Dragon's Dogma - Any Good?

[Metacarpi]

Hey guys!

I was wondering if any of you have managed to pick up Dragon's Dogma yet, and if it was worth paying full whack for? I played the demo, and did enjoy it, but I've had some let downs recently. Like Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning. I picked that up on release, and whilst it's decent enough, I wish I'd waited for it to drop to around £20 or so before picking it up.

So, Dragon's Dogma - Worth it?

[75hastings69]

I'll let you know in a few hours as mine has arrived this morning (ps3)

[75hastings69]

Hmmmm, so I've had a few hours so far my impressions.

Pros
Nice variety of monsters encountered already
Graphics ok

Cons
Controls dismal
Inventory accessibility/ease of use dismal
Pawns - where to start... Limited vocabulary keep shouting the same phrases over and over and over sometimes even when the enemies have been slain??? Gets real annoying real quick! Also they seem to wonder around doing very little and get stuck or walk into odd locations rather than having decent ai for surroundings & circumstances.

So far I'd say wait till the price has dropped right down as at the moment (on ps3 at least) this just seems an unfinished, unpolished, awkward and frustrating experience.

[75hastings69]

Sorry for the triple post but I feel in a better position to answer your question(s) now:-

Q. Dragon's Dogma - any good?
A. No, not really

Q. So, Dragon's Dogma - worth it?
A. A definate NO. Wait till its dropped in price a hell of a lot before you even think about it! I'm pissed i forgot I had it on pre-order or I'd have cancelled it.

[Deamon-forge]

i was so waiting for this as it seemed just like Monster hunter, team of friends taking down a beast, when i herd it was 1 player and you could import tyour friends char to the game i was like WTF, i want to play with friends to take down a beast not a NPC. im so glade i did not get this.

[Urgat]

Sounds like Vindictus, what you want (unless you want a game on console of course).

[75hastings69]

Yes sadly this game has made some big mistakes, leaving out multiplayer being a biggie! Some of the lesser issues would have been forgiven if the fun with friends factor was there, instead you're stuck with the utterly useless and super annoying pawns.

Another hard to forgive mistake is the interaction with monsters, for example the grab animation is that slow that by the time you reach the part of the movement where you actually grab hold of the creature nine times out of ten its moved!!! You are then stuck in the animation loop and have to wait, if you press grab again during the end part of the animation in a vain attempt to speed up the grabbing process you can end up sitting through the full grab animation twice!!

I'm not sure who thought up the concept of this game but it's really flawed with no multiplayer and use of pawns, pawns are meant to be the big sell with this game, so far they're the most annoying thing about it. And the story = pure dirt, a dragon has eaten my heart (for no other reason than I attacked it like hundreds of others have no doubt)... anyhoo I've survived (like patients with a missing heart which has been used as a snack for a mighty winged beast often do!) and now I'm obliged to kill other things.... erm.... because.... erm??? maybe the dragons digestive juices have spared my organ and a good surgeon can fix me up? God knows is the correct answer, the ***** about malfested in soul caliber V made more sense than this tripe!!!

[Nocculum]

Some people like single player games...

The light/day cycle, the difficult with the lack of save and instant super heal out on the road, and the combination of dynamic combat and spells/abilities with the job tree make this an intuitive, but unpolished game.

I kind of see it like a thinking man's Dragon Age.

Still too early to tell with it, though...what character class did you start with Hastings?

[75hastings69]

Fighter, which is my usual character class.

Everything just feels so unresponsive & uncontrolled and as such lessens the feeling of your own involvement and interaction. Clunky controls don't help. I'd take DA2 over this any day of the week!!!

I like single player games, but the reliance on AI buddies (that have limited AI) in this case works against the single player ethos. It's like a single player game you HAVE to play as a group (you and your pawns) however when that group are useless, do stupid stuff, and shout the same 3 phrases over and over I'd gladly swap them for a group controlled by real people, and that's coming from a fan of single player games.

[Metacarpi]

Well I picked it up (PS3), and frankly, I'm in love with it already.

The graphics are decent enough, the combat feels fluid and responsive to be, however it'd be nice if the abilities added a little more variation. Fighting huge monsters is fantastic fun - scaling a Cyclops to stab it in the eye is satisfying. The pawns are kind of annoying, but hopefully as they grow and develop knowledge they'll become less repetitive. They're a little annoying, but not enough to ruin the experience for me. Character creation was good, and the ability to switch vocations as you go is a fantastic inclusion.

All in, I'm glad I picked it up! If you want to have a borrow of my pawn on PS3, my username is Carpi UG, add me with a note saying you're from Warseer!

[Nocculum]

I have to say, after 4 or so hours, that I too am enjoying this game immensely.

It is not without it's flaws, for sure, but it is Capcom. They're not really known for intuitive roleplaying.

The crafting system is fun, the variety of items you can use is excellent (I spent twenty minutes collecting rocks once I realised how useful they were...luring a bandit you would otherwise be slaughtered by to the edge of a cliff, sneaking up behind him, then kicking him off is immensely satisfying).

Collision issues and some graphical disparates are about the only issues that are putting me off so far. The creation, teamwork, climbing monsters in fights and the Stride combat style are perks, as is the voice acting, theme, and the presence of 5 bosses an hour.

Hydra was awesome!

[75hastings69]

Got to say guys I'm still not getting this, the control of the character doesn't feel responsive or accessible enough for me to be immersed. The pawns annoy the hell out of me as do the invisible walls/barriers that stop you going places that look like they should be within reach. Not getting it at all.

However, I'm enjoying the variety of monsters so far.

[Metacarpi]

I reached level 27 last night, and the quest is progressing nicely.

One bug bear, I don't like the way it zooms in and opens a dialogue box on everyone, even if they've only one line to say to you.

[nagash66]

75hastings69 try lowering the voice volume when questing so the pawns fade into the background, worked wonders for me.

[Nocculum]

You can shoot apples out of trees...

You get xp for shooting down seagulls...

You get face donked by bandits when you're not looking...

Goblin Warchiefs are fracking hard!

There goes my weekend!

[mcfishstick]

My character is a short fat boy with a face that looks like Harry Potter and Frodo mixed together. Cutscenes are... unintentionally hilarious. They strive to be dramatic, but this overweight Frodo Potter hybrid and his goofy face just come across as hilarious.

I really like the game so far, but it does seem to lack some polish. I had a quest where i needed to catch a thief, like literally catch him with that ridiculously slow grab. And yes he sprinted really fast. All over a town. I have no idea why they made the grab animation so slow. I also got a quest to escort a guy across the map. I definitely should not have received that quest at such a low level. I had to sprint across the entire map because the monsters' health wasn't dented by my team. I managed to make it though

The monsters do make up for these problems.

[75hastings69]

.....I really like the game so far, but it does seem to lack some polish. I had a quest where i needed to catch a thief, like literally catch him with that ridiculously slow grab. And yes he sprinted really fast. All over a town. I have no idea why they made the grab animation so slow. ......

I just can't get into this game at al because of issues like this and the poor controls. I'm glad so many people are enjoying it though as the monsters are pretty impressive.

[Nocculum]

That quest to escort the guy is what I'm trying to do now...

They really do make it dangerous to go into shade...every time I go near woods I get mauled by chimera...

[mcfishstick]

That quest to escort the guy is what I'm trying to do now...

They really do make it dangerous to go into shade...every time I go near woods I get mauled by chimera...

I did it by sprinting and spamming the 'come!' command to followers. I evaded every monster and just ran, poor guy paid me to escort him and I just sprinted ahead of him lol.

Hastings, maybe you should start a game with a ludicrous character? I don't think I would like the game if I didn't burst out laughing every time my overweight Frodo/Harry Potter character started sprinting or climbing monsters. I mean, my character is so goofy-looking I can't help but laugh while playing. I think that's the main reason I'm still playing is because I find it so funny

I do understand why you dislike the controls though. They are awfully clunky when it comes to spell targeting and grabbing. The pawns are also unintentionally funny. My party left that capital city and headed down the road. One pawn said, 'we carry on up this road and we'll reach the capital'... We'd just left... lol.

[Nocculum]

I have to say, too, that you should not have gone with the fighter...I'm a Strider, and I'm having great fun, and will be cross-classing into magic soon. The bow and the movement based abilities make it all the more tactical and less hit attack over and over. I have my main pawn as a shield and sword fighter, and she does all the tanking (I love the Fallout-esque cut scene moves when she grabs, bangs shield, and dashes).

Will have to invest in movement skills now, to get past said chimera...

(And the fusion, upgrade, and item improvement system is insane!)