Year of the Dragon's Dogma 2 Pt 3

So here I am, doing Part 3 of my Dragon's Dogma 2 post series. I'm doing this post mainly because I downloaded its character creator and want to say some things about it. However, I need more than character creation to do a post, no matter how short it may be. Thankfully, there are other things for me to talk about. I hope to come up with a decent length of words.

People die when they are killed

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iAXvqVvyEPg

In a recent article, Itsuno mentioned the issue of NPC death. This is interesting because of the possible situational context. Namely, escort quests. That's the only possibility. This leads to why Itsuno mentioned character deaths in this possible context. Was it because character death is impossible in the first Dragon's Dogma game where escort quests are concerned? It's interesting because under what other circumstances would you have an NPC with you who can only kill a rabbit at best? Another question is whether such a scenario would suit a ranged vocation better than a melee. Imagine running back and forth to ensure no one dies in the process. Or you don't have to do anything for the aggro to attack the NPC. Who knows?

Safety hazards. Please be careful

One possibility in Dragon's Dogma is being grabbed by a flying object and dropped to the ground. Obviously, this leads to instant death. In the second game, everything stayed the same, which leads to the question of how to predict such circumstances. The reality is that players shouldn't expect themselves to zoom the camera upwards once every five minutes to see whether there's some kind of UFO waiting to abduct them like a terrorist. That'd be too tiring. Then I came across a YouTube short by someone called Dantics where he was gushing over the combat system. My focus was on something other than that. Instead, I was paying attention to the final scene, where a goblin ran up and unleashed a rolling boulder of doom to flatten the Arisen. The only ones flattened by the rolling boulder of doom were its fellow goblins (no IDF-Hamas comparisons, please). This begs whether some rumbling sound would come out. After all, it's physics. While it makes more sense to see the boulder of doom rolling down and react accordingly instead of doing the same by listening, would abnormal sounds be used to alert Arisens of potential flying objects out to abduct them? It'd be weird to hear a griffin chirp like a sparrow. As for what kind of sound harpies make apart from singing, like how harpies sing in BG3, that would be interesting. Although I'm very sure they won't be clucking like chickens. It'd be a bummer to get abducted in an open space with no terrain to hide as a countermeasure. Or move in another direction when an abnormal sound comes out. Of course, there is another possibility. Namely, a Pawn pointing out a flying object nearby. Seriously, it'd be terrible to be abducted without warning.

Are inns all over the place?

One question about Dragon's Dogma 2 is how many settlements will be in the game. In the previous DD game, there were only two settlements: Cassardis and Gran Soren. This time around, there may be more if there's anything implied by the oxcarts. Last time I checked, oxcarts didn't exist in the first DD game. And besides, including them would be weird since it's only two locations. As a result, there's likely an inn for every settlement. The same goes for vendors, although I can't say the same for counterfeiters. Then we have the vocation maisters. Will they be concentrated at the starting village of Melve? I doubt so. If there's any additional motivation behind exploration, it'd be finding vocation maisters as if you're playing Pokemon Go. In fact, some of the vocation maisters may not even be in settlements if Sigurd's images on the official site are anything to go by.

Royal Rumble

I've seen some gameplay footage on YouTube, and the combat gameplay really resembles a tavern brawl more than an organised fight. In this sense, DD2 isn't Elden Ring. The latter is more about duelling and an organised approach to combat. DD2? If Elden Ring is the showcase event of Wrestlemania, DD2 is the showcase event of the Royal Rumble. Target prioritising is definitely important. I've seen a gameplay video on YouTube where an armoured cyclops fight was complicated by a pack of wolves, and the streamer got murdered by those mutts because they weren't dealt with fast enough.

Oh, and one more thing. It's always possible for one giant monster to gatecrash your fight with another big monster. In this battle between Godzilla and Mechagodzilla, it's a no-brainer to focus on the one you're fighting instead of fighting both Godzilla and Mechagodzilla.

Adjustable difficulty

Itsuno had said that DD2 would be more challenging than the first DD. Unless Reno Gazette Journal got the translation wrong (which in theory at least was possible), the exact wording is, "a pretty hard game compared to the previous one". I googled the first DD game's difficulty level, and the feedback was that the original game was already hard enough. It's as if Itsuno thought the first game was way too easy. Again, this might be a translation error. Things did happen before.

Mistranslation or not, this made me wonder whether I should purchase the game. The reason is that I have a job, and the work-life balance in Singapore is stereotypically East Asian. Just look at Japan, South Korea, and China. They're East Asian countries. Then, take a look at Singapore. We're an East Asian majority country. In fact, it was a miracle (or a madman's determination) that I could clear the entire FF14 storyline in slightly over a year. I'm not my fellow Singaporean, whose name is Arthars. He games for a living. I don't. I can't say I envy him, but I can say we live two very different lives. At the same time, FF14 Dawntrail is coming out possibly around this June/July (apparently, it's back on schedule for Yoshi-P and co considering Endwalker's release date was an anomaly). There is still a chance for me to try out DD2, though. In the worst-case scenario, I would end up burning 90+ SGD. I'm actually a flat-spender who rarely spends money on new games.

Interestingly, there were Steam community users who said the game was easy. Some said that hard mode was... well, hard, while others said it was only hard on paper. This might imply that a lot hinges on your party setup since you must fight blind to discover an enemy's weakness. That plus doing the notice board quests. Can you imagine doing the Cassardis well quest at a level lower than 7 or 8? Those reptiles would curbstomp you. And don't get people started on rescuing Quina from Witchwood.

This brings us to the issue of adjustable difficulty. The big question is how it would work. From what I assumed in the context (i.e. Itsuno mentioned implementing it into the system), it's likely something like Resident Evil 4 Remake. Coincidentally, both were made using the RE Engine. If anything is to go from RE Remake's example, we may have three tiers of difficulty. The lowest tier could yield more health curative drops, while standard difficulty wouldn't add anything. As for the third tier of difficulty, that may be the hard mode players of the first game would be familiar with. Beyond that, AI difficulty would remain unchanged, with the challenge level adjusted according to player performance. Of course, would every player be okay with it? I'm sure some would rather see the standard difficulty slider instead of this. In fact, I understand if someone says this is a controversial decision.

On one hand, casual gamers would be forced out of their comfort zone in ways more than one. On the other hand, hardcore gamers may feel this is nothing more than a sub-par hard mode. One thing I suspect about Itsuno's vision for DD2 is that he's out to prove casual gamers can play games of a higher difficulty so long the conditions are right. On the flip side, DD2 combat involves a narrower scope of concentration due to how the ability controls work. It's more about getting used to menu-switching and going on from there. It's like 2 core skills, 4 weapon skills, and 6 augments. That's it. I wouldn't be surprised if theory-crafting in DD2 will be easier than some may think.

Lastly, here's some Pawn designs I've made

Character creation for DD2 is now making the news from Kotaku to Forbes. All over the world, gamers are creating designs from Timothée "the Jewish version of Timothy" Chalamet and the Emilia "she survived it like Clark Kent's sis" Clarke version of Daenerys Targaryen to the likes of Doraemon and Pikachu. As if that's not enough, some channelled their inner Ito "the Stephen King of Japan" Junji (it will be hilarious if the likes of Chalamet, Clarke, and Ito end up playing DD2 because of this). While I didn't attempt my own version of Karolina "no pun jokes on her last name, please" Shiino and Yamasaki "the first alphabet of YKK" Taku, I did try to create the DD2 version of Koizumi "he's not responsible for Super Mario" Junichiro. It was a failure, and I gave up the ghost. I tried creating Ronald Reagan. I nearly succeeded because there was a character face template that looked like him. However, the hairstyle option wasn't available. That plus the upper lip of the so-called Reagan model clearly didn't look... well, Reagan. It's interesting to see some character face templates looking like people we see on TV or in movies. An example is the Sean "not Austin" Astin version of Samwise Gamgee. It's nuts if you're to ask me.

To give myself a challenge, I decided to create an Emilia Clarke. Not the Daenerys version but herself as a person. So why did I choose to do so? The reason is this image below. Apparently, one thing led to an urge to do something crazy.

Seriously, you can really do this if you dare to.

No, she won't be my main Pawn if I play this game.

Streamlining of inclinations

I'm going to point out that Pawn inclination has been streamlined. In the first game, it can seem convoluted. You have nine options, each with strengths and weaknesses depending on your party setup. In DD2, however, you only have four options: Kindhearted, Calm, Simple, and Straightforward. I'd say it makes your Pawn planning much easier as the text is easy to understand (i.e. you have a good idea of what your main Pawn will probably do). So unless Itsuno chucks a curveball at the players, I don't think inclination change will be an issue.

And to end this post...

I decided to take the DD2 vocation quiz. While I don't take such a thing seriously more often than not, the results made me reassess myself. Is my way of doing things constructive to playing a Thief? Or does it make me better for other vocations? After a few attempts at doing the quiz (it's on the official site), I realise maybe, just maybe, I'm more comfortable playing a Magick Archer if the vocation quiz is anything to go by. Sure, my focus thrives on adrenaline. In this manner, I can try out the Thief vocation. After all, playing a Thief is probably about climbing and stabbing until your stamina hits below 50% (around 30%, by my estimation, if you have the Endurance augment). At the same time, however, I wouldn't be surprised if I'd perform better from range due to a better time reading the fight. Either way, I don't function well as a player if I'm playing as a tank.

If I insist on playing Thief, the Weapon Skills list may look like this: Helm Splitter/Biting Wind, Enkindled Blades, Powder Charge (apparently, triggering the bomb would result in auto retreating. Good for getting off a Godzilla if it starts thrashing like an angry American) and Smoke Screen for tanking support/Concussive Step for Helm Splitter follow-up. If I were to play a Magick Archer, I would use Irradiant Orb (for open-space AoE), Ricochet Seeker (for closed-space AoE), Flamefang Arrow (which will probably be my staple spell 9 out of 10 times), and Remedy Arrow (healing or rezzing).

Speaking of Magick Archer, one thing I noticed about playing this and the Archer vocation is that using a keyboard and mouse differs from using the controller. Using the controller means you have more say in mobility, as the left analog stick is intended to have better movement than the W-A-S-D keys on the keyboard. Can you imagine moving and shooting with a keyboard and mouse? I don't know about you, but it's unthinkable to me. Playing with a keyboard and mouse means effective positioning is more vital than mobility.

This is what it means to play with a controller

This is what it means to play with a keyboard and mouse

Year of the Dragon's Dogma 2 Pt II (This is going to be really short)

Well, March 22 is nearing. In other words, Dragon's Dogma 2 will be released in less than three weeks. Truthfully, it's been a disheartening week or so. Recently, my country's educational ministry decided to release a curriculum focusing on the Israel-Hamas War. It was a bad idea because people had already chosen their sides. Understanding is only applicable if and when people choose to. After all, you can't legislate understanding. Things then only seemed to go from bad to worse. From the alternate media not giving the Jewish community space to air its views to posters accusing NTU of aiding in Israel's war efforts (i.e. in their own words, genocide), the only thing left waiting to happen is another Six-Day War or Yom Kippur War. Seriously, this is one of those moments where I don't want to talk to people to protect myself from grief. Depending on a specific factor, I may (or may not) have a nice distraction from the Singaporean version of Hamlet. Come to think of it, are we living in a Shakespearean reality?

30 fps issue

If there is a reason for me not to get Dragon's Dogma 2, it'd be this. The rumours were finally put to rest and proven true: The game will run at approximately 30 fps. And that's not even to include the factor of instability. As expected, Reddit went Fukushima mode. Okay, it's not that bad. There's one Reddit thread entirely of complaints. However, there are others where questions are asked whether things are really that bad. Things were quite civilised since we're talking about Reddit instead of Singapore. But if there's anything I'm sure of, it'd be Capcom possibly going all out to ensure a stable 30 fps. The fact that DD2 doesn't have a performance mode may be pointing towards this. I'll wait for reviews once it is released before buying. That should be 2-3 days after launch.

Demo and patience

As a Singaporean, I'm too used to having a fast-food mentality. We're too used to wanting things fast. Especially fast grades and equally fast success. Do we admire Pep "the stereotypical Catalan genius" Guardiola? Yes. But are we able to nurture another stereotypical Catalan genius? No. If Thomas Edison was a Singaporean, I doubt he'd have invented the light bulb. Enough of my griping. Let's move on to the subject of patience. This word is clearly the polar opposite of a fast-food culture. Patience is the name of the game if you're to play DD2. Itstylo has stated the game will NOT hold your hands like an ah-kong. Once you start playing the game, you must be your own ah-kong. Can't think critically? Too bad. Don't want to fail? Then don't play this game.

And since I'm a Singaporean, DD2 is bound to be a culture shock. All the games I've played involved quest markers. So imagine playing a game where the quest details tell you which direction to go and nothing else. Using my brain, however, there's always a hope that the objective point shouldn't be somewhere far off. Of course, that's a fallible assumption unless proven right. Then, we have the return of time-gated quests. This is something I'm very sure I'll fail a lot. While I can analyse things, my ability to read maps is nonexistent. In fact, I suspect I'll be opening the map at least twice as many times as the average player if I decide to play it. Thankfully, reviewing quests is adorable. There's only this much the game can cut the players loose. So yeah, there's some semblance of a journal/quest board, so the players don't miss out on anything.

While I relish the challenge, I need to test myself to see whether DD2 is the game for me. A lot of things have clicked into place except for two: The 30 fps issue and patience. This is where the demo comes in. Now, it has yet to be announced by the bigwigs at Capcom. We may get a definite answer to this at 7 am local Singapore time. Of course, it's possible that a lot hinges on when the final vocation showcase trailer for Warfarer comes out. After all, it'd feel weird to release the demo before that. I'll only take one quest at a time if I play it.

Fighter: Either you or your main Pawn

Now information has it that your starting point upon playing the game would be the fortress village of Melve. There stands the Fighter vocation maister Lennart. Simply put, the most convenient vocation to level up is possibly Fighter. That plus there are bound to be quests in the starting area. So, that's where you start learning before doing the more dangerous and challenging stuff.

Rated M for implied sex

It's official. The sexual themes listed in ESRB's rating referred to sex scenes. Or rather implied sex scenes with sex workers. At the same time, the harpies and sphinx are officially topless, minus the nipples. In other words, this is the kind of game you wouldn't want kids to play. And that's not to mention plenty of blood, gore, and monsters screaming like angry people in pain. In a certain way, it's even more rated M than Baldur's Gate 3. One thing to note, however, is the question of why the lack of sexually explicit visuals even though Itstylo has no qualms in portraying uncensored violence. This reminds me of the Japanese release of Baldur's Gate 3, where government censors reason why explicit nudity was cut from the Japanese version. Just don't ask me why the Japanese porn industry is legit because I don't come from a political dynasty whose surname starts with the letter K, LDP or no LDP. Anyway, if my guess is correct, this was also the reason why DD2 will NOT have any sexually explicit visuals. Personally, I'm comfortable with a line being drawn. If this 30-fps game can run better than expected, I may have a go at it. That is unless Capcom screws up the PC port.

Before I continue, I'm going to speculate on Wilhelmina. There's something about the way she dresses that's definitely different from the likes of Ulrika, Doireann, and Nadinia. There's such a logic called era-relevant. If people have a problem with what I'm saying, that's because their imagination isn't my problem. Simply put, the Rose Chateau she owns is a famous brothel. In the classic high fantasy setting, it's natural that men hold all the power apart from certain exceptions like Cersei, Daenerys, and Disa. As the OF platform has effectively proven, a horny man is a useful man.

Since sex scenes are synonymous with romance in the modern era of video gaming, whether we like it or not, this raises the question of whether the player character can romance the main Pawn (note that I never said having sex because you can separate romance from sex). An interesting aspect of storytelling is the Dragonsplague. Is this an indication that the main Pawn is more relevant in the plot? If so, will this point to the possibility of romancing the main Pawn? This was something players found a bummer in the first DD game.

Press R1 for...

I won't be doing any analysis on the vocation trailers. The reason is that others are in a better position than me to do so. With that said, my assumption of Mystic Spearhand's R1 being the teleportation strike was wrong when I analysed a specific gameplay video on YouTube. So what does the Redoubted Bolt R1 command do? I'll be waiting to find out.

One interesting thing I noticed, however, is the R1 for Sorcerers. In an IGN gameplay video, using R1 when not switched to the Weapon Skills menu would speed up random spells instead of specific ones. This leads to the question of whether the random selection effect also applies to the Weapon Skills menu. Or would it be R1+the chosen spell?

Interestingly, AoE attacks didn't result in friendly fire.

Cross-posting screw-up?

To end this on a quirky note, I realised that the DD Facebook page is likely using a cross-posting tool linked to the DD Twitter/X account. In other words, whatever is posted on Facebook would be reflected on Twitter/X (Note that the other way around isn't the case). I mentioned it because I noticed something weird about the Mystic Spearhand post on X. Long story short, the said X post was removed despite vocation trailer posts always being a case of cross-posting from Facebook. I knew it because I noticed something weird when the X post was reflected via Google. In the Facebook post, the media file was a video. In its X counterpart, it was an image link. At the same time, the hashtag #DragonsDogma2 was missing in the X post. Apart from that, the text was identical.

Simply put, it looked more like a copy-and-paste job with cross-posting temporarily disabled. Then it got removed. How did I know it? I clicked on the X post out of curiosity. How in the blue hell could an image file be confused for a video file? Why in the blue hell did the hashtag go missing? Was it an angry employee out to exact some semblance of revenge? But that'd feel too contrived, as there would always be more embarrassing alternatives. It's weird.