New details on Capcom's Monster Hunter

Additional details on Capcom's upcoming online game Monster Hunter were revealed in the latest issue of Famitsu magazine. Unlike Capcom's other online game, Resident Evil Outbreak, Monster Hunter does not have a specific storyline. As the title of the game may suggest, the main goal in Monster Hunter is to hunt the monsters that live in the game's environments. The monsters come in a variety of sizes and personalities, and they also have their own ecological balances. Some monsters are plant-eating animals, while some are carnivorous and eat other monsters. Some monsters may be aggressive and attack players on sight, while others are peaceful. Players will be able to customize their characters by choosing a gender and a profession, and they can team with up to three other people to attack monsters by using weapons and setting traps. After defeating the monsters, players can use the creatures' bones, skins, and other body parts to create weapons and armor. Using the body parts of stronger monsters tends to create stronger items.

While hunting monsters is the object of the game, Monster Hunter will also allow players to roam around and do whatever they feel like. The game features a number of side quests, such as transporting a monster's egg to a particular location or protecting an area from the invasion of monsters. Monster Hunter is being developed for the PlayStation 2, and it's currently 50-percent complete. No release date or price has been set as yet.