I lost interest in Dragon's Dogma 2 after 85 hours, so I decided to nuke my playthrough with the infamous RPG mechanic that most players resent

GamesRPGDragon’s Dogma 2I lost interest in Dragon’s Dogma 2 after 85 hours, so I decided to nuke my playthrough with the infamous RPG mechanic that most players resentWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works. GamesRPGDragon’s Dogma 2I lost interest in Dragon’s Dogma 2 after 85 hours, so I decided to nuke my playthrough with the infamous RPG mechanic that most players resentWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works. (Image credit: Capcom) My intentions might seem obvious to anyone who knowshow to spot Dragonsplague in Dragon’s Dogma 2, but what if I told you that I am actively seeking infected Pawns rather than screening them out? It might sound bizarre, but attempting to destroy my game with a bit of mass murder is the only thing that’s keeping me entertained now that I’m somehow nearing the last story missions. My inspiration? The desire to replicate the gnarliest consequences of playingBaldur’s Gate 3’sDark Urgeas a bloodthirsty maniac. Style over substance (Image credit: Capcom) Tricksome(Image credit: Capcom)After 77 hours in Dragon’s Dogma 2, I swapped to the least RPG-sounding class ever to grace an RPG and it was super weird. Tricksome (Image credit: Capcom)After 77 hours in Dragon’s Dogma 2, I swapped to the least RPG-sounding class ever to grace an RPG and it was super weird. (Image credit: Capcom) After 77 hours in Dragon’s Dogma 2, I swapped to the least RPG-sounding class ever to grace an RPG and it was super weird. It sucks to hit a wall in a game you’d been enjoying a lot. This has unfortunately happened to me in Dragon’s Dogma 2 now that my first playthrough is almost over, which is a shame because it’s been such a blast getting here. I killed my first Lesser Dragon at Level 38, maxed out the Mystic Spearhand vocation, fully upgraded all of my gear and that of my Main Pawn, and evenaccepted DD2’s bland storytellingas the tradeoff for some of the best third-person combat I’ve ever experienced in an action game. But as my Arisen wields the reforged Godsbane in a moment that should feel awe-inspiring, ushering me to the point-of-no-return mission that demarcates the story’s goalpost, I feel nothing. There’s no excitement for the big finale, no feeling of satisfaction in my journey so far. I don’t feel inclined to clean up my sidequests, or pay a visit to a favorite NPC – mainly because I don’t have a favorite NPC, given that they’re all rather dull. I hadn’t minded that Dragon’s Dogma 2’s story is largely nonsensical because there was always something else to explore, but when presented with the prospect of the tale coming to a close, I had to face facts. I didn’t care about finishing the game because nothing had happened to make me intrigued enough to see it through. The fact is that Dragon’s Dogma 2 lacks a key element that makes thebest RPGsworth your time in the first place: a dense, gripping narrative. Initially, I’d been happy to treat this experience as more of an action-RPG in the vein ofElden Ring. It puts combat center stage in a world teeming with lore, environmental storytelling, and intricate combat systems to offset the lack of narrative meat, but the fact that the gamethinksthere is meat to chew on in the first place is letting it down. Sure, I could grind through each of the vocations to explore the depth of combat even further, but that’s not how I roll. I shouldn’t have to fight with a game to keep myself hooked on it, so instead, I’ve decided to kill everyone in Battahl and Vermund to exact some vengeance. Dark (Urge) Arisen (Image credit: Larian Studios) Sign up to the GamesRadar+ Newsletter Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more (Image credit: Capcom) Mass murder might sound like a dramatic way to get my own back, but death in Dragon’s Dogma 2 doesn’t spell the end. I’ve never wasted a wakestone on an accidental NPC casualty (re-read the fourth paragraph above for a reminder as to why), and cool as it is that NPCs aren’t magically impervious to death and damage in this game, the resurrection mechanic has always felt a bit of a cop-out. Part of me is bummed about its lack of permanence, the almost lazy way you can simply undo something that should be catastrophic. But at the end of the day, this is Dragon’s Dogma 2, and the beauty lies in how you play it rather than the story you’re playing out. The RPG might be light on the romance, butwe turned Dragon’s Dogma 2 into a dating simanyway. 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tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands” 4 Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands” 5Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place” 5Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place” 5 Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”