Ryzen 7800-X3D + RTX-4070 Super and 32GB DDR5-6000mhz
game runs flawlessly maxed out in 1440p and looks gorgeous in HDR.

Dragon's Dogma 1 was one of the best action RPGs of it's generation and to this day, old school jank aside, it is still a top-tier example of an RPG that nails adventure as a concept, nothing in the Dragon's Dogma series is "easy", travelling is a chore, preparing for fights is a chore, basic enemies have the potential to hit you with insanely frustrating debilitations from the moment the game starts. You are the chosen one, the Arisen, but I'll be damned if that means anything when 4 Harpies and a pack of Goblin's with tar and fire bombs catches you being complacent. I mention this under the context that Dragon's Dogma 2 is the game Itsuno-San wanted to make back in 2012 when he crafted Dragon's Dogma 1.
DD2 is a mash up of a remake and a retelling. adding in all the missing parts, lore characters, races and scale that was lacking in DD1. No spoilers here but you don't even see the Dragon's Dogma "2" title card in the opening of the game, it's just "DRAGON'S DOGMA" you don't earn the "2" until you beat the game, which is a whole can of worms, delicious, tasty, WORTH PLAYING TO FIND OUT WORMS.


But as rough as that may sound, Dragon's Dogma is all the better for it. While the game lacks extreme enemy diversity, you'll mostly be fighting Harpies, Saurians (I.E. Lizardmen), Goblins, wild animals, skeletons and "spirits", the game makes each fight a chaotic dance of spell effects, resistance checks and spectacle. a Griffin crashing the fight while you battle a cyclops, fighting on a wooden bridge until a few stray strikes cut the support ropes and everyone hits the dirt below, Running for your life from spirits and ghosts because your mage won't give you magical weapon damage buffs because she is currently 8 seconds deep into casting Maelstrom for no reason while you are being bullied by Casper and his angry friends.

That brings us to Pawns, AI controlled companions of which you will create your own custom permanent companion and be able to hire other player's custom Pawns to fill your party up to 4 members. You choose their Vocation(Class), their personality and they are able to be borrowed by other player's in need of aid, if that player takes them somewhere new, fights new monsters you have not encountered yet, discovers a hidden secret, your Pawn will "learn" that information permanently and the next time you play they will help provide it to your verbally, guide you to rare loot or tell you how to fight a new, powerful foe, their experiences apply to other's as well, they learn from You, other Pawns, and other players.
It's awesome.

There is a "casual" mode now that tunes down fights and makes the game generally easier to be successful, I assume this translates into being able to forgo preparing items as a necessity, and not be so reliant on buffs and camping for meals and heals. I have not played casual mode myself, but I am glad it's there for those who want/need it.

The sad reality is even with the (minor) pain points I can't bring myself to do anything but recommend Dragon's Dogma 2 for everyone to at least TRY FOR THEMSELVES, watching gameplay videos does NOT do this game justice. Take the dive, give it a chance, refund it, or fall in-love, it's basically zero risk and on a sale, it's a NO-BRAINER.

It's just one of those games. you either love and you become a fan for life or, you will hate it for being completely devoid of anything close to "hand-holding", I mean that due to the fact that It's an RPG for RPG fans, people with wanderlust, an undying sense of adventure.

Dragon's Dogma (the series as a whole, DD1 and DD2) is definitely worth your time, unless it isn't... But, the only way you will ever know for sure is if you give it the chance to impress you the way it impressed me all those years ago. And when you finally find yourself staring into the void, I hope you come across my Pawn staring back, ready to help you conquer your next challenge.