Capcom has promised that news about the Monster Hunter franchise will be announced before the end of 2012. In a post on the Capcom Unity forums, Capcom senior vice president Christian Svensson responded to complaints that fans were let down when no Monster Hunter news was announced at E3, Nintendo Direct or Gamescom. Svensson promises that news is on the way, and says it may not necessarily come from an industry event.

Loading

see deal Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate - Nintendo 3DS $19.99 on Gamestop

“A few weeks ago, I told MH fans on this forum that you'd hear something before the end of the year. Nothing has changed on that front,” Svensson wrote. “You're also assuming that when it comes, it'll be at some event you can see coming from a mile away. That's not necessarily a correct assumption. While I appreciate the passion, I can't help you if every possible industry event leads to build up and crashes in anticipation. If we somehow get to Dec 31 and you do not have more visibility, then please be mad at me. Until then, I'd request the benefit of the doubt and your continued patience. Thanks for being such great fans.”Svensson didn’t provide any hints about what the announcement could be, but there are certainly plenty of possibilities. Monster Hunter 3 shipped over one million copies in Japan but has yet to be announced for the West. While Nintendo hasn't announced any plans for a press conference before the end of the year (the company traditionally doesn’t attend the Tokyo Game Show), an announcement via a Nintendo Direct conference could be an option.One other possibility is the long-awaited announcement of a Monster Hunter game for PlayStation Vita. Monster Hunter 4 was announced for 3DS last fall, but Capcom has been quiet about whether or not it will be exclusive to Nintendo’s handheld. Monster Hunter was the driving force behind the massive success of Sony’s previous handheld, PSP, in Japan, with single titles selling upwards of four million copies . When Sony Computer Entertainment Japan president Hiroshi Kawano was asked last year about why Monster Hunter 4 hadn't been announced for Vita, he simply commented “ you will have to ask Capcom .”For now, all of this is merely speculation, and we’ll have to wait until Capcom makes an official announcement for any concrete news. What do you think Capcom will announce about Monster Hunter? Let us know in the comments below.

Andrew Goldfarb is IGN’s associate news editor. Keep up with pictures of the latest food he’s been eating by following him on Twitter or IGN