Many players have come into Dragon’s Dogma 2 expecting a game made for modern tastes. Instead, they were met with expensive fast travel, similarly priced haircuts, and a plague that can ruin an entire playthrough. Capcom had a vision with Dragon’s Dogma 2, a vision that is unflinching and impervious to modern sensibilities.

We immediately heard backlash on social media. Backlash against the lack of fast travel, backlash against the lack of horses, backlash against the plague that forces you to contend with the fact that maybe you can't control everything in this world like a playable dictator, and backlash against the 10,000 gold haircuts. Okay, maybe that last one is justified.

Players just can’t get it into their heads that Dragon’s Dogma 2 isn’t meant to be beaten, it’s meant to be experienced. You’re not in control of this world, no matter how many prophecies proclaim you’re the Arisen, nor how many Pawns you resurrect from the dead to do your bidding. The best examples of this is shown through Capcom’s relentless and devastating Dragonsplague and your mission to the Nameless Village.

You head to the far east of Vermund in order to dig up some dirt on Arthur, the false Arisen sitting on your throne. You arrive at a village, nameless. Or is it named the Nameless Village? Semantics. Nobody there wants to talk to you, which is incredibly helpful when you need information. There’s an odd aura about the town – not magic, just oddness. Something’s not quite right.

Just one person talks to you at first, a child. She beckons you to follow her, then disappears, apparently through a locked door. Puzzling. Eventually you make your way to the grand mansion at the top of the village. It’s in disrepair, but it’s clearly still a hub for the citizens.

A man inside congratulates you, tells you that you’ve solved the riddle. This is a city of thieves, and cracking that code (by following the path) is tantamount to joining their ranks. Job done. Except, you haven’t learned anything at all. What about Arthur, what about your unchecked quest?

You only find the true lord of thieves if you explore further still. Other than the unchecked quest and locked door, there’s nothing to indicate there’s anything else in the Nameless Village. I don’t doubt that many people turned back at this point, only to find disappointment back in Vernworth when Captain Brant requires more investigation. I understand if you’re frustrated, especially as you can’t fast travel back there to quickly complete the quest, but this is Capcom trusting you to follow your nose. The developers aren’t going to hold your hand in Dragon’s Dogma 2.

I won’t spoil the end of the quest if you haven’t made it that far yet, but it’s safe to say there’s far more to the Nameless Village than meets the eye. This is Dragon’s Dogma 2’s design philosophy shining through brightly, this is the game designers trusting you to explore off your own back. There’s no yellow paint here.

I’d have preferred it if Capcom took this a step further and checked off the quest as completed when you ‘solve’ the riddle first time around. It would be frustrating for those trying to fly through the game and immediately head back to Vernworth, but that’s not the behaviour Capcom is trying to encourage. A new subquest popping up when you discover the town’s true secret would have further rewarded your exploration.

While most of Dragon’s Dogma 2’s quests leave a lot to be desired, the exploration and environmental storytelling found on your journey are excellent – whether that’s the stories you create felling a fearsome Minotaur, or the bonds you form with your Pawns as they tell you you’re carrying too much stuff again.

This quest, however, exemplifies what Capcom is trying to do with the game. It rewards exploration, encourages your tenacity, and stops you in your tracks if you’re trying to run through the game without thinking about the journey. The developers do the same with the limited fast travel, they do the same with the devastating plagues, but this is the best example of the team folding that into the quests themselves.

You may be playing Dragon’s Dogma 2, you may be the Arisen, but this world does not revolve around you. You cannot control everything that happens. You may be flummoxed by a false thief, but you’ll learn a lesson for the next quest and maybe not take everything at face value going forwards.

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