Summary
The latestMonster Hunter Riseupdate has added Enigma DRM to the game, which seemingly broke its Steam Deck compatibility. Arriving mere months ahead of the three-year anniversary ofMonster Hunter Rise’s critically acclaimed release, the game’s newest PC patch also raised some other concerns among the fandom.
The PC port of Capcom’s hit ARPG originally reached Steam in January 2022. That version of the game launched with Denuvo Anti Tamper, which has long been among the most widespread DRM solutions in the gaming sphere. While a vocal portion of the fandom bemoaned the game’s usage of Denuvo, its inclusion was far from unprecedented; thePC port ofMonster Hunter Worldalso launched with Denuvo, as did plenty of other Capcom games in recent years.
Monster Hunter Rise 16.0.2 Update Replaces Denuvo with Enigma DRM
The situation withMonster Hunter Rise’s DRM got more complicated on January 22, when its PC port received its latest update. Identified by version number 16.0.2, the new patch seemingly removed Denuvo from the game, but only to replace it with a competing solution in the form of The Enigma Protector. The change was first spotted by Twitter user DakaRFT, who found traces of the new DRM software by inspecting theMonster Hunter Rise16.0.2 executable with a hex editor.
Monster Hunter Rise No Longer Works on Steam Deck
First released in 2004, The Enigma Protector is a digital rights management solution designed specifically for licensing Windows software, which makes it inherently incompatible with Linux. Since the SteamOS is based on the Arch Linux distro, this DRM switch brokeMonster Hunter Rise’s Steam Deck support. Numerous players have already attested to that issue, reporting that the game no longer works on Valve’s handheld console following the 16.0.2 update.
Capcom, for its part, acknowledged the reports within hours of the new patch going live, stating that its team is currently investigating the Steam Deck compatibility issues. The developer also apologized for any inconveniences resulting from the situation. This is not the first controversial implementation of Enigma that Capcom performed since the turn of the year; a similar move recently led toResident Evil: Revelationsgetting review-bombed 11 years after launch.
A number of fans have already taken to social media to express their disappointment with thecontents of the latestMonster Hunter Riseupdate. Specifically, some of them argued that Capcom should be removing the DRM shackles from a three-year-old game instead of replacing them with an even more restrictive solution. On a brighter note, popular Capcom modderFluffyQuackhas reported that the transition to Enigma did not break the game’s invalidation-style and PAK mods.
Issues Reported in Ver.16.0.2.0
There have been reports of the game not running on Steam Deck after updating to Ver.16.0.2.0. The dev team is currently investigating this issue. We will let you know as soon as we find out more, so please hold on for further information. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
Monster Hunter Rise
WHERE TO PLAY
Rise to the challenge and join the hunt in this high-flying addition to the Monster Hunter series. The worldwide hit series Monster Hunter returns with a host of new gameplay features, original monsters and a story inspired by ancient Japanese folklore. Personalise your hunter, choose from 14 unique weapon types, recruit your Palico Felyne and all-new Palamute Canyne companions, and gear up to explore a range of vast, richly detailed hunting maps. Whether you prefer to go solo or enjoy the company of a four-person squad, smart difficulty scaling guarantees a fair and thrilling battle. The irresistible Monster Hunter loop remains, with each successul hunt yielding the materials required to craft and upgrade your weapons and armour, allowing you to hunt tougher monsters and gather more precious resources. All versions of Monster Hunter Rise grant immediate access to a wealth of free title update content, including an additional story ending, new monsters, extra gear and more.
