Summary
The open-world RPG genre is by far one of the most popular in the current gaming landscape, and it’s remained that way for the best part of two decades. From classicBethesda RPGs likeFallout 3andOblivionto Rockstar’s immersive Wild West adventureRed Dead Redemption 2to CD Projekt Red’s breakout hitThe Witcher 3, the open-world RPG genre is full of hits, and now, at least according to many fans and critics,Dragon’s Dogma 2has earned itself a spot at the top of the pack.
A sequel 12 years in the making,Dragon’s Dogma 2takes its predecessor’s penchant for innovative open-world design and gives it a modern-day makeover, delivering one of the most refreshing open-world fantasy RPG experiences in the last few years. ButDragon’s Dogma 2isn’t the only memorable RPG in recent memory, withZelda: Tears of the Kingdomstill giving it a run for its money almost a year after its initial release.
Comparing Dragon’s Dogma 2’s Open-World to Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom’s
Both Dragon’s Dogma 2 and Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Revolve Around Emergent Gameplay
There are some major similarities betweenDragon’s Dogma 2’s open-world, andThe Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom’s, and the biggest is their revolvement around emergent gameplay and narrative. In bothDragon’s Dogma 2andZelda: Tears of the Kingdom, players will stumble upon a range of unique random encounters while exploring the open-world.
These often come in the form of random enemy patrols that can ambush the player. InDragon’s Dogma 2- and to a lesser extent inTears of the Kingdom- these random encounters usually provide a unique experience every time, with multiple enemy factions joining forces to attack the player, or large boss monsters seizing the opportunity to crash everyone’s party.The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the KingdomandDragon’s Dogma 2also adopt a very similar player-led approach. In both games, though main quest and side quest markers do appear on the map, it’s down to the player to initially begin those questlines, as opposed to in other open-world games where all events are marked out on the map right away.
Similarly, much ofDragon’s Dogma 2andTears of the Kingdom’s world designis intended to encourage the player’s own exploration. While the player might be initially heading for a quest marker, bothDragon’s Dogma 2andTears of the Kingdomplace obvious points of interest along the route to entice the player to go off the beaten path. These points of interest always reward the player in some way, whether it’s with a boss fight or with a special item or both, thus cementing this idea that exploration yields rewards.
Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Puts a Greater Emphasis on Traversal
But whileZelda: Tears of the KingdomandDragon’s Dogma 2’s open-world share a lot of the same general DNA, the two adopt very different methods of traversal. InZelda: Breath of the Wild, the player was forced toexplore the entirety of Hyrulepretty much on foot, which is essentially whatDragon’s Dogma 2does. But inTears of the Kingdom, Nintendo decided to give the player a little more freedom in how they went about exploring the world.
Thanks to newZonai abilities like Ascend and Ultrahand,Zelda: Tears of the Kingdomgives players an unprecedented level of freedom when it comes to traversal options. While Ascend lets players teleport through ceilings in an instant, Ultrahand allows them to create incredible contraptions that range from flying vehicles to ground vehicles, and just about everything else a player’s mind can think of.
Dragon’s Dogma 2
WHERE TO PLAY
Set forth on your grand adventure, Arisen!Dragon’s Dogma is a single player, narrative driven action-RPG series that challenges the players to choose their own experience – from the appearance of their Arisen, their vocation, their party, how to approach different situations and more. Now, in this long-awaited sequel, the deep, explorable fantasy world of Dragon’s Dogma 2 awaits.On your journey, you’ll be joined by Pawns, mysterious otherworldly beings, in an adventure so unique you will feel as if accompanied by other players while on your own adventure.All of these elements are elevated further through physics technology, artificial intelligence (AI) and the latest in graphics, to create a truly immersive fantasy world in Dragon’s Dogma 2.
