Dragon's Dogma 2 slammed by players amid microtransaction drama
As the sequel to 2012's action RPG, Dragon's Dogma 2 has a lot riding on it - especially as it's being sold at the new standard of $70 for AAA games. High Fantasy is in high demand thanks to Baldur's Gate 3, and as the character creator is a huge selling point, players are gearing up to jump in...no matter the cost.
Unfortunately, cost appears to be the problem. Though Baldur's Gate 3 is adamant there will be no DLC, microtransactions or sequel from it, Dragon's Dogma 2 won't do the same. As players discover just how deep the well of extra payments goes, they're seething that before they've even bought the game.
Dragon's Dogma 2's microtransactions are brutal
Players are taking to the internet to express their incredible frustration that, after shelling out a premium to play Dragon's Dogma 2 in the first place, there is an absurd list of microtransactions that Steam is encouraging players to stock up on.
Fans are discovering that warp location markers, Wakestones and Rift Crystals galore adorn the fantasy epic's page on Steam. One particularly egregious example asks you to pay for an opportunity to get out of jail early. After just three hours, its Steam reviews sat at a lowly 38% positive.
Dragon's Dogma 2 is literally selling 'get out of jail free' cards as NPCs sell the item for in-game currency, meaning it's pretty blatant. Fans are beside themselves with rage, and after spending so much on the game itself, they'd at least hope that they wouldn’t be bombarded with urges to keep spending.
One particularly angry gamer writes, "Dragon's dogma? more like drags on my wallet jesus f*****g christ capcom (refunded at 118 minutes god this sucks) paying for fast travel? paying for character editing? paying for revive stones? BRO IT'S A 100 DOLLAR GAME WHAT THE F**K". Capcom has now stepped in to quell the fury.
Capcom responds to microtransaction callouts
Click to enlargeCapcom has taken to Steam to share a new post with players of Dragon's Dogma 2, claiming to "update you all on the status of the following items." The dev only goes so far as to list the items it's added to the game as paid DLC items.
It may well serve as a reminder to players that the items can be earned in-game, but the more likely scenario for understanding the items is that players will now know that they can be purchased if they get stuck in Gaol or need a Wakestone.
It's a pretty limp update from the team and has done nothing to soothe backlash against its approach to paid DLCs on the game. Sorry, everyone, even if you're paying the most that the market will allow for a game, your payments are not likely to end there.
