Capcom's Dragon's Dogma 2 was one of 2024's great surprises, especially for how the title managed to capture the gaming zeitgeist during its release window. Millions of players who were aware of the massive cult following for the original Dragon's Dogma — but had yet to experience it themselves — jumped into what is ostensibly a remade version of the original to see what all the hype was about. While Dragon's Dogma 2 was a bit of a mixed bag for returning players, newcomers' reactions were incredibly positive and set the game up to receive its own massive DLC expansion. But such an expansion would be incomplete without its own Ur-Dragon.
An optional endgame boss from the original Dragon's Dogma that was reintroduced and rebalanced for Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen, the Ur-Dragon presented the ultimate challenge that the game had to offer. While players could reasonably tackle the offline version of the dragon, the Ur-Dragon's true online form was an ever-present persistent encounter that required players to coordinate and track the foe's locations and health in real-time, adding a major community-driven element to the co-op gameplay. Should Dragon's Dogma 2 get its own DLC, it deserves a comparable endgame challenge that brings players together in the way the Ur-Dragon did.
Dragon's Dogma 2 Is Missing One Important Feature From the Original
It's no secret that Dragon's Dogma 2 made several changes and improvements to the first game's formula, but one of its biggest changes is unfortunate.
An Ur-Dragon-Style Challenge Could Bring Lapsed Players Back to Dragon's Dogma 2
The implementation of the Ur-Dragon in Dragon's Dogma and Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen presented the greatest challenge in either version of the game. Even without proper co-op, players came together on forums and trackers to keep tabs on the online version of the Ur-Dragon, noting its last known location and health status before attempting to contribute to taking it down. It was a major community-driven aspect of the original Dragon's Dogma, and it could prove to be something that would help bolster Dragon's Dogma 2's player count.
Games like Helldivers 2, which also implements community-driven challenges in its gameplay, have maintained healthy, persistent player counts via such initiatives, and so Dragon's Dogma 2's potential DLC could cause a spike in player counts by adding an Ur-Dragon-style challenge. Notably, Dragon's Dogma 2's all-time peak player count of roughly 230,000 concurrent players has shrunk considerably in the months since its release, down to just over 2,000 average daily players. But should it include community-driven boss battles in its DLC like the Ur-Dragon, it could experience daily player counts closer to those during its release window.
Persistent, Ever-Present Foes Would Only Add to Dragon's Dogma 2's Emergent Gameplay
Like the original Dragon's Dogma, the potential for emergent gameplay in Dragon's Dogma 2 is one of the game's main draws, with each trek across its open-world expanse feeling like its own individual adventure that's part of a larger whole. A persistent, ever-present foe that could show up at any time would only add to this sense of danger and adventure with each expedition outside the safety of Vernworth or other settlements. While the threat of encountering foes is already a major part of Dragon's Dogma 2's core gameplay loop, a suitably challenging one with a persistent health bar that requires an entire server's worth of players to take down would take the game's emergent elements a step further.
In many ways, Dragon's Dogma 2 feels like a remake of the original game, attempting to deliver on the team's original vision for the property with the benefit of enhanced visuals and performance. But despite its place as the "new and improved" version of Dragon's Dogma, Dragon's Dogma 2 still has plenty of untapped potential in how Capcom could expand its world and post-game content for players wishing to spend more time with it. Throwing an Ur-Dragon into the mix seems like it could be the perfect way for Dragon's Dogma 2's DLC to shake things up.
Dragon's Dogma 2
-
OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 87 /100 Critics Rec: 91%
WHERE TO PLAY
Set forth on your grand adventure, Arisen!
Dragon’s Dogma is a single player, narrative driven action-RPG series that challenges the players to choose their own experience – from the appearance of their Arisen, their vocation, their party, how to approach different situations and more. Now, in this long-awaited sequel, the deep, explorable fantasy world of Dragon’s Dogma 2 awaits.
On your journey, you’ll be joined by Pawns, mysterious otherworldly beings, in an adventure so unique you will feel as if accompanied by other players while on your own adventure.
All of these elements are elevated further through physics technology, artificial intelligence (AI) and the latest in graphics, to create a truly immersive fantasy world in Dragon’s Dogma 2.
- Platform(s)
- PC, PS5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
- Genre(s)
- Action RPG
- How Long To Beat
- 30 Hours
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty
- PS Plus Availability
- N/A
