weak points. Players also need to swipe to dodge monster attacks, and holding down on the screen will generate a special move, differing based on a player's weapon type. This should all sound pretty familiar to Monster Hunter players, and Monster Hunter Now seems to do a great job transferring the combat mechanics from the series into the app.
4 Equipment
Touched on in the combat section, equipment used by players has a huge impact on gameplay in Monster Hunter Now. Equipment in the Monster Hunter sense is pretty much non-existent in Pokemon GO, but Monster Hunter Now players will be unable to escape it.
Leveling equipment and armor is the best way to improve a player's skills as a hunter, quickly becoming necessary to keep up with stronger monsters. Players can craft new armor and weapons using materials from the monsters they kill, and can even choose different types of weapons with different special effects.
3 Hunting Party
One of the joys of Pokemon GO is the multiplayer element. Players can add friends to their friend list, send them gifts, trade Pokemon, and battle in raids alongside them. Monster Hunter Now also has a multiplayer element. In Monster Hunter Now, it is most similar to battling in raids. Monster Hunter Now allows players to form a hunting party, typically by scanning a QR code. They can then invite each other to join hunts and fight monsters side by side in real-time.
While there may be less variety for interacting with friends than in Pokemon GO, the group battles are a lot more dynamic than any multiplayer battle in Pokemon GO. To make multiplayer a lot more convenient, Niantic also uses a player's Niantic ID to share friend lists between the apps, so players can easily form hunting parties with the friends that they have been playing Pokemon GO with.
2 Paintballs
Paintballs are a feature unique to Monster Hunter Now, with no real counterpart in Pokemon GO. When a player encounters a Pokemon in Pokemon GO, they have to capture it then and there in the moment if they want to ensure they catch it. However, in Monster Hunter Now, players can paintball a limited number of monsters at a time.
This stores the monster for a limited amount of time so that players can hunt them later, in a different location, at their own leisure. As mentioned before, palicoes can also randomly paintball a limited number of targets while the app is running in the background. It is a really nice and highly convenient addition to the gameplay.
1 Monster Hunter!
Of course, the most notable difference between the two apps is that they work with two very different IPs. Pokemon GO is a cheery and whimsical animal collection game, while Monster Hunter is a combat-heavy game about, unsurprisingly, hunting monsters.
The very different IPs mean that Niantic has had to change the formula for Pokemon GO a little bit. Ultimately, they seem to be doing a stellar job at keeping the most fun elements of Pokemon GO, while making necessary changes to quality of life and adapting it to fit with the new IP.
Monster Hunter Now is available for free on mobile devices.