The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrimwas undoubtedly one of the most influential open world RPGs at the time of its release. Its critical acclaim and subsequent massive rise in popularity makes it one of the most recognizable games of all time. While its first installment wasn’t as popular asSkyrim,Dragon’s Dogma 2has the opportunity to do something similar.
After a decade of waiting,Dragon’s Dogma 2has been confirmed as in the works by Capcom. What seemed to be a forgotten franchise is finally making its return to the open world RPG scene. However, the sequel’s potential is greater than many may realize.
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The Legacy and Future of Dragon’s Dogma
At a first glance,Dragon’s DogmaandSkyrimaren’t too dissimilar of games. They both involve a silent protagonist who has a close encounter with a dragon, later learning that their destiny is to eliminate said dragon. However, these games differ in their approach to plot and gameplay.Skyrimis a first-person experience, making it much more immersive. It also has the advantage of having a pre-established lore and a large variety of quests.Dragon’s Dogmais a third-person experience, but it chooses to immerse the players in other ways. Two of the most notable methods of doing so areDragon’s Dogma’s pawn systemand combat mechanics.
While not completely lackluster,Skyrim’s combat was not known for its complexity. Its follower system followed suit; both systems were relatively bare bones in terms of how they could be approached and how large of an impact they had on gameplay. However, the originalDragon’s Dogmatook these two systems to the extreme, encouraging fluid and creative mindsets. Players could grapple onto large enemies to attack their weak spots and pick from a variety of classes called vocations in search of their preferred play style. They could also tailor their companions to fit into their preferred team composition, often making up for what the player lacks.Dragon’s Dogma 2can improve upon the original gameand further refine these systems to create an even more open-ended game.
Dragon’s Dogmahas a few places where its own systems fell short. One of those places is its crafting, which the original game doesn’t introduce to the player very well.Dragon’s Dogma 2will likely improve on this system, while also working on ones that both it andSkyrimlacked. One such example could be the inclusion ofco-op inDragon’s Dogma 2. With theDragon’s Dogma OnlineMMO no longer available, players could get their multiplayer fix through co-op gameplay in a mainline game. With hardware limitations being less of an issue, this is more possible now than ever. This is somethingThe Elder Scrollsgames have always lacked due to their distinct game design philosophy.
While it’s possible thatDragon’s Dogma 2doesn’t change too much as a sequel, Capcom will likely look to other games to see what exactly makes an open world RPG successful in the modern industry. One of those games will likely beSkyrim, and for good reason.Dragon’s Dogma 2would do well to look atSkyrim’s systems and improve upon them in their own way.Skyrim’s easy-to-pick-up crafting systems were much more digestible and easily understood thanDragon’s Dogma’s. Capcom could look to that and expand upon it in its own way, infusing it with the classicDragon’s Dogmaformula.
With thedirector ofDragon’s Dogma 2telling fans to ‘stay tuned,‘the future of the franchise has never been more bright. While fans are probably still a few years away from receiving their copy, hopefully it takes everything that made its previous iteration so popular and improves upon it in a way fans will enjoy.
