I can understand why some people like Monster Hunter, but I can't see why they put up with the mechanics that should really be fixed.
The game is the sum of it's parts and has the rather dubious distinction of being a game that works -better- because of it's faults.
Right from the first game there were three issues with the game :
1. the game was and is clunky - animations have to complete before an action can be finished, hit boxes have had a whole host of problems,
2. weaponry control has to be learned and it's a crap system - especially in the first games when sword swings etc were mapped to the right stick. This is also clunky - but then the game forces you to not only know how to work in combos , linking moves, know how to dodge etc - but you also have to avoid hitting other hunters. Then you have to absolutely know your timing for hitting various different enemies coming at you at different speeds
3. Online had no voice chat - as a result , this forced each hunt to be preplanned in the lobbies, you couldn't just wing it. You needed a strategy because typing in anything during the hunt was nigh on impossible. So trap strategy etc had to be decided upfront.
Now - the PSP / 3DS versions being played in local groups rather than online is almost certainly the huge factor in how the game went from being a -popular- franchise to a huge phenomenon , especially with school kids. That and, as noted elsewhere, every popular franchise in Japan is based around grinding.
Anyways, back to the point - "Fixing" the mechanics misses the fact that a large draw of the game is the tension and panic that you get due to the above mentioned clunkiness and the fighting mechanic - and having a nibble and easier to use system would detract from that. Yes , I know there'd be other ways to make the game thrilling but this has grown organically over time into what it is and it works. It alienates new players for sure, but it works - and for those who know how to use it it is second nature. See also : The claw - the 3DS version bugged me for a while because I couldn't claw in the same manner and doing three things at once is second nature.
Fine is perhaps not the right word to use, but it was tolerated by a looot of people. Playing a game that makes your hand cramp up or hurt means you're either an idiot or you love that game.
it's about having full control- you can be handling item creation, whilst looking around and moving. There's actually a fair number of times when you don't want to be looking at the monster all the time - perhaps when you need to be finding a ballista whilst running away -and- trying to get your on field bomb creation done.
The Claw was not a necessity in order to play the game - it was a necessity if you were playing the game at -a high level-.
