For the third game they should go crazy with the subtitle. Something like… Dark Arisen.
Neal Ronaghan: Dragon’s Dogma wasn’t a game most expected to get a sequel. The Capcom RPG came out in 2012, making its way to Switch in 2019, and was more or less an acquired taste. It’s a systems-heavy RPG built more around real-time combat, weird physics interactions, and a lot of persnickety character builds. Dragon’s Dogma 2 existing is a miracle, seemingly willed by dedicated developers within Capcom, and originally came out in 2024 on Xbox Series S/X and PlayStation 5. Two years later, Dragon’s Dogma 2 is coming to Switch 2 at the same time as the major “Dark Arisen” expansion. The Switch 2 release has the benefit of coming with the expansion as well as benefitting from a cadre of game updates in the past two years. I always meant to check out the sequel when it came out, but I never got around to it so this Switch 2 release has been a pleasant surprise. However, John Rairdin did play it initially. So John – what is so cool about Dragon’s Dogma 2?
John Rairdin: What initially struck me about Dragon’s Dogma 2 back when it originally released, was how confident it was in ignoring the well worn tropes of open world RPGs. It actively discouraged you from fast travelling. It made traversing the world at night dangerous, encouraging you to find a safe spot and camp. It is a game about a journey across a world, much more so than a game about telling an in-depth plot. In a way it felt cut from the same cloth as something like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, even though it uses some of that same philosophy to do something different. The Dark Arisen version has smoothed off a few of these rough edges (They’re a bit more forgiving with fast travel than they were at launch) but this is still a game that wants you to go out into the world and explore.
Neal: I won’t lie when I say the fast travel stuff is a turn off for me, but I know that you eat that stuff up. I’m happy the fast travel is more forgiving but I also do appreciate how much Dragon’s Dogma 2 essentially gives you the middle finger and is like “nah – we’re doing it our way.” This is not my favorite game in this open-world style, but it’s an enchanting one. I obviously can’t fully compare to the base version since I didn’t play it, but I did find this sequel to be more approachable than the original game (which I played both when it came out in 2012 and on Switch in 2019). The combat is focused but unforgiving when you’re in battle. It does feel like Dragon’s Dogma 2 allows for more room for experimentation with vocations and pawns. What works best about the combat for you? What’s your preferred vocation and pawn setup?
John: I’m a big fan of having my pawn (your customizable second party member) in a support class so I usually start them as a mage. I think archer is my favorite of the starting vocations. It’s worth noting that since you can fill the other two slots in your party with temporary pawns, it’s pretty easy to have a balanced party no matter what vocation you choose. I found this also made me more adventurous in trying out new vocations as I unlocked them, as it was easy to fill out the rest of my party with whatever I needed. I will say that the one downside of this constantly shifting party of characters is that I never find myself invested in any of them. And I think that goes for the story as well. I’m curious how you felt about the narrative, did it drag you in at all?
Neal: I haven’t been as invested in the overall story, though it’s well-presented. Cut scenes are nice and don’t overstay their welcome. It’s fun being the Arisen that is chosen to be that by the Dragon you fought. Where this game cooks is in the Breath of the Wild-ish emergent messing around. The story hasn’t been the focus for me because I’ve enjoyed just traipsing around the world and screwing around. I agree with you that the pawns encouraged me to experiment with all the different vocations but that also made the pawns expendable. I’ve been having a blast exploring the world and reaching different destinations, but the plot hasn’t drawn me in all that much. The joy is in the gameplay, which ain’t a bad place to be.
John: Yeah the gameplay was clearly the main focus. And I’ve been surprised that overall this runs quite well on Switch 2. I’m not sure if the image is being treated with DLSS or FSR3 but either one does a nice job of upscaling the underlying docked resolution of 720p. Handheld mode does feel a bit soft with an underlying resolution as low as 360p prior to scaling (though its generally higher than that). Even then, Dragon’s Dogma looks surprisingly good despite that low count. At least, depending on how you set up your graphics options. Rather than individual graphics modes like you’d have found in the original release, you’ll have access to a few different graphics settings toggles. The first allows you to select from either a 30 frames-per-second cap or leave the frame-rate uncapped. The third option allows you to turn on motion blur but oddly only when playing docked. It is the second option that is the most interesting. This allows you to activate FSR3 frame generation. Combined with the unlocked frame-rate option this can create a fairly convincing 60 frames-per-second experience at the cost of some image stability. I found this worked pretty well when playing docked, but when playing in handheld mode the effect on image stability was a little distracting and I tended to turn it off. It also interacts a bit strangely with some HUD elements such as health bars which can make them stutter distractingly. All that being said, the number of options presented here makes it pretty easy to customize the experience to suit your preference and I’m impressed by how well this massive world runs overall. Capcom’s RE Engine continues to prove its scalability to Switch 2.
Neal: Capcom’s run on Switch 2 in 2026 has been fantastic, be it new games or recent ports. Dragon’s Dogma 2 keeps the trend going by being a stellar port of a great RPG. It’s a distinctive, unique take on an open world that is rewarding to explore and makes for a great on-the-go experience. This might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it’s certainly worth messing around with to see if this specific brand of action RPG is for you.
John: And if like me, it is exactly your cup of tea, you’ll have a very hard time putting it down.
