Dragon’s Dogma 2 releases to mixed user reviews, as microtransactions criticised

Dragon’s Dogma 2 has released to mixed reviews on Steam, with numerous players expressing unhappiness at the game’s list of microtransactions.

Players discovered on Friday that there are 21 separate DLC purchases available on day one, but disappointment appears to be aimed at the fact that some of them are for features or actions that they feel should be easier to obtain in-game for free.

One of the DLC purchases being cited most frequently is the Art of Metamorphosis, which lets players alter their character’s appearance and change hairstyles.

Contrary to the claim of some user reviews, character editing is not locked behind a paywall, as the Art of Metamorphosis item can be found in the game. It is, however, an extremely rare item, meaning players struggling to find one can pay $1.99 for one instead.

Other items being sold include Wakestones, which can be used to resurrect the player during a long battle (instead of returning them to a checkpoint), or resurrect dead NPCs.

Again, Wakestones are extremely scarce in the game, but players can buy up to five of them for $0.99 each.

The DLC, along with other complaints—such as the game’s use of controversial Denuvo anti-tamper technology, which players believe can have an adverse effect on PC game performance—saw the game’s Steam reviews drop to ‘mostly negative’ at one point, though they have now been upgraded to ‘mixed’.

Players who bought the Deluxe Edition of the game received DLC called A Boon for Adventurers: New Journey Pack, which contains nine of the 21 DLC available on day one. Players can also buy it separately for $14.99.

Players buying A Boon for Adventurers and all the other DLC available on day one would end up paying a total of $38.87 on top of the main price of the game.

Dragon’s Dogma 2 is the first Capcom game to be sold at $70 for its standard edition, and last month, the publisher said it would consider selling more games at this price point given the rise in development costs across the industry.

It was revealed earlier this week that Capcom was Metacritic’s highest-rated publisher in 2023, based on the quality of its releases last year.