Dragon's Dogma 2: Dark Arisen Reviews
Once again proving that Capcom has been a fantastic partner for Nintendo, Dragon’s Dogma 2: Dark Arisen arrives on Switch 2 in excellent shape. Featuring a range of improvements since its original release on other platforms, this immersive RPG finds a new home on Nintendo’s hardware, demonstrating how frame generation technology can be a valuable tool for bringing more demanding titles to the system.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Dragon’s Dogma 2: Dark Arisen is an excellent expansion that makes an already enjoyable RPG all the better.
Dragon's Dogma 2: Dark Arisen provides a meaty content expansion to the game, but some of the changes lose sight of what made the game special. Reviewed on PC, Review Copy provided by the publisher.
Dragon’s Dogma 2: Dark Arisen is a fantastic expansion to what was already a brilliant game, fleshing it out with fresh locations to explore and enemies to conquer, an addictive appraisal system for gear, and plenty of quality-of-life updates that make the core experience feel better than ever to play. If you played and enjoyed the base game when it initially released, this is a must-own. But if you’ve been holding out for a while and thinking about dipping in, Dragon’s Dogma 2: Dark Arisen really does offer the epic adventure at its very best.
Dragon's Dogma 2: Dark Arisen unlocks the full potential of the base game, adding numerous technical improvements, new progression systems, a new map, and even a more complete and satisfying narrative.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Dragon’s Dogma 2: Dark Arisen is an excellent expansion that significantly improves the overall experience, refining a game that, despite receiving strong post-launch support, still had several flaws and needed more substantial changes.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Dragon’s Dogma 2: Dark Arisen isn’t perfect, but it is the kind of DLC that manages to transform a familiar game into a new experience. It’s a must-play adventure for anyone who enjoyed the original game and a fantastic reason to step back into the shoes of the Arisen. Capcom continues to prove that it’s on a roll.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Dragon’s Dogma 2: Dark Arisen won me over with the freedom to turn an ordinary journey into an unpredictable adventure. The vocations make combat varied, the monsters invite experimentation, and the terrain plays a role in fights in a way few games manage to replicate. The elven village and a cyclops used as a bridge are precisely the kinds of memories that linger long after you’ve turned off the console.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
It’s ironic that a franchise with a core theme of cycles like Dragon’s Dogma managed to repeat history by vastly improving itself with its DLC. With a much better narrative that works in both the context of how and when it happens, and a stronger gameplay loop reinforced by its many additions and updates, Dragon’s Dogma 2: Dark Arisen is the perfect example of perfecting itself through simplicity.
Dragon’s Dogma II: Dark Arisen is more of the same, but that isn’t really a bad thing in this case. If you were getting bored by everything else on offer, you can explore a brand new area and unravel a new mystery that adds at least 20 hours to the game. The new area adds a welcome change to the locale, and the developers did an impressive job filling it with elements that make it feel unique. I also loved how it uses this new terrain, filled with far less dead space than the main game. On top of that, you get a new series of challenges that are constantly respawning, making for easy-to-access battles that never fail to thrill. If you enjoy the main game, you will enjoy this, of this much I am certain.
Dragon's Dogma 2: Dark Arisen conceals the flaws of the base game while enhancing its strengths. The combat becomes more engaging through continuous encounters with formidable enemies and a clear reward system, while new skills and equipment add deeper strategy. Although common enemies remain repetitive, this aspect is less noticeable due to the frequent battles with stronger foes. While the shortcomings may still be apparent when playing the base game, exploring Norgan delivers a breathtaking thrill that keeps you constantly on the edge of your seat.
Review in Korean | Read full review
Dragon’s Dogma II: Dark Arisen is a solid expansion rather than a revolutionary one: it adds a memorable region, deep progression systems, and the missing bandages for the base game’s wounds.
Review in Italian | Read full review
The Norgan expansion is exactly what a DLC should be. It doesn’t just tack on a few extra hours of quests and a couple of reskinned monsters; it dares to upend established mechanics, stripping players of their certainties. The new randomized relic system spectacularly revitalizes build-crafting, while blizzards and environmental hazards turn traversal into a harrowing yet beautiful test of survival. The brutal difficulty, balanced by generous XP rewards, alongside the systemic chaos of the combat, create moments of pure gaming ecstasy. With an intriguing 30-hour campaign and an endgame loop that will keep you glued to the screen hunting for the perfect slot for your bow or greatsword, the journey into Norgan is a frigid, unforgiving odyssey that no Arisen should miss. The cold bites hard, but the satisfaction of conquering it warms the heart.
Review in Italian | Read full review
While the base game offered the fun of slowly exploring a vast world, it was bound to be divisive due to its slow progression and convenience issues. It seems this expansion pack chose to increase gameplay density with richer content rather than altering the unique characteristics of the base game. In that it more clearly demonstrated the charm of combat and exploration that 'Dragon's Dogma 2' possesses.
Review in Korean | Read full review
"Dark Arisen" is especially recommended for those who enjoyed the adventurous feel of the main game and wanted more narrative coherence, more rewarding exploration, and new challenges.
Review in German | Read full review
Dragon’s Dogma 2: Dark Arisen is another win for Capcom in a very successful year.
This version shows how a solid knowledge of the RE Engine can make a game that formerly pushed powerful home consoles to their limits a surprisingly seamless experience on hybrid technology.
Dragon's Dogma 2: Dark Arisen feels less like a small addition and more like a substantial second adventure. It brings together Norgan's survival demands, the challenge of the Lost Rites, new vocation skills, a flexible loot chase, and an endgame that can keep you busy after the story concludes.
Dragon's Dogma 2: Dark Arisen delivers tougher combat, rewarding relic hunts, and smoother performance. Predictable storytelling and familiar enemies hold it back, but the expansion remains a worthwhile return to the Arisen's world.
Dragon's Dogma 2: Dark Arisen offers a substantial amount of (endgame) content wrapped in a decent story and set in an attractive new location. More than anything, though, it depends on how much you enjoyed the original game, as Capcom has failed to fully learn from its shortcomings.
Review in Slovak | Read full review