There's Quite a Bit of Monster Hunter Coming in MGS: Peace Walker

It seems that Konami is going crazy with Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, the PlayStation Portable-based adventure that will be featuring Naked Snake and scheduled to be launched on April 28 on the Japanese market and on June 8 in North America. The most recent news, which was initially considered as being an April Fools' joke on the part of Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu, is that Konami has introduced some special Monster Hunter-themed content in Peace Walker.

The crossover was created as part of a collaboration between Hideo Kojima, the director of the Metal Gear Solid series, and Ryozo Tsujimoto, the producer of the Monster Hunter series, published by Capcom. Famitsu is saying that the joint project has been in the works for quite a few years.

A special section of Peace Walker will see Naked Snake enter the Monster Hunter killing grounds with creatures like Tigrex and Velociprey making appearances and with a Felyne also prominently featured. In Costa Rica, Snake will need to use his advanced camouflage capabilities to get close to the beast he is stalking and then use his proficiency in close quarter take downs to actually kill them. The character will apparently also be able to cook in the field with his rations and use some of the weapons familiar to Monster Hunter players. It's not clear how long the section will be.

Konami is saying that, just like the rest of the experience, the Monster Hunter section will be best seen in multiplayer, where four Snakes can work together to accomplish their missions, using different loadouts and strategies. The main adventure takes place in Costa Rica in the middle of the Cold War with Snake taking out a military force that invades the small nation.

Hideo Kojima has also announced that he plans to do a world tour for the launch of Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, the start date being set for April 29 and others planned for Asia, Europe and North America.