On the surface, Capcom’s Dragon’s Dogma 2 is an open-world fantasy action role-playing game. But beyond this surface, there’s more going on. It’s a game that you have to play to really comprehend.
Every generation sees the release of a game that completely shatters expectations for that particular genre. Dragon’s Dogma, a 2012 game from Capcom, attempted to achieve this but failed in a number of ways, destined to become a cult classic that left many disappointed. After a break of twelve years, director Hideaki Itsuno returns to bring a daring vision of what a fantasy role-playing game truly can be.
Dragon’s Dogma 2, which aims to improve the shortcomings of its predecessor, lives up to the hype by producing an utterly captivating fantasy experience that challenges your perspective on how to approach the game’s quests, battles, and other elements.
Dragon’s Dogma 2: Crucial information
- Price: $69.99 / £59.99 / €64.99
- Developer: Capcom
- Release date: March 22 2024
- Platforms: PS5, Xbox, PC
All that matters is destiny.
The fundamental plot of Dragon’s Dogma 2 is that you are selected to be an Arisen, a once-in-a-generation hero with the ability to lead a legion of creatures known only as Pawns and the destiny to slay an ancient dragon.
Parties want to overthrow you in this basic story structure, or they refuse to recognize you as the only person who can save their world from the dangers posed by the elderly and wise dragon. In order to achieve your destiny, you embarked on your journey across the kingdoms of Vermund, Battahl, and beyond.
Eventually, you will encounter some of Dragon’s Dogma 2’s side content along the route. These side missions have modest starting costs, but they can advance in tandem with other, loosely connected missions by working together.
A questline that begins when an NPC approaches you for money gradually develops into a story that has the power to change the course of entire kingdoms, with several paths to choose offered by numerous (completely optional) side missions.
You’ll be guided toward some of them by the game, but you’ll frequently be on your own to finish missions however you see fit. I offered a holy book to a shopkeeper, whose reading caused me great harm and prevented me from doing business with him ever again.
Though it’s implied that it might not be the best idea to give them the book in the first place, the game will never urge you not to give it to him. Additionally, I could have made a fake copy of the book, and our NPC would not have known the difference, maybe saving the day.
It is an uncompromising experience in that way, requiring the player to constantly be on the lookout for diegetic cues from other NPCs, the quest’s relevance to the overall story, or its relationship to other side material. While not all side quests in Dragon’s Dogma 2 are heart-wrenching masterpieces, they are nonetheless intricate creatures.
Additionally, there is a subtle sense of literary humor in Dragon’s Dogma 2 that frequently surfaces. When I failed in trying to save a child, their mother slapped me and died soon after, from being frozen, pulled up, and thrown from a height by my pawns.
Games seldom ever place this much faith in the player to “play by the rules” that they set forth, but the payoff is enormous and culminates in an instant that will live on in my memory forever. You will reap the financial benefits of your hard work. But in order to locate these objectives at all, you’ll have to gather your belongings and explore the vast universe of Dragon’s Dogma 2.
Initiative assessment
Dragon’s Dogma 2 peppers the globe with an absurd number of regions to explore, creatures to fight, and dungeons to be descended into, situated between sparsely populated hamlets and many large towns. To ensure you reach your objective, make sure you have the necessary amount of supplies, camping gear, and cures before you leave.
You’ll pay for your poor preparation. Running out of medicine or forgetting to pack a lantern oil might rapidly translate into death because you and your companions won’t be able to repel any enemies you may come across on a long journey.
These hour-long excursions between important sites encourage exploration interspersed with suspenseful battle scenes, particularly when larger-than-expected creatures unexpectedly enter the action. You will require a well-balanced pawn group in addition to your already prepared goods in order to withstand them.
Past the fissure
By employing pawns, Dragon’s Dogma 2 enables a kind of asynchronous multiplayer gaming. At the start of your adventure, you create a main pawn, and they go with you wherever. It is also possible for other players to call them into their realms. Although you won’t ever have a direct opponent in your party, their pawns can convey perspectives, completed quest histories, and even other languages that your group is unable to understand.
Every pawn has a unique specialty, personality, and occupation. You may find pawns who have experience with certain objectives to help you out when you’re stuck, and they even joke about with each other in a nice manner. The pawn’s dialogue is purposefully overdone; at one point, Matt Berry from What We Do in the Shadows even sounds eerily similar. They do communicate frequently, and it’s usually genuinely beneficial.
Marcille, my pawn, is a sly, fearless mage equipped with healing spells who never hesitates to charge the front lines. You grow attached to your main pawn during the course of your adventure, and learning about their experiences outside of the gap can also have special advantages for you.
A simple but effective method of cross-player connection that fits within the constraints of the universe Capcom has constructed is leaving gifts for other pawns. The unorthodox mechanic provides a delightful way to interact with other players. Although direct multiplayer would have been good to have, I can’t say that the lack of it much affected how I felt about or liked the game.
Pawns will also have a variety of jobs and be proficient in a wide range of fighting styles, creating a well-rounded party: Thus, choose your companions carefully.
Axe swing
There are ten different vocations you can pick from, including melee tanks, sorcerers who cast magic, and warriors who wield incense and utilize illusion as a weapon. Similar to character-action combat games like Devil May Cry and Monster Hunter, action is presented in a style that emphasizes party composition that strikes a balance between strategy and skills rather than precise dodging or using a single button to oppose enemies.
It’s fun to try out different jobs because there are “Masters” throughout the place to teach you the best practices for each one, albeit some are better than others. For instance, the Mystic Spearhand not only provides amazing traversal abilities with a horizontal thrust, but it also grants you access to a partywide shield. The sorcerer’s final technique is a sight to behold—it calls forth a dazzling hail of meteors from the sky.
Nevertheless, compared to Monster Hunter or Devil May Cry, Dragon’s Dogma 2 is not quite as technical. But because of level-based unlocks, which let you buy additional skills, it’s still deep, rewarding, and fun to play.
It doesn’t feel at all like the now-familiar “soulslike” style of methodical fighting, despite their aesthetic similarities. Fast-paced and chaotic, Dragon’s Dogma 2 may produce amazing moments when used against the game’s biggest monsters.
I ended myself riding on top of a Griffin that I had battled early in my playing, and it took me back to my nest. I had to kill the beast on my own when it got apart from my pawns. Although I didn’t win, I did learn that the nest does exist and that it contains an extremely rare object that can be used to open a new fast-travel destination.
No free rides are offered.
The way the planet is designed in Dragon’s Dogma 2 is one of its main features. The villages and cities are dispersed far, and the only means of quick transportation are ferry stones and ports-crystals, which are either extremely rare or very costly to buy. Unlike many other games, this one requires you to interact with its universe rather than just go from point to point on your map.
For a nominal cost, you can also travel via Oxcart, which connects a number of the game’s main locations. In a few locations, there are also connected ropeways that you can use to get about. There is a faster way to go than just walking, but teleportation comes at a price.
This method forces you to confront the intensity of Dragon’s Dogma 2’s artistic vision. It’s not about completing quests quickly to feel the rush of doing so; you can wait to enter a certain region, explore for a bit longer, or do more objectives before going there. It strikes a precarious balance, making it too much for a lot of players to manage.
This “thorny” open-world architecture adheres once more to the principles and logic of the Dragon’s Dogma 2 universe. To make everything work, you need to consider planning and prudent resource management. It may not seem to many that Dragon’s Dogma 2 values its players. However, the game presents the opposite case: Dragon’s Dogma 2 is entitled to your respect.
bold, unwavering, and exquisite
The open-world layout, questing, fighting, and NPC interaction features of Dragon’s Dogma 2 are masterworks in the creation of an engrossing adventure fantasy game. All of them combine to create an intensely captivating and mysterious experience that few other games can hope to equal.
However, it does all of this while flouting accepted wisdom and expectations: The moments in Dragon’s Dogma 2 where these concepts work incredibly well together are among the most memorable. After making the risky decision to sneak across a border, my entire party was wiped out, and I had to flee for my life for several days until I arrived at my destination. There, I discovered more plot threads to explore and was given access to strong armor and weapons that were obviously not meant for me to use so early in the game.
Dragon’s Dogma 2 has a fantastic visual style that is evocative and clearly draws inspiration from fantasy book covers by artists such as Michael Whelan and Jun Suemi. Even with a top-of-the-line PC, it is unable to conceal the game’s occasionally choppy performance.
The Final Score: 5 out of 5.
As a titan of the open-world genre that dares to challenge accepted norms and expectations, Dragon’s Dogma 2 stands tall and proud. It’s a brave endeavor that is profoundly fulfilling. Even after 80 hours, I still feel like I haven’t really experienced anything.
Its harsh gaming experience requires you to follow its guidelines. If you follow through, one of the most captivating fantasy role-playing games ever made will be your prize. The second Dragon’s Dogma is a masterwork. This is a must-have title that demands your respect rather than just requesting it.
