Software:Monster Hunter Freedom Unite

Monster Hunter Freedom Unite
North American PSP box art
Developer(s)	Capcom Production Studio 1
Publisher(s)	Capcom
Director(s)	Yasunori Ichinose
Producer(s)	Ryozo Tsujimoto
Designer(s)	Katsuhiro Eguchi Yuji Matsumoto Shintaro Kojima
Composer(s)	Yuko Komiyama Akihiko Narita Tadayoshi Makino
Series	Monster Hunter
Platform(s)	PlayStation Portable, PlayStation Vita, iOS
Release	PlayStation Portable JP: March 27, 2008 NA: June 22, 2009 AU: June 25, 2009 EU: June 26, 2009 iOS JP: May 8, 2014 WW: July 2, 2014
Genre(s)	Action role-playing
Mode(s)	Single-player, multiplayer

Monster Hunter Freedom Unite is an action role-playing game developed and published by Capcom for the PlayStation Portable and iOS. It is an expanded version of the original Monster Hunter Freedom 2 and was released on March 27, 2008, in Japan as Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G (モンスターハンターポータブル2nd G, Monsutā Hantā Pōtaburu 2nd G).

Gameplay

Monster Hunter Freedom Unite has more missions, equipment, and monsters than Monster Hunter Freedom 2, and a new Felyne fighter to help the player on their quests. Rarity 9 and 10 armor and weapons were added. Players can now hold up to 99 of each item type in their item boxes, store up to 20 equipment sets, and get ten equipment pages instead of six. A new type of quest, the "Epic Hunting Quest", was introduced, which enables the player to take on, one by one, up to four different monsters in one quest. Weapons can now have up to purple sharpness which is higher than white sharpness. The player can now accept HR 7-9 quests in the gathering hall and new elder quests outside the gathering hall from a Felyne beside the village elder. The downloadable content can give the player special armor for their Felyne along with early unlocks for some of the Felyne skills. The introduction of new monsters such as the Ukanlos have been put into the game with even more creatures than the last version of Monster Hunter Freedom 2 on the PSP system.

Development

On November 6, 2008, the beta version of a new online service allowing voice chat and gameplay via tunneling PSP AdHoc mode to work same way as infrastructure mode does, through the PlayStation Network (and a LAN connected Wi-Fi capable PlayStation 3) was released on the Japanese PlayStation Store. Ad hoc Party for PlayStation Portable beta version is compatible with Monster Hunter Freedom Unite.

Marketing and release

In the 2008 Tokyo Game Show, it was announced that the game would be released in North America as Monster Hunter Freedom Unite in Spring 2009. At the 2009 GDC, the release date was further specified as June 23, 2009. The United States and the Australian demo are available for free on the PlayStation Network on the PSP as of May 21, 2009. Capcom has announced that the PSP bundle would be released in Europe, but were not specific about anywhere else. A press release at Capcom's European Press Center website states that the bundle would contain "a specially designed Monster Hunter branded PSP skin and pouch along with a copy of the game." As for the release in Japan, there was a special edition PSP bundle which included the game, a strap, and a decorated Matte Bronze PSP. In addition to this bundle, people who pre-ordered the game also received a black, hairy strap. The hair on the strap was meant to be that of a monster exclusive to the game, the Nargacuga.

Although no longer available, Capcom had created the Encyclopedia Gigantica, a website for newcomers to the Monster Hunter series. It had included tutorial videos, images of monsters, forums and more. This website has been shut down.

Capcom was also holding a temporary Gathering Hall between July 3 and September 1 in London, Charing Cross, for all Unite players to play in a campaign to make the franchise more popular in the West to see future titles to be released overseas. Capcom's Monster Hunter Freedom Unite website, as well as Encyclopedia Gigantica, are sending out demo copies of Monster Hunter Freedom Unite to anyone who registers for one.

This demo has a set equipment list for each of the weapon categories, and the player may also select between three felyne helpers to join the player. The player may choose between three quests, totaling about 2 hours of game time.

An iOS version was released in 2014. With the release of iOS 9, the game lost compatibility and Capcom initially announced no plans to update the game, later removing from the App Store. However, it later returned with fixed compatibility.

Reception

Reception
Review scores Publication Score iOS PSP 1Up.com N/A A Edge N/A 7/10 Eurogamer N/A 8/10 GamePro N/A GameRevolution N/A B GameSpot N/A 6.5/10 GameTrailers N/A 8.1/10 GameZone N/A 8.5/10 IGN N/A (AU) 9.5/10 (US) 8/10 PSM N/A TouchArcade N/A Aggregate score Metacritic 86/100 81/100

Monster Hunter Freedom Unite received "favorable" reviews on both platforms according to video game review aggregator Metacritic.

The Japanese version of the PSP version sold 670,000 copies on its release day, and in its first week sold one million copies. As of July 8, 2009, the game has sold 3.5 million copies in the region. No official numbers on American sales have been released at this time. In Japan, as of December 2008 the game has sold 2.5 million copies on the PSP, and as of December 2009, the Best Edition of 2G sold 1 million copies. As of November 7, 2019, the game has sold 3.8 million copies worldwide on the PSP, making it the fifth best-selling game on the PSP.

External links

• Short description: Video game database

MobyGames

Logo since March 2014
Screenshot Frontpage as of April 2012
Type of site	Gaming
Available in	English
Owner	Atari SA
Website	mobygames.com
Commercial	Yes
Registration	Optional
Launched	January 30, 1999 (1999-01-30)
Current status	Online

MobyGames is a commercial website that catalogs information on video games and the people and companies behind them via crowdsourcing. This includes nearly 300,000 games for hundreds of platforms. The site is supported by banner ads and a small number of people paying to become patrons. Founded in 1999, ownership of the site has changed hands several times. It is currently owned by Atari SA.

Content

The database began with games for IBM PC compatibles. After two years, consoles such as the PlayStation, were added. Older console systems were added later. Support for arcade video games was added in January 2014 and mainframe computer games in June 2017.

Edits and submissions go through a leisurely verification process by volunteer "approvers". The approval process can range from immediate (minutes) to gradual (days or months). The most commonly used sources are the video game's website, packaging, and credit screens. There is a published standard for game information and copyediting.

Registered users can rate and review any video game. Users can create private or public "have" and "want" lists which can generate a list of games available for trade with other registered users. The site contains an integrated forum. Each listed game can have its own subforum.

History

Logo used until March 11, 2014

MobyGames was founded on March 1, 1999 by Jim Leonard and Brian Hirt, then joined by David Berk 18 months later, three friends since high school. Leonard had the idea of sharing information about computer games with a larger audience.

In mid-2010, MobyGames was purchased by GameFly for an undisclosed amount. This was announced to the community post factum and a few major contributors left, refusing to do volunteer work for a commercial website.

On December 18, 2013, MobyGames was acquired by Jeremiah Freyholtz, owner of Blue Flame Labs (a San-Francisco-based game and web development company) and VGBoxArt (a site for fan-made video game box art). Blue Flame Labs reverted MobyGames' interface to its pre-overhaul look and feel.

On November 24, 2021, Atari SA announced a potential deal with Blue Flame Labs to purchase MobyGames for $1.5 million. The purchase was completed on 8 March 2022, with Freyholtz remaining as general manager.

See also

• IGDB – game database used by Twitch for its search and discovery functions

External links

• Official website (Japanese)