Dragon’s Dogma 2 is an action role-playing game played from a third-person perspective. The player takes on the role of a character called the “Arisen”, a hero marked by a dragon whom they must defeat. The player explores the world they live in, taking on quests, and fighting monsters, while being caught up in a geopolitical conflict between two kingdoms. To assist in this, the Arisen relies on allies called “Pawns”, non-playable characters who join the player’s party. These characters are AI-controlled, but function like player-controlled avatars, able to assist in fights, provide information on enemies, and give guidance to active quests. Players can each create and customize their avatar and their own Pawn character with different genders, appearances, and race. In addition, players can recruit two additional Pawns that have been created by other players.
Dragon’s Dogma 2 is set in a seamless open world that is four times larger than the map in the first game, and is a parallel world to that of the previous title. The world is split between two major kingdoms, Vermund and Battahl, populated with humans, the catlike beastrens, and elves. Fast travel is available through ferrystones and oxcarts, with Dragon’s Dogma 2 allowing players to set up camps at night at campsites around the game world. Emergent events may occur, forcing players to react and adapt, such as making use of destructible environments to defeat enemies, with a day–night cycle that impacts what creatures are encountered and how strong they are.
