It seems that Capcom is not content with leaving the activity of beast tracking within Monster Hunter: World, as a new marketing campaign promises that the company will now pay anyone who is able to find evidence of the existence of some of folklore’s most popular monsters. In partnership with Jon Downes of The Centre of Fortean Zoology, Capcom is now offering UK residents a £50 000 ($70 000) cash prize to anybody who is able to provide undeniable proof that one of 10 vastly debated creatures does, in fact, actually exist.
Those interested in engaging in a real-life monster hunt have until June 30 to prove that creatures such as Bigfoot, the Loch Ness Monster, the Cornish Owlman, the Yeti, the Mongolian Death Worm, the Yowie, the Chupacabra, the Namibian Flying Snake, an Earth Hound, and mermaids exist. All submissions of evidence will be analyzed by Downes and his team in order to determine whether it is indeed verifiable, with any potential prize winners being notified in the latter half of July. Should there be more than one winner, the cash prize will be divided.
Downes, who selected the list of monsters to look out for, stated that he’d spent the majority of his life traveling across the globe in search of evidence of these creatures and was now “throwing down the gauntlet to the next generation.”
While it is almost guaranteed that Capcom will not have to worry about having to pay out too many cash prizes, the decision to engage in such a unique marketing campaign has definitely worked in raising awareness for Monster Hunter: World, which is the primary aim of the marketing campaign. Not that the game needs any help, as Monster Hunter: World is already off to a blazing start, selling 5 million copies within the first few days.
However, should any potential monster hunter find themselves up against one of these beasts, hopefully, they’ll remember all the skills that Monster Hunter: World has taught them. But finding any of these creatures is likely to generate a ton of attention beyond Capcom's prize as well.
Monster Hunter: World is available now for PS4 and Xbox One, with a PC release set for some time in fall 2018.
Source: Metro Gaming