Dauntless developer says he's 'super excited' about Monster Hunter: World

Dauntless has often been described, including by us, as being a lot like Monster Hunter. In fact, Tom called it "the PC Monster Hunter game we've all been waiting for" in his January hands-on. So when an actual Monster Hunter game was announced at E3, the potential for awkwardness was clear. But the developers of Dauntless are taking it in stride: Executive producer Jesse Houston told Polygon that he's "super excited" about Monster Hunter: World, and not at all worried about being crowded out. 

“They’re still predominantly single-player. We’re kind of taking more of the Destiny style. We’re focused on the cooperative experience and always online," Houston said. Dauntless can be played solo but is much more difficult that way, as Houston added that the studio is "unabashedly" focused on building a co-op game.

It's also possible that Dauntless and Monster Hunter: World won't conflict as much as it might appear. “We asked everyone from the alpha to list some of their favorite games that they’re currently playing,” marketing manager Nick Clifford said. “Monster Hunter does come up a lot, but surprisingly it’s mostly games like Warframe and Path of Exile—other player-versus-environment co-op games.” 

Phoenix Labs announced this week that the Dauntless "Founder's Alpha," open to registered alpha testers and purchasers of the top-tier founder's pack, will begin on August 18. We've also got a more in-depth look at Monster Hunter: World from E3 for your reading enjoyment right here.

Andy Chalk

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.