It is now widely recognized that ifElden Ring’s Shadow of the Erdtree DLC could, it would likely win 2024’s Game of the Year award. Despite facing some controversy surrounding its significantly increased difficulty over the base game, Shadow of the Erdtree is a great example of what a DLC should be, as it honors the base game’s best features while also adding plenty of freshness to bring players back for another round and keep them invested for hours upon end. In fact, Shadow of the Erdtree has set such a good example that future developers are likely to follow inthe footsteps of FromSoftwarewith their own expansions. Capcom and its recent action RPGDragon’s Dogma 2should arguablybe next in line for that treatment.
The firstDragon’s Dogmaand its enhanced version,Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen, never received an expansion as extensive asElden Ring’s Shadow of the Erdtree DLC. That being said,Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisendid introduce players to the Bitterblack Isle area, a frustratingly difficultDark Souls-inspired dungeon filled with the most challenging enemies in the game. In a way, Bitterblack Isle isDragon’s Dogma’s Land of Shadow, the realm where players spend their time duringElden Ring’s Shadow of the Erdtree DLC. However, it is nowDragon’s Dogma 2’s turn to receive its own Shadow of the Erdtree DLC — one that outdoes the first game’s Bitterblack Isle.
Dragon’s Dogma 2 Could Do a Lot With a Shadow of the Erdtree-sized DLC
Like Shadow of the Erdtree, a Dragon’s Dogma 2 DLC Could Introduce a New Area With Unfamiliar Enemies
One of the biggest complaints manyDragon’s Dogmanewcomers and veterans alike have withDragon’s Dogma 2is the lack of enemy variety. While there are certainly plenty of enemies for players to fight, those fights become very repetitive after spending countless hours venturing from one location to the next due toDragon’s Dogma 2’s fast-travel restrictionsand lack of mounts. As such, a Shadow of the Erdtree-sized DLC forDragon’s Dogma 2could introduce new enemies to the game. Of course, this would likely also involve bringing players to a brand-new region, as simply dropping new enemies into the game’s current world wouldn’t be convincing enough.
This is precisely what Shadow of the Erdtree did forElden Ring, however, and it could work just as well inDragon’s Dogma 2.The open world ofDragon’s Dogma 2is vast, with several different environments for players to navigate, but a new and unfamiliar region in a DLC would add to that experience. One major feature that lent to the success of Shadow of the Erdtree is the Land of Shadow’s distinctive appearance and geological structure compared to the base game’s Lands Between. In the same way,Dragon’s Dogma 2could add its own Land of Shadow in a DLC that had its own climate, culture, and geological structure.
Like Shadow of the Erdtree, a Dragon’s Dogma 2 DLC Could Include New Weapons, Armor, and Skills for Players to Acquire
Elden Ring’s Shadow of the Erdtree DLCalso includes plenty of new gear for players to acquire, along with brand-new sorceries, incantations, Spirit Ashes, Ashes of War, and consumables. All in all, Shadow of the Erdtree is much more than a simple DLC — it’s a full-fledged expansion.Dragon’s Dogma 2could do the same for its players by providing them with plenty of new gear and skills to obtain, all of which could effectively replace their current builds if they so desire.
It’s unclear whetherDragon’s Dogma 2will be receiving any DLC expansions in the future, but Capcom has kept itself open to the idea. It’s entirely possible the developer is currently working on aDLC forDragon’s Dogma 2, but if it is, the DLC deserves to be as substantial asElden Ring’s Shadow of the Erdtree expansion.
Dragon’s Dogma 2
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Set forth on your grand adventure, Arisen!Dragon’s Dogma is a single player, narrative driven action-RPG series that challenges the players to choose their own experience – from the appearance of their Arisen, their vocation, their party, how to approach different situations and more. Now, in this long-awaited sequel, the deep, explorable fantasy world of Dragon’s Dogma 2 awaits.On your journey, you’ll be joined by Pawns, mysterious otherworldly beings, in an adventure so unique you will feel as if accompanied by other players while on your own adventure.All of these elements are elevated further through physics technology, artificial intelligence (AI) and the latest in graphics, to create a truly immersive fantasy world in Dragon’s Dogma 2.
