Monster Hunter 3: Meet Chacha

Step aside, Poogie. Otomo Airu, you're old news.

Meet Chacha, Monster Hunter's new mascot character.

Chacha makes his debut in Monster Hunter 3, the new Wii entry in the series. A child of a race known as the "Kimen," you encounter him in the game's single player mode and he ends up accompanying you on your hunts.

As you can see in the pics, Chacha appears to be quite the helpful little critter. He'll attack monsters for you, apparently striking in the direction that you order (it's unclear if this means you can use the Wiimote to actually direct him). Screenshots suggest that Chacha will accompany you most anywhere -- desert, forest, and even under water!

Chacha's support role goes beyond just combat. He'll even sit beside you as you cook up some of that well prepared meat the Monster Hunter series is known for.

There's one mysterious point about Chacha. Capcom says that he's skilled in a particular "dance", which he uses to support you.

Unfortunately, Capcom hasn't said just yet what the effect of this dance is. We'll have to speculate until the hunt begins on August 1.

For the Poogie and Otomo Airu fans out there, rest assured that those two will appear in Monster Hunter 3 as well.