Dragon’s Dogma 2 Review: Great Combat, Mediocre Storyline, And Insane True Ending

After over 12 years of Dragon Dogma, Capcom finally landed its successor on March 21, 2024.

The R-rated video game has captured the eyes of many RPG Enthusiasts but has failed to meet some expectations.

Capom should have played safe and worked on providing a medieval fantasy monster hunter game rather than just working on a few aspects.

The AAA game feels highly tedious in the opening few hours, but once you learn the mechanisms, you will love it.

Dragon’s Dogma 2, being Capcom’s most expensive game, does not come close to the likes of Baldur’s Gate 3 or its competitor, but it’s still a decent pick for RPG lovers.

More Of A Rework Than A Remake

Dragon’s Dogma 2 is one of a kind, and it seems more like a rework than a remake.

Nonetheless, the action RPG is quite fun and chaotic at the same time, thanks to the reinvolvement of Pawns, a blessing of riftstones.

Pawns are our companions when traveling to Venworth or starting the main quests. Dragon’s Dogma 2, the long-awaited RPG game, has vastly improved in many areas but lacks several Main Quests.

Dragon’s Dogma featured over 20 main quests, but its successor has compromised for just 16. You will need approximately 25 hours to complete the story-focused quest, but the time may double if you also choose to complete side quests.

Nonetheless, a low number of Primary Quests is not the end of the World if they are tactful and fun to play.

However, unlike Dragon’s Dogma, you will notice many fierce enemies. You will find survival challenging if you don’t focus on your build and leveling. You are never safe when starting your journey from the Oxcart or exploring the Shrines.

You Will Never Walk Alone With Pawns By Your Side

Pawns are our companions when traveling to Venworth or starting the main quests. It would be best if you never stopped exploring the pawns; the more you find, the better you get to tackle this intriguing World filled with Dullahan, Sphinx, Wight, and Drakes.

The Pawns always tend to take a stand for us because we cannot play the RPG with our friends or get bored by playing with random players. Pawns can also guide you through some locations on a few quests, but they don’t exactly help with the objective.

A Pawn can be a right hand in case of an emergency, but it only works with four commands: Go, Help, To Me, and Wait, which makes it worthless.

Moreover, Pawns are not always consistent like the randoms you play with; they often die in a silly way, whether falling off a cliff or being a flaky attack from enemies, and they take a lot of time to listen to commands.

But Double is always the Trouble! The Pawns always stand up because you cannot play the RPG with your friends or get bored by playing with random players.

Besides Pawn, you can also find a Pathfinder, which can be handy while exploring the world. However, they tend not to speak, just repeating the same old sentences as their predecessors.

However, that’s not the end of the World, as the open World is quite systematic with its day and Night Schedule.

Fusion Of Skyrim And Monster Hunter?

In a few aspects, the game feels like a baby of Skyrim and Monster Hunter, and you can also have complete freedom in quests. There is no stopping you from unlocking critical locations early or even getting rid of the main characters.

When you engage in a few quests or cut scenes, the Dialogue seems quite dull; there are no movements or emotions from NPCS. Jumping over to main quests, they seem decent but still lack the punch compared to side quests with multiple choices, but still lack the vast options like Larin Studios.

Dragon’s Dogma 2, being Capcom’s most expensive game, does not come close to the likes of Baldur’s Gate 3, but it’s still a decent pick for RPG lovers. One of the best features of the AAA game is adequate menu options.

Most games overload their menus with unnecessary stuff, making the mechanics more complex, while Capcom has chosen to do the opposite.

You can still craft a few items; the armor and weapons pieces don’t have stats or randomization.

While exploring the vast environment, you will get hands-on exquisite items on the chest. Being an RPG game, you should also focus on the pros, like exploring the map, which is around 30 square miles, almost quadruple the size of its predecessor.

Capcom has also put much effort into trim details, from mysterious secrets to unique animations. While exploring Bakbatthal, or the dense forest of Venworth, enemies will not leave you at a glance.

The bosses constantly ambush, which may leave you stranded, but battles are realistic and rewarding. No matter your vocation, each has unique abilities and basic attacks that can be upgraded.

However, unlike the Dark Souls, you cannot dodge any vocations, making combat trickier. The combat was my favorite in Dragons Dogma; the cinematics feel highly realistic and monster hunter type.

Due to fatigue, your health will also gradually increase, and the only way to heal is by visiting the Rest point. You can even enjoy the meat, which seems highly realistic in the cut scene.

Besides the cut scenes, Dragon’s Dogma 2 offers open-ended quests and unmarked secrets and, most importantly, trusts the players to explore the various landmarks instead of guiding everything. You will feel satisfied by completing the quests or exploring the secret dungeons.

Less Races But More Customizable Options

One aspect Dragon’s Dogma 2 lacks is a high number of Races. Most RPGs offer many races to fulfill players’ needs and enhance the gaming experience.

Unlike other RPGs, Dragon’s Dogma 2 only offers four races for Character Creation: Masculine Beastren, Feminine Beastren, Masculine Human, and Feminine Beastren.

The Beatren Class originates from Batthal, one of the primary locations in the game. On the other hand, picking the Human Race doesn’t feel quite fascinating, unlike Beastren, which reflects the true nature of Lions.

If you enjoy creating unique custom characters for yourself, your Pawn game’s immense customization options will not disappoint you. However, remember that various customizable options are only usable for a single race.

The customization feature should be one of the best I have seen in RPG games. Capcom has worked on tiny elements for customization, which have selective options for all four available races.

If you like to play multiple character types, Dragon’s Dogma 2 is definitely for you. You can pick up to five custom options for your characters at any point.

In customization, the sky is the limit, as you can build from Scarlet Johanssen or Lae’zel from Baldur’s Gate 3, but showcasing and experimenting with creativity is necessary.

One of the exciting factors of Dragons Dogma 2 is the customizable Pawns, like the main character.

You can get up to three AI-generated companions with a system for interacting with the World and the players. However, you can only customize your main Pawn.

Moreover, you can also get others using the Rift Currency in the Riftstone for free if they are on the same level as yours.

Don’t Get Confused With Vocations

You might be confused with vocation if you are new to Dragon’s Dogma 2. Vocations are identical to classes, but just four basic vocations should not be enough for someone who prefers to experiment with many classes.

You will only get options such as Mage, Fighter, Thief, and Mage, which are unlockable in the starting phase. Thankfully, there are other advanced classes, such as Warrior and Sorcerer.

However, you will have four more classes: Magick Archer, Mystic Spearhand, Trickster, and Warfarer. But unlocking the Advanced vocation is tricky as you must progress levels.

From my POV, the most fun vocation in Dragon’s Dogma 2 is The Thief Class. They are incredibly versatile, quick, and flexible on the battlefield.

Moreover, you can even change the vocations as you progress. Capcom has repurchased the same issue from the cult classic. You can change classes freely and even max out multiple vocations, but a single save slot feels underwhelming.

However, unlike the Dark Souls, you cannot dodge but still time above the giant foes and stab them from the back.

Graphics Settings

Dragons Dogma 2 does offer DLSS settings, but the RPG’s graphics seem quite dull initially. In the long run, however, the cinematography seems well-balanced. Also, the graphics seem like Kingdom Come: Deliverance and even provide hints of Elden’s ring.

What seems so disturbing are the animations of some of the NPCs, which seem like a refurbished segment from an older generation of PlayStation. The Interaction with the NPCs seems weird and unbalanced, and some image textures match DD1 graphics.

Overall, there’s definitely room for improvement in the Field Of View segment and magic visual effects; nonetheless, the FOV is adjustable. You can disable the DLSS for a more vibrant feel, as it looks pretty Mediocre.

However, the environment is highly realistic and detailed, making you stare at the beautiful scenarios for a while.

Besides the graphics, the Camera angle in Dragon’s Dogma 2 also feels weird at times due to the influence of Monster Hunter.

When the enemies face the wall, you can’t even see what is going on the other side if you are stuck, causing death several times if the enemy is monstrously giant Chimera, Drake, Griffin, and Golem.

Nonetheless, Capcom has worked well to highlight the main areas of enemies, effectively targeting players’ weak points.

This measure grants an advantage to players motivated to complete battles more often with giant monsters and grab high rewards.

Dragon’s Dogma 2 Performance

Dragon’s Dogma sometimes feels sluggish while playing on 120+ FPS on Intel Core i5 10600 while using NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070. But if you limit the FPS or have enhanced graphics and processes, you can get a smooth gameplay experience.

While using NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080, AMD Radeon RX 6700, or enhanced graphics, you shall not compromise the Frame rate, but the colors may seem to contrast.

However, you should have at least 16 GB RAM, 64-bit, and Direct X version 12. The visuals on consoles are excellent, but you should not expect more than 30 fps; that, too, can stutter at times.

If you usually play RPGs at 60 FPS, you will not notice any significant differences on your console. However, the game sometimes feels janky, whether it’s the main quests or interactions with the NPCs.

The Storyline

Like in Dragon Dogma, your main character, Arisen, is caught in a geopolitical situation between two allies and, as previously mentioned, ties up with Pawns.

Depending on your preference, you, the main character, and the pawPawnn have the same or different vocations.

You, Arisen, must stop the conflict between Vermund and Battahl, where you see Vendors. When you complete all of the quests in Dragon’s Dogma 2, you will still get Post-Game.

Nonetheless, a low number of Primary Quests is not the end of the World if they are discreet and fun to play. The post-game consists of various missions, but one of the exciting areas to explore is the Unmoored World.

You will get to Unmoored World after getting the True Ending instead of the basic one. Reaching the Unmoored via the True ending is like discovering the Iceberg, which seems extremely tiny from above but is vague from below the water level.

Unfortunatley, to go beyond, you must sacrifice yourself and kill the Dragon using Empowered Godsbane Blade in the Legacy quest.

However, to get there first, you must spend loads of time whether it be exploring the dungeons or completing the quests.

You will need approximately 25 hours to complete the story-focused quest, but the time may double if you also choose to complete side quests.

What Makes Dragon’s Dogma 2 Special Unlike Other RPG Games I have played?

For every other game whether it be RPG, Skyrim, or Monster Hunter, there are always a few things lacking in every other game.

This comes from a perspective that others may not necessarily prefer something you may like.

In Dragon’s Dogma 2, I have the same feeling after watching many mixed reviews by fellow players.

The game sometimes feels janky, but if you have played Dragon’s Dogma, it should be one of the engaging RPGs like Elden Rings.

Yes, the information on missions can be confusing at times, and we are unaware of the next steps in several quests.

But I have previously mentioned that Dragon’s Dogma 2 rewards players for bravery, and players get the urge to progress with little to no hint.

Thankfully, Pawns will always be there to defend you, but other NPCs are not far away, either.

You will find plenty of intriguing NPCs, whether Sigurd in Harve Village, Wilhemina in Venworth, or Leader of Batthal: Nadinia in the Flame Bearer Palace.

Interacting with these vital NPCs can unlock quests and items or even build a connection for the future.

Room For Improvement

Playing Capcom’s games is always a great experience, but Dragon’s Dogma 2 could be improved.

Besides the graphics settings, Inconsistent FPS, and NPC action, Capmon should have added a Default sprint mode without wasting Stamina while exploring the Dense Forest.

When you try to analyze your history in the Menu, you will get little to no information about Enemy except the number of enemies you killed, unlike the NPCs you met.

For instance, in some instances, you must take down specific enemies; you won’t get locations, even if you have killed them once, making you find them for hours.

Jumping over to companions, they are significantly better, but the dialogue options are monotonous and limited.

The Dialogue options could have been better and more engaging considering Pawns are the primary part of our journey.