Capcom’s action-RPG Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen coming to PCs in 2016

By Danny Cowan September 8, 2015

dragons dogma dark arisen announced for pc ddda header — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Capcom’s open-world action-RPG Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen will launch for PC platforms via Steam in 2016, the publisher announced today.

Previously available for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen features in-depth character customization features and an innovative “pawn” system that allows players to build and train AI-controlled partner characters.

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Dragon’s Dogma first hit consoles in 2012, blending hack-and-slash action with elements from RPGs and the survival horror genre. Gameplay takes place across a sprawling world that offers dozens of quests for players to take on as the storyline progresses.

Dark Arisen, an improved and expanded version of Dragon’s Dogma, later hit the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in 2013. In addition to bundling all previously released Dragon’s Dogma DLC into one retail package, Dark Arisen introduces new features like fast-travel, along with a sizable collection of new quests and equippable weapons.

Central to Dragon’s Dogma and its expansion is the “pawn” system, a unique gameplay feature that pairs players up with AI-controlled teammates. These party members grow in intelligence as they encounter new gameplay situations, making them a key part of later missions. Players can also share their trained pawns with others online via social networking features.

The most recent entry in the series, Dragon’s Dogma Online, was announced earlier this year, and launched in August for the PlayStation 4, PS3, and PCs in Japan. Dragon’s Dogma Online overhauls series-standard mechanics and implements a free-to-play structure, allowing players to form groups of online party members to take down towering monsters. A localized release for western territories has not been announced.

Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen launches for Windows PCs via Steam in January of 2016, and will be priced at $30. Capcom announced that the PC port will feature upgraded graphics and an optimized keyboard-and-mouse control scheme, in addition to support for Xbox 360 and Xbox One controllers.

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Gaming

Dragon’s Dogma 2’s first updates will tackle its PC performance issues

A character with a bow and arrow in Dragon's Dogma 2.

Capcom revealed what the first updates for Dragon's Dogma 2 will fix and change following the RPG's first weekend on the market.

Dragon's Dogma 2 launched on March 22. While it garnered positive reviews, it also had a bevy of technical issues, particularly on PC. Capcom admitted it was aware of Dragon's Dogma 2's optimization problem on the day it launched and is now outlining the first steps being taken to improve things via game updates. On PC, Capcom will release an update that will improve DLSS Super Resolution quality and fix "an issue where models appeared low-quality under some specific settings."

Gaming

How long is Dragon’s Dogma 2?

A sphinx in Dragon's Dogma 2.

Open-world RPGs can be anywhere from around a dozen hours long to well over 100. Dragon's Dogma 2 is very unique, even among others in the genre, for not adhering to a lot of traditional design philosophies, such as how it handles fast travel. If anything, that will only add to your total playtime, plus there are all the optional quests to do, Vocations to try out and level up, and more if you're a completionist. If you're wondering if you have the time to fit Dragon's Dogma 2 into your schedule among all the other games releasing, here's how long you can expect this adventure to last.
How long is Dragon's Dogma 2?

For the main quest, Dragon's Dogma 2 can probably be beaten in around 25 hours, give or take. That's assuming you mainline the story as efficiently as possible and don't get stuck on any boss fights being under-leveled. A more realistic playthrough where you explore a bit, do some side content, and maybe go for the true ending will push you into the 30 to 35-hour range, as it did for us.

Gaming

The best vocations in Dragon’s Dogma 2

Dragon's Dogma 2 key art featuring a knight with a fiery hole in their chest.

Your Vocation defines your role in combat in Dragon's Dogma 2. Everything from your skills to what weapons and armor you can use is tied to this class. You will pick from just a handful at the beginning of the game, but can easily change Vocations later on, as well as unlock more than twice as many new options than what you start with. It can take a while to really get a feel for a Vocation and how it performs in combat, as well as to look through all of its skills and augments, before knowing if it's worth sticking with to level up. Personal preference will play a part to some degree, but these Vocations have the most potential to make you the strongest Arisen in history.
The best vocations in Dragon's Dogma 2

You can pick from 4 Vocations at the start of Dragon's Dogma 2, but will end up with a total of 10 by the end of the game if you unlock them all. New Vocations are unlocked by completing quests, but they are almost unmissable. Four Vocations -- the Magick Archer, Mystic Spearhand, Trickster, and Warfarer -- can only be used by your character and not any Pawns.
Warfarer
There's very little downside to being a jack-of-all-trades in Dragon's Dogma 2, which is exactly what the Warfarer is. This is the only Vocation that can use any weapon in the game AND learn any skill from other Vocations. This is the only Vocation that really lets you build whatever class you want and gives you the ability to adapt to any situation you find yourself in. The main downside to this class is it has the lowest base stats, but that is a small price to pay for how versatile you can be.
Mystic Spearhand
Hybrid Vocations are all quite powerful, but we put the Mystic Spearhand at the top of the heap. This class turns you into a fighter that can take advantage of magic to output crazy damage. The two almost overpowered abilities you get here are the ability to slow enemies for a short time and to create a magical mimic that doubles all your actions. It is great for both crowd control and large single targets, but takes a while to unlock and lacks some range.
Warrior
If you're going to be a straight-up melee fighter, you might as well hit with the biggest weapon you can, right? The Warrior swings swords large enough to make Guts blush and is a full-on tank. You won't be doing anything fancy with this vocation beyond charging up and swinging as hard as possible. The obvious drawback is any flying or ranged enemy will counter you, so bring some Pawns in those classes to cover your bases.
Sorcerer
For those who fancy themselves a pure mage, stick to the Sorcerer over the actual Mage vocation. While the Mage is more focused on healing, it is the Sorcerer who gets the best offensive spells you will want to be casting. If you have a second Sorcerer with you, you can even sync up and decrease your casting time. If not, you will need some tanks to take aggro while you deal with some slightly long casting times and low total health.
Thief
As far as the starting Vocations go, the Thief is the one we find the most fun and viable for the entire game. This is a light and speedy build focused on critical hits and being able to climb and hang on to large beasts. Once on, you have a number of great skills to stagger and knock down an enemy so the rest of your squad to gang up on it. Just don't get hit because you're one of the squishier Vocations.