Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen

Dragon’s Dogma originally released last year, and although many praised Capcom for trying something new and exciting, the general consensus was that the game fell just short of greatness. Despite boasting a huge open world, an intriguing class system, and fantastic boss fights, the title faltered on the smaller things like awful menu screens and poor narrative pacing. Skip forwards a year and the publisher's released Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen – the game that some have dubbed as ‘Super Dragon’s Dogma’.

As of now, there’s very little excuse to not experience the action RPG masterpiece that is Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen. First released for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, then later ported to PC and current gen consoles, this criminally underrated RPG has finally been ported to the Nintendo Switch. At it’s budget price, it’s perfect both for a Nintendo enthusiast who missed out on the game until now, and for those like me who froth at the mouth upon the idea of taking this behemoth of...

Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen has already been released a handful of times on different consoles, and this port doesn’t add anything new. The ability to play in handheld mode is great, but this version also comes with some pop-in and framerate drops not present in other releases. Still, it’s worth it just to experience one of the most overlooked games of the decade again, or for the first time. If Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen’s stellar combat, unique class system, and treacherous world hook you, its technical flaws are extremely easy to overlook.

Dragon’s Dogma is a great game that feels unique among fantasy RPGs thanks to its blend of mechanics and influences. Its flaws - repetitive quests and a somewhat aimless structure - don’t block out its enormous strengths. Its core combat is great, and fighting the game’s array of giant beasts is some of the most fun I’ve ever had in an RPG. And this PC version is absolutely the best way to play it.

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If you’ve played Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen to death elsewhere, this Switch port obviously isn’t going to offer you anything new. If you still find yourself wanting to enter the world of Gransys or haven’t yet ventured into it, however, it offers plenty of adventure. Like any game on Switch its portability is a great boon, and while the visuals are clearly compromised when playing in handheld mode they don’t detract from Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen‘s brilliantly absorbing gameplay. For action RPG fans that are on the go, it’s an absolute must.

Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen may be a few years old now, but the new PC version is still a blast to play.

Having a large world to explore with the help of the knowledge passed along through the Pawns by other players is an interesting experience. The combat is fun, and scaling onto larger monsters makes it even more so. I wasn’t sure what to think of this game when I started, but I’ve quite enjoyed my time with it and I would definitely recommend it.

When the issues of a game are rolled and stomped by its greatness, then it’s something to invest on if you have some spare.

It’s difficult to argue that Dragon’s Dogma is a universally great game. It’s great at combat and exploration, but the quests are often boring, the fiction is turgid and its technical problems are unignorable. But it’s a very good game, and it’s so interesting that I’m inclined to forgive most of its problems because it succeeds in such important ways. The Dark Arisen expansion content pushes the boundaries of fairness towards the end and saves its best rewards for the most dedicated, but in terms of design and ambience it’s an encouraging indication of what this talented team might come up wi...

Originally released back in 2012, Capcom’s open world fantasy RPG, Dragon’s Dogma, didn’t get much of a chance.  Releasing near many other major releases, and making players buy it again for the Dark Arisen expansion, ensured that the game didn’t quite live up to Capcom’s initial sales expectations. However, it was amazingly popular on PC when it came to Steam, and now Dragon’s Dogma has arrived on the Nintendo Switch. How does this now 7 year old game hold up on Nintendo’s hyb...