Dragon's Dogma Reviews

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Written by WorstUsernameEver on May 22nd, 2012

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Dragon's Dogma is an ambitious project for Capcom. Attempting to inject a jolt of adrenaline into a traditional RPG's frame would have been challenge enough, but to do so while attempting to craft a world as large as anything you've made before seems almost foolhardy. And there are hints, at times, that it might have been too much of a technical challenge. There's the letterboxed presentation, for instance, saving the game the trouble of rendering an entire screen, as well as '¨a framerate that judders at moments of monster-surrounded inconvenience. But when Dragon's Dogma succeeds, it offers a potent piece of alchemy a studio that helped define the Japanese action genre redefining the Japanese roleplaying game. Capcom might not have crafted the kind of world in which players will invest, but it understands the powerful draw of party building and gear tweaking, the immediate thrills of slashing and spellcasting, and the spirit of adventure in sallying forth on a dragon hunt.

Dragon's Dogma is a fascinating and very enjoyable new take on the fantasy genre by Capcom, one that has a lot of promise held within it but one which also sees some of that promise squashed due to the inclusion of an unneeded and annoying gimmick.

I did have one or two of genuinely fun experiences in Dragon's Dogma; exploring the temple to the water god was atmospheric and exciting and the Gransys countryside occasionally provided some fairly interesting vistas, but any brief flickers of fun I came across were consistently extinguished by the game's oppressive flaws.

Overall, the annoying autosave feature doesn't ruin what is otherwise a top rate RPG. In a market where companies are shying away from creating new game series, instead relying on existing brands, we're pleased to see that Capcom has braved the waters and created something entirely new.

Featuring a compelling story, an intuitive character development system and bloody, satisfying combat we really can't ask more of an RPG.

I never thought I would find myself in the position where I enjoyed such a hardcore role playing game, a title which can be categorised alongside the likes of Dark Souls and Skyrim. But Capcom make it easy to fall in love with Dragon's Dogma, thanks to the incredible amount of things you can see and do, and how you can find yourself fully immersed it Gransys within minutes of embarking upon your first quest.

There are flaws though. The lack of signposting and the fact that you are unable to use quick, teleportation style travel in what is a huge game world, will not appeal to some. At times, the background graphics can seem a bit bland, and some of the voice acting can be mildly irritating. But you simply have to tip your hat to Itsuno-san for taking the plunge and giving the likes of the Elder Scrolls a genuine run for its money. There will not be many better RPGs released in 2012, and rest assured that if there are, none of them will have a theme song better than this one.

But Dragon's Dogma is still a phenomenal piece of work. Very little of the game is particularly original, true, but it does a fantastic job with all the different influences it's riffing on or building on top of. This is a Japanese-made big budget RPG where you can run for the hills singing (Born Free), sword in hand, or follow the apocalyptic soap opera that is the story proper and still have more fun with either than just about anything so far this year. It puts both Final Fantasy and The Elder Scrolls to shame (not least given there's been nothing bar minor glitches in more than thirty hours' play). Welcome to the party, Capcom! With an entrance like this, I think we could be in for a beautiful friendship.

Should you play Dragon's Dogma? Yes. The high points are so very worth getting to, and while the main game will be cleared in a number of hours, there are lots of monsters to battle and a dose of end-game content to clear, providing more than enough to rival the Skyrims and Diablos of the world. Just be aware that, for all the absorbing and exciting things to be found in Gransys, there are almost as many disappointing and infuriating things to let you down. Just grit your teeth, fight through the pain, and the rewards are there.

Dragon's Dogma is more suited for those who prefer more difficult adventures. The game is not completely perfect as it has a few shortcomings, such as the technical glitches and bland story, but those can be easily ignored as everything else makes up for it. While this game may not suit everyone, those who wants a challenging gameplay experience with a perfect execution of real time combat, should definitely pick this game up nevertheless.

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