Capcom Responds to Dragon's Dogma 2 Microtransaction, Performance Backlash

The microtransactions are whatever, couldn't give a crap less about it. Like seriously everything you see in microtransactions can be obtained within less than 3 hours of the game. The performance on PC on the other hand is unforgivable. I was watching a stream of Critikal playing it and it would rarely get past the character customization screen before crashing numerous times. Im playing on PS5 and the only performance issue is just seeing npcs in cities pop directly in front of you which I don't even understand how that got past testing. Besides that though DD2 is so far GOTY for me, incredibly immersive, practically no hand holding, and the closest I'm gonna get to having a next gen Capcom Monster Hunter game until Wilds is here.

@Nepp67 With its vast performance issues, Dragon's Dogma 2 in no way deserves GOTY. That it's released in such a terrible state with poor optimization should be unacceptable for an AAA $70 title. It's funny how Rise of the Ronin gets called out for PS3 graphics when people should be more concerned with the PS3 performance of this game.

Also I really don't get the people defending MTX with whataboutism defenses. OK, they had them in Resident Evil 4 Remake and Devil May Cry 5, people did complain, maybe not as many but people did and maybe the lower volume of complaints for those games is because all these games have different fanbases. Also, those games were perfectly optimised at release with good performance. Having framerate drop below 30 FPS in Dragon's Dogma 2 though is atrocious.

I refunded the game on Steam. This game is now a bargain bin buy once it's been patched. I've seen lots say the same and I suspect sales have suffered because of it. Undoubtedly it has already sold a fair amount but probably not as well as it could have. The peak players on Steam has been 220,000 and nothing higher. It's not even achieved Starfield numbers and then that ended up being a flop especially when taking into consideration that it was a high profile AAA release. Monster Hunter World achieved higher than both so I think all these issues have definitely impacted the sales and you know what? Deservedly so. People need to stop justifying poor releases and waiting for months of patches. This game is merely part of the narrative once more of the problem with modern AAA games: release a broken game or game with technical issues and then fix it months later, oh and add unnecessary microtransactions.

Need I say more?

They did pretty much the same thing with DMC5 so I can't say I'm surprised. I've given up on the microtransaction battle because I've noticed that the next generation has pretty much grown up with them. That's already the norm to them. We might have won against online passes and adding NFTs to games but you unfortunately can't win every battle.

I ain’t really worried about the inclusion of micro transactions. Capcom have been doing it for years. Games like Devil May Cry 4 and 5 allowed the player to purchase Blue Orbs or even Super Characters, something that could be unlocked in game with normal play anyway, but if people are willing to spend money to get it early, then that is entirely up to them. Using the Super Characters didn’t make the S Ranks possible in DMC5, it was simply there to mess around with and get damage boost on all attacks. Granted there is more of a benefit with the micro transactions in Dragons Dogma 2, but if a player doesn’t want to pay a penny more on the game, they are going to miss out on nothing that some playtime will achieve anyway!

At this point I just see MH Wilds as a full blown $70-to-start game like Destiny or COD where everything is done in seasons. 🤑

I mean I certainly hope not, just a bad feeling.😩

@TruestoryYep The only major issue I encountered was NPCs popping in front of me and some low dips here and there. That wasn't enough for it to ruin my experience or make it unplayable because I am genuinely having a lot of fun with the game. Something like the launch of Cyberpunk on the other hand would be an entirely different experience though(And I bought it at launch too) missing features, basic mechanics, broken promises such as dynamic events, and buggy mess for console. That was a game that was not worthy of being GOTY no matter what.

For microtransactions no one is really "defending" it it's just that everything in the store is so quick and easy to obtain in game that you quickly forget that it is there. Should they be there? Absolutely not, it is a single player game.

@rjejr I hope they don't get full of hubris. They've been killing it for a long time now, barring the odd misfire.

I think the microtransactions story is pretty overblown after seeing what they actually are. I'm not giving them a pass, but I'm not bothered by them.

I haven't had one pop up saying "Check out the store!" like most games do. It would be great if they weren't included at all, but I have zero desire to purchase any of them.

The performance on the other hand is obviously a problem. It's a shame because it's the only thing really holding it back. I'm going to put a ridiculous amount of hours into regardless.

I'm either playing the game or wishing I was playing the game lol.

@Splat same here. Been thinking about it all day.

It remembers me the South Park episode about BP and the massive pollution from their oil rigs. "Oh, we just want to say ... sorry" with the CEO in a green forest and the birds chipping all around....

@TruestoryYep To be fair, Baldur's Gate 3 also released with poor performance and in an unfinished state. The chapter 3 was unplayable according to gamers review at that time. It won GOTY anyway...

Could we stop with the 'sinister" mtx's please as there is nothing sinister about them. And now you are referring to them as a hustle? You don't take this much umbrage with other games that have mtx's so why is this such a big thing to pushsquare? If it really bothered you guys that much you would never have given it a 9/10. The mtx's and the performance of the game do not detract from the gameplay one little bit (my personal opinion) but the negative perspective you are shoveling is very depressing especially after the excellent review. Come on pushsquare surely you can be better than this.

@Nepp67 it’s just skyrim in all but name. It just looks like a ps3 game and handles like one also. It gets a pass because it’s capgod

@Artois2 Play the game first then speak.

I’m more disappointed that sites gave this a 9/10 10/10 when it’s riddled with performance issues.

It just makes it ok for developers to keep releasing games in this state. Because sites praise them people go out and buy them. And by then it’s too late. (And this goes for many developers not singling out capcom)

Review sites HAVE to do better.

In any user review site at the moment: DD2 is getting hammered. 51% metacritic, 48% like it on google and it is 5.8 on metacritic - all slowly moving upwards but still a long way from where things should be for a game as good as this is. However, the metacritic scores 86 (PS5 and Xbox) and 89 (PC) don’t scream game of the year and or up there with Balders Gate 3 or anything like that anyway.

When you read the user scores though; people are also saying the game is quite archaic. People are not just talking about mtx or performance alone, it is that it feels clunky to play (and pawns can be frustrating, movement is not great, people losing massive saves etc). I think DD2 is probably an amazing game for enthusiasts who like the idea of an uncompromising, old school fantasy experience (and who loved the original), but maybe not a game that everyone will like? I wish there was a demo so I could see myself what I think of it.

@TruestoryYep whole lot of nothing. You didn't play the game did you?

Starfield doesn't have MTX, Baldur's Gate 3 doesn't have them. No pass shall be given anymore, especially if a game is supposed to be a GOTY-contender.

Yes, a Ubisoft game like the recent Avatar has MTX despite being single-player and few if any people highlight it in reviews. But at the end of the day Avatar has a 72 Metascore and will not be remembered or considered to be anything better than your standard Ubi-romp.

If Capcom wants to be in the big league, they need to step it up.

Microtransactions for stuff that can be unlocked via natural play doesn't bother me. If someone wants to pay extra for exactly the same game as someone else then let them. It's a single player game anyway so it doesn't give them an edge over anyone else.

MTX are here to stay, it's that simple. As another commenter stated, an entire generation have grown up with them as the norm by this point.

The same goes for the state of the game at launch. This has already become par for the course for AAA games.

I don't think Capcom have done anything here that the industry doesn't already do as standard. I'm not saying it's ok, but why the surprise?

I love the original game, so this is already on the list of games I'll be picking up at some point, and by then hopefully it'll be patched and better optimised.

The defence of microtransactions in this comments sections is depressing. You can still like the game and not be pathetic at the same time.

The fact Pushsquare gave this a 9 despite it being rushed out the door too early even worse that PX gave it 10/10 how is a game that can't even hit a consistent 30fps a 10/10. This is why these companies continue to do this and is why i don't trust reviews.

They had them in DD1 over a decade ago. I was fully expecting them to be in DD2. I guess to some extent the loudness of the noise shows how many didn't play DD1. Games cost too much to make now. And with most games needing servers to handle whatever form of co-op or multiplayer the game has they need to either increase the cost of games or add mxs. I'd much prefer it if they was handled in this way, useless to anybody but the lazy.

@SgtTruth I can honestly say that during my 25hrs, so far I've not encountered anything other than a bit of npc pop in. And that's only in towns. So far I agree with every word of Push Squares review.

I can honestly say I would probably never have known much about the MTX had it not been on blast all over the gaming media, that's how inconsequential they are. I don't agree with them, wished they hadn't done it, but it's not like a play to win type MTX so it's not impacted my game.

I don't think MTX are going away any time soon, so if I have to accept them then this is the sort I can grudgingly accept.

Performance is iffy and I'll be honest, I expected before starting that I would have to set it aside. I admit I can be a bit of a 60fps snob depending on the genre, and I expected I wouldn't be able to cope with this.

But it's so enjoyable I have been able to push past it to the point where I have managed to cope with the pop in npcs, frame drops etc.

Still, it would be good if they can't get some fixes in place for the stuttering and make it more stable overall.

@Nepp67 I’m playing through it now

I haven't played it yet, but if it's really in that bad shape as people claim, they should be ashamed of what they released. However it's nearly impossible for a giant rpg to not occasionally have some frame drops or popins, especially if it's a really detailed world.

The game is a delight to play. I'd just like a hide helmet option please, Capcom.

@SgtTruth You're acting like the game fluctuated like crazy from 1 to 60 frames on a constant basis which wasn't my experience what so ever and many others including reviewers themselves that they were able to play through it to the end and give it a high score.

@Artois2 So you're aware that it isn't Skyrim at all because it doesn't seem like you've played either game before.

Oh but no fast travel is by design you see. The design of how to get money from fools. 😌

I haven’t played this yet and it’s mostly due to having many more games on deck to play first, but I have a feeling that many people on both sides of the fence here haven’t played the game either — both those flaming Capcom and those defending them.

I always give more credence to those who’ve actually played the game, and especially those that have completed the game. So far I’m seeing a lot more of the people who are playing the game are defending it, stating that the issues are exaggerated.

I felt that way about Jedi Survivor. I played at launch and was seeing none of the reported problems that apparently made the game unplayable. Some of this is just weirdly good luck, I admit, but I had a blast with it.

But alas, I do think there’s a typical hyperbole going on, as is often the case on the internet, from both perspectives. It’s an election year here in the States, so I’m used to mudslinging over-dramatization.

The same people defending Capcom in this comments section would likely be frothing at the mouth if another company whose game they liked slightly less did the same thing.

This amuses me.

The only MT that bothers me is the the port crystal one as limited fast travel options is a slight hang up for me combined with the expensive ferrystones and limited port crystals getting around the map is a bit of a slog (so charging for extra seems a bit scummy), but fine if that’s their vision whatever that mechanic is just not for me personally.

The performance on the other hand is rough, it’s just not stable enough.

Is it unplayable? No you can get through it fine enough
Do we deserve better for a full price AAA game? hell yes!

Knowingly releasing it in that state is bad, and should be called out.

@Darknexus you literally have to pay to create a new character and you have to pay to get the right to customise your character mid game like it's an mmo.

If Bethesda did this they'd get railed harder than they usually do but i guess dragons dogma is the new thing the masses want to latch onto and defend because it'd been hyped up hard by streamers just like elden ring when dark souls and DD1 were niche games.

"simply reminds players that "all the items listed below can be obtained in-game or as paid DLC items" before advertising them again. It's a hell of a hustle, and if nothing else, we appreciate its brazen nature"

The very alternative should make it all a non-issue, but I suppose it's brazen to expect people to grind, farm and likewise go out of their way in a JRPG of all genres. Like I said before, all this "DLC" sounds like a token checkmark to report to MTX-worshipping shareholders while everyone in the audience has zero reasons to turn their heads even by MTX standards. Everyone not advisable to have their financial operations supervised for one reason or another, that is.

@B0udoir Um, not everywhere cough cough. I think those who didn't award it GOTY are gonnaoom foolish in retrospect tho...

Ok all the items listed in micro transactions are available in the game, but at that cost? If you have to farm 2 weeks to get 1 item, this is still f2p tactics that should not be in a single player $70 game.

@TruestoryYep
Elden Ring performance (frame rates) was and still trash yet it won game of the year.

The game is designed to be played multiple times and the mtx are primarily found in normal gameplay anyway. They are really just for people that want to make the game easier without breaking it for everyone else (as the pawn system relies on other players. Probably why the plague was introduced) buy the mtx if you want them, ignore them if you don’t. Half the stuff they are selling were things people complained about in the first game.

@LikelySatan I don't think it's about hubris, it's about big $ flashing in their eyes. 🤑

I have bigger issues with letting us pay for fast travel and after a nice video of the Jimquisition i just decided to go with Ronin instead.

@Enigk Selling fast travel is a joke and a massive failure in any form.

@vrubayka MHW also had MT's but those were fun little ones like emotes special costumes but when you start to sell things like fast travel you are scummy.

The reality is.... does it really matter?

The game got a high score anyway.

The games enjoyable without.

So if they want to try make a bit of extra money then why not, we all got to get paid. You either buy it or you don't.

My only ever problem with microtransactions is when they truly impact the game.

Just like games like NBA 2K where career is such a grind it basically begs you to buy in because the grind is harder than a jrpg.

Though I cant chip in with my own feelings on the game, as I have no desire to buy such a technically compromised version and have a huge backlog, I do find it amusing just how little people seem to understand about game design.
Knowing that items such as fast travel would be sold as mtx will fundementaly change the way in which those systems are designed. Such systems will be designed to be just restrictive enough that the weaker willed player will consider a purchase. If thats not you, then bully for you, you can ignore it. Me, I want a game desigened where all systems are the best they can be to aid and support the core gameplay, and compromising this for the sake of some mtx is hardly a death knoll for a good game, but its the start of a very slippery slope indeed, where far more important things about the game are compromised for the sake of mtx pressure.
Its a shame so many people dont appear to recognise where this will lead... I should add Capcom are not the worst in this regard, but it should be called out where ever its seen and not shrugged off simply because you like the game.

@HotGoomba the blind hype for this game going forward was already a RED flag for me honestly, not gonna spend 60 quid on a title that is shaking my wallet for more cash on items in the game, no thanks

I’m sick and tired Of hearing about the damn microtransactions. If you want to use them, fine. If you don’t, no one is pointing a gun at your head.