Monster Hunter needs to do a better job with women's armor

The Monster Hunter series is 20 years old, and it's time for Capcom to re-evaluate how they approach women's armor design.

I understand that Capcom has worked very hard to create a visual design language for the Monster Hunter series, and they've been careful to stay true to that visual identity for two decades. It's nothing short of impressive and I wouldn't want to see them abandon that commitment. As a fan, it's important to me as well that future Monster Hunter games continue to look like Monster Hunter. However, I've noticed two persistent features of women's armor design that we could do without:

1. Female characters often wear wigs or tiaras for head protection while male characters wear helmets.
2. Female characters often wear crotchless pants and/or leg armor that allows you to see their underwear. Male characters do not.

These outfits are not designed for the female audience who play these games and wish to experience the power fantasy of battling giant monsters. They are designed for the male audience who want women to look pretty and sexy for their enjoyment. There is an entire subculture of male Monster Hunter fans who do not want to see things change. They play female characters, and they want to be able to see those panties - it's a whole thing.

And I know it's a thing because back when Twitter was still called "Twitter" and I was on that app, I had the misfortune of interacting with that part of the Monster Hunter fandom.

By the way, their arguments in favor of women's crotchless pants included:

• "You're a stupid bitch!"
• "Shut up bitch!"
• "You are Aspergers as fuck!"
• "People are still complaining about female armor in Monster Hunter?"

So, yeah. Not the best debate team I've ever faced.

I would urge Capcom to consider if they want the girls and women in their audience to feel equally welcome and respected. Or if they want the female characters in their game to serve as eye candy for their male player base.

Men get closed helmets and full suits of armor.
Women get wigs, tiaras, plate miniskirts, and crotch windows.

Even the bulkiest armors often come with crotch-access openings.
And you better believe men's armor sets don't have those.

I'm not saying Monster Hunter should refrain from featuring sexy, cute, impractical, or ridiculous outfits - those have always been a part of the series' identity. I'm simply asking Capcom not to apply their design principles differently to different genders. Crotch windows, wigs, and tiaras are fine as long as they apply to male and female characters equally.

Women want the same wish fulfillment from video games like these as men do. Women want their characters to look cool and feel powerful. And women's version of "looking cool" is not fundamentally different than men's version of looking cool. Certainly, neither men nor women think looking cool involves a suit of armor THAT HAS A BIG HOLE IN THE GROIN REGION.

Also, consider this:

The age rating for most Monster Hunter games in Europe is PEGI 12. I'm sure most 12-year-old boys are perfectly happy to play a game where their character is a badass dragon knight. But most 12-year-old girls will not appreciate having to experience the same game through a character who wears crotchless pants. And as long as you're serving boys and girls a different experience, one group will end up enjoying your game less than the other.

For laughs, I decided to count (BY HAND) what number of women's armor sets in Monster Hunter World: Iceborne actually cover the entire legs, and what number of them have some kind of crotch window. Here's what I found:

• A total of 220 leg armors were counted.
• 72 armor sets cover the legs.
• 148 armor sets have a crotch window.
• 67.2% of women's armor sets have a crotch window.

Dear Capcom, you need to do better.

You know there are girls and women (and other genders) in your audience. You are not designing these outfits strictly for an audience of heterosexual boys and men - with a player base of 25 million people, that's not even an option. So, start dressing your characters with the knowledge and intention that women are also going to play your games.

I know you can do it because some of the women's armor sets are perfectly comparable to their masculine counterparts.

These armor sets are not substantially different from their male equivalents.
Let's do more of this! 

Update (21 Aug 2024)

It was just revealed that Monster Hunter Wilds will no longer have male and female versions of armor sets. All armor sets will be available to all characters regardless of gender. You can dress your male character in wigs, tiaras, plate skirts, and crotchless pants. And your female character will be able to wear full pants and closed helmets.

Honestly, I could not be happier.
This is perfect.