Dragon’s Dogma 2: 10 tips I wish I knew earlier

There’s no denying it, Dragon’s Dogma 2 is going to be one of the biggest RPGs of the year, but it’s not an easy game. Capcom has ensured that nobody will be holding your hand while playing; you’ll have to find your own way and take chances.

There are several points and tips we wish we’d known before we started playing Dragon’s Dogma 2. These tips will make the opening hours much easier for you and will hopefully give you a confidence boost.

Save your game often

You’re going to want to save your game as often as possible. In the world of Dragon’s Dogma 2, anything can happen. It doesn’t matter if you’re only a couple of hours into the story, a dragon or griffin could drop from the sky and proceed to mess up your perfectly laid plans. Admittedly, this is rare. What’s more common is making a decision you wish you could take back, or venturing into a dungeon and getting your entire party wiped out. Treat the game like Baldur’s Gate 3 and get into some save-scumming.

Craft as often as you can

Crafting is something you’re going to want to make a habit of. Not only will this mean you’re more prepared for fights or combat ailments, but you’ll make better use of the materials and ingredients you find along the way. Food in particular will start to rot from the moment it is harvested. It takes a couple of in-game days and sometimes you’ll forget all about that lovely cut of meat you found, then suddenly it's rotten and good for nothing. If you’re crafting often, you can use these items before they spoil.

Dragon's Dogma 2

Don’t be afraid to run away

Honestly, it’s okay, you have nothing to prove. In all seriousness, running away from a boss, or even a group of small grunts, is nothing to be ashamed of. Dragon’s Dogma 2 makes use of a feature that reduces your maximum health whenever you get knocked out or take a lot of damage. This could mean that you’re running around the wilds looking for a place to camp while having very little health. The last thing you want is a battle when one hit could kill you.

Embrace every class

There are two reasons to embrace every class and give them all a try. Firstly, by trying out each class, you can get a good idea how it will play. You won’t want to focus on only being a Mage if you don’t like taking melee damage. Likewise, it’s great to be a Fighter but will it bother you that you don’t have many ranged abilities? The second reason, which is great in the early hours, is that each vocation you try will give you a full set of armour and a weapon, all of which can be sold for some extra cash, if you don’t plan on playing that role.

Dragon's Dogma 2

Upgrade your gear

Speaking to any blacksmith will allow you to upgrade your gear - weapons and armour - but what you may not expect is that the first level of upgrades is always very cheap. Items can be upgraded a few times before they hit the maximum level, the first time always costs a small amount of gold. After this, each item will require different amounts of materials found throughout the world. So, whenever you equip something new, it’s worth grabbing this first level, even if you can’t go any further at that point.

If you see a bench, just wait awhile

Now, this may seem counterproductive to what the game tells you - that time passes, food rots, and quests can progress as days pass by - however, some NPCs and events only appear at night, and whenever you see a bench draped in a red material it might be a good idea to doze off and see what happens. Maybe someone will approach with a quest, or you might spot something different, worth investigating. As long as you don’t take on too many quests and craft often, dozing off occasionally shouldn’t be an issue.

Dragon's Dogma 2

Wander off the beaten path

We’d hope you’re doing this anyway, but if not you should embrace the idea of wandering. Seeing as Dragon’s Dogma 2 doesn’t intend to guide you through its story, or even give you much more than a map marker to proceed, why not just go off and meander? You can find some truly wonderful things when walking between trees and into the rough of the wilderness; there might be a dungeon to loot, or a lone house or chest with some handy treasures. Just be prepared to stumble upon nasty enemies too.

Check in with your guild

As you progress and battle through masses of enemies, you will earn discipline along with gold and materials. Whenever you’re in town, or at particular inns, you’ll be able to equip or change your vocation’s abilities. These abilities can make or break a fight, while your core skills and augments can apply buffs to certain parts of your class. Don’t miss out on being able to acquire some new attacks.

Dragon's Dogma 2

Search everything and everywhere

Dragon’s Dogma 2 is very good at not telling you where to look for something or find an important item. In fact, the map markers might not even show you the area of a building you should visit. So, you’ll need to search everywhere, in every room, and look in the places that don’t seem obvious. In one quest, I wandered around one room for a good five minutes before stumbling over the hidden objective. Not only will this searching help you clear your quests, but you’ll likely find some great items, too.

Check your pawn’s inventory

Your pawns are sneaky and will be constantly looting around you. It’s not just a case of them grabbing some flowers while out in the world, they’ll even open chests in people’s houses while you’re in the middle of a conversation. The things they pick up and collect won’t end up in your inventory, so you should be checking theirs often to see if they’ve grabbed anything good. You can also use their inventories to carry extra items around, so make use of their carry capacity whenever you can.