Dragon's Dogma 2 is getting its own Dark Arisen expansion in October, so Capcom's rolling out the red carpet to perk up the game years after its polarizing launch.
This follows the Summer Game Fest reveal of the Ascendance expansion for Monster Hunter Wilds, another action RPG that struggled with performance issues (especially on PC) throughout a protracted comeback arc, as Capcom looks to paint over two troubled releases amidst an otherwise glowing lineup.
Today, Capcom revealed a laundry list of Dragon's Dogma 2 balance changes and quality-of-life upgrades – some out today, and some coming in an August patch.
Today's headliner is the Eternal Ferrystone, an infinite-use fast travel item, combined with additional Portcrystals around the world. Additionally, some dungeon loot will have improved stats, multiple fees and prices have been reduced, some quests will award more gold, and dashing will use less stamina outside of combat.
It's a lot of travel and economy stuff, for the most part, but we've also gotten a few bespoke changes like this: "Selecting Load from Autosave after defeat will no longer result in loss gauge accumulation."
Come August, we'll have three save slots, with each slot holding autosave, "interim save," or "last inn rest" save data. Each save will have date and time details shown on-screen, and loading an inn save "will no longer delete your autosave or interim save," bringing Dragon's Dogma 2 up to par with games that were released several decades ago.
The Dragonsplague, a divisive world hazard that proved disruptive to some but intriguing to others, has once again been toned down. A new item to "cure" the Dragonsplague, the Dragonsbaulk Draught, will be added as a one-stop solution for folks who just plain don't want to fuss with it.
The list goes on. In-combat flinch will be reduced, weapon skill slots will be increased from four to six (!), crawling makes you stealthier, wakestones will gain invincibility windows and stamina recovery items will be instantly, and virtually every vocation will be retouched.
In a Twitter post, Capcom confirms, "In the lead-up to Dragon's Dogma 2: Dark Arisen, we'll be releasing two major Title Updates to improve and enhance the base game." The second update is also promising:
- Much-needed performance improvements
- Yet more action, Pawn, and enemy adjustments
- Myriad UI improvements
- Bug fixes
Performance improvements, the biggest absentee in today's patch notes, are the most exciting. On PC, Dragon's Dogma 2 was left to rot for years, an emblem of Capcom's PC foibles, barely functional on far too many systems. Even on console, the game doesn't always run smoothly. As tantalizing as Dark Arisen is, it's a lot more exciting knowing – rather, cautiously hoping – we'll get to play it with a better, more stable frame rate.
