Dragon's Dogma 2

Dragon's Dogma 2 builds on the cult classic foundation with a visually richer world, improved combat mechanics, and a more engaging pawn system. Players appreciate the expansive environments, dynamic weather, and the thrill of climbing colossal enemies during combat, which adds depth and freshness to gameplay. The pawn system’s AI companions are smarter and customizable, encouraging strategic play and community sharing. Storytelling has improved with richer character development and branching narratives, enhancing player immersion.

However, the game suffers from technical issues such as performance drops, crashes, and bugs that sometimes hinder progression. Many players find the story and quest design lacking depth and polish, with some quests feeling vague or repetitive. Quality of life features like fast travel and loadouts are missing or underdeveloped, and the enemy variety is limited compared to the original. While the game is fun and addictive for fans, newcomers are advised to wait for discounts or improvements before purchasing.

Highlights

Players praise the fluid and intuitive combat system, especially the ability to climb large enemies, which remains a standout feature. The expanded and diverse open world with dynamic weather and day-night cycles enriches exploration. The pawn system’s AI companions are more intelligent and customizable, fostering strategic teamwork. Graphically, the game shows a significant leap with beautiful landscapes and character models, complemented by an atmospheric soundtrack and improved voice acting. The branching narrative and character depth add emotional investment to the story, making it more engaging than its predecessor.

Criticisms

Common criticisms include performance and stability issues such as crashes and frame rate drops, especially in towns. The story is often described as shallow and less compelling with vague or poorly designed quests. Players note a lack of enemy variety and repetitive combat encounters. Quality of life features like fast travel and multiple save slots are missing or inconvenient. Some feel the game is a step back in terms of content depth and polish compared to the original, with microtransactions and slow pacing also detracting from the experience.