It has been two console generations since the original Dragon’s Dogma dropped on the PS3 and Xbox 360 consoles, but we are finally nearing the release of its sequel, Dragon’s Dogma 2. MP1st managed to get our grubby hands on the game for a couple of hours last week from a private, invite-only event hosted by Capcom, and we can now dish out the details. Let’s see if the wait was worth it! 

Looks Better, Naturally

Graphically, of course, things have significantly improved in Dragon’s Dogma 2. The RE Engine has more than proved its utility with the recent Resident Evil games, and its capabilities are on full display here. While we couldn’t discern what graphics mode things were running in on the PS5 we played on, things ran smoothly. With a reported variable frame rate option, hopefully the action stays fluid enough during combat to always give a satisfying experience. 

Speaking of combat, we were able to play the game in two chunks: the first, a larger chunk of time near the start of the game (though not quite the beginning), where we were given free reign to explore (while making sure to not speak to one individual in particular, for reasons known only to Capcom). Honestly, it was a little jarring having such freedom, because oftentimes hands-on previews are tightly controlled snippets of the game. This is not a complaint! In my handful of hours with Dragon’s Dogma 2, I helped find a kid, got sidetracked, killed numerous massive beasts at least in part by climbing them, rode an oxcart, bought a round or two (okay, three) for my crew, fell off a cliff that surprisingly didn’t kill me, and more in a sprawling landscape which was rife with things to fight and interact with. All the while, other more friendly inhabitants went about their lives, and if the first game was anything to go by, then they were running their own schedules and had things to do, instead of acting more like puppets as a lot of games still tend to do.

Climb, Stab, Climb, Repeat

Combat, even in this early stage, was satisfying, if a little nerve-wracking due to the size of some of the enemies, mixed with encroaching darkness as day quickly turned to night out in the wilderness. Whether lit up or not, the larger enemies provided unique fighting opportunities, as just like in the original, you can climb up on enemies, using stamina to hang on, in an effort to kill them more efficiently. This was somewhat reminiscent of the classic Shadow of the Colossus, though of course on a much smaller scale. One neat trick that could occasionally be pulled is by grabbing onto an enemy’s leg, not to climb them, but instead to trip them up so that they’d be more vulnerable as they crashed to the ground and slowly made their way back up. 

The second chunk of gameplay thrust us into a completely different area of Dragon’s Dogma 2’s wide world. This time, a bustling town was embedded amongst a palace in the hills. I was in the middle of several quests, and could find more in this settlement. It was here I noticed one oddity: I ended up getting someone quite important killed, yet news of their demise didn’t seem to spread around the city as expected. I wouldn’t put too much stock into this, yet, as things such as the occasional bug will likely be ironed out near or shortly after release. We didn’t have as much time to explore this area, yet I was still able to see a do a lot.

Go Forth, My Peons! I Mean Pawns!

The pawn system from the original is alive and well in this sequel, though naturally there weren’t any user-created ones to play seeing as the game isn’t out yet. For those who don’t know, Pawns serve as ever-loyal party members whom you summon from specific areas within the game. They each have a specialty, such as a large carry capacity to serve as an extended storage, or adept healers to keep you in the fight longer, and other archetypes common to the genre. They also offer up banter amongst each other when the action subsides, and will even give you a high five or fist bump after a particularly well-fought battle. As with any system that allows for user-generated content, the fun is in seeing what amazing creations, terrible monstrosities, and/or amazing monstrosities others can come up with. 

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While we only got to see a small sample size of the different mission types on offer, the emergent way in which things played out was interesting. To figure out the location of someone who was lost, for example, you had to speak to the townspeople. Unlike most RPGs out there, the people you needed to speak with were not marked in any way – you simply had to talk to everyone in an area highlighted on the map until you found the right ones (yes, there were multiple people who needed I needed to talk to before the quest would progress). Another mission saw us attempting to prevent an assassination, not by just fighting an enemy, but by first singling them out of a crowd, again by talking to them and others in the crowd. Dragon’s Dogma doesn’t tell you how to figure out what the right thing to do is, effectively leaving it as an exercise for the player. While this may not be the fastest way to play games, it is vastly more rewarding when you put in the extra effort to figure out what you’re supposed to be doing, compared to just blindly moving from blip to blip like in so many other games.

So Lively, So Much Potential

Really, if Dragon’s Dogma 2 could be summed up in one word, it might be lively. Many places feel intricately designed, populated with believable characters with their own motives, aspirations, and stories to tell (they are all also well-voiced, and speak in Olde English which is probably charming to some of you, and maybe a little annoying to the rest). Most everything is organically discovered, as the game does everything it can to stay out of your way and let its various systems guide you, assuming you’re interested in what’s on offer that is. There are no doubt dozens of hours of content to be experienced in the full game, so kudos to Capcom for attempting to give us a slice of such a large game. 

Dragon’s Dogma 2 is shaping up to be the ultimate expression of the classic RPG experience. The world feels meticulously crafted and lived-in, with so much voice over work that it staggers the mind. The hallmark olden-style language returns, as does the game’s lack of direction given to the player, in exchange for freedom of choice and a more organic feeling to exploring. While this may be off-putting for those who have yet to play a Dragon’s Dogma game, the result is emergent gameplay which rewards exploration, even if those lessons might occasionally be a bit painful. Things are looking mighty promising for Capcom, and things are looking good for Dragon’s Dogma 2 to launch on March 22 on current-gen consoles and PC.