After over 100 hours on the original console version and nearly another 100 on PC, the conclusion I've come to on Dragon's Dogma is that it is not the greatest RPG of all time - but it is the tech demo for it.

Often touted as the love child of Dark Souls, Monster Hunter, and Shadow of the Colossus, the combat of Dragon's Dogma is easily its greatest strength, and more than makes up for some of the more glaring issues that the game possesses. Scaling a raging cyclops and stabbing it in the eye is just as fun the 50th time as it is the first time you do it. This combat system is greatly benefited by the nine different classes to choose from, with the standard combat triangle of fighter, rogue, and mage, as well as advanced, specialized variants of those, and even hybrid vocations. With so many skills and weapon archetypes to choose from, there's definitely something for everyone in this game. The pawn system is another unique and versatile mechanic that adds to excellent foundation that the combat system presents, allowing for meticulous tweaking of party composition for almost any environment. The Everfall and Bitterblack Isle are where the combat truly shines, allowing for short downtime between fights as you travel through their various chambers encountering the more fun and engaging enemies in the game.

The only two issues I have with the combat system as is would be the often ridiculous stat scaling and the consumable item mechanics. With an effectively unrestricted world to explore right from the get go, there are numerous areas that basically serve the purpose of being "noob traps", slaughtering unsuspecting new players who wander off the initial path the game expects of them. Enemies like chimeras, drakes, and even simple bandits can decimate low-level parties in an instant, with very little way of determining their strength beyond the "smack it and see what happens" approach. While enemy-specific weaknesses go beyond simple elemental variants to include targeting specific body parts is a fantastic mechanic, it is greatly hampered by how the game handles gear and stat scaling. Eventually as you progress, you will come to a point where you tear through common enemies like fodder, turning normal-sized enemies into an annoyance rather than a threat. This is exacerbated by instantaneous effects of potions and other consumables, which makes combat lose its sense of intensity and urgency once you are well stocked. And that doesn't even factor in wakestones, which can virtually remove any consequence from death if desired. Of course, this can be mitigated by limiting yourself to a set amount of potions, but I feel like a different healing system would have greatly benefited this game.

The last thing I'll mention is the story, which is generally one of the more negatively viewed aspects of the game. The general gist is that you are the "Arisen", someone who controls the Pawn Legion (pseudo-humans with no free will) on your quest to kill a dragon that stole your heart (literally). While I found the climax with the dragon and everything that follows until completion of the story to be very enjoyable and even thought-provoking, everything leading up to the dragon showdown feels like nothing more than a vessel to get you to that point with very little thought put into its pacing, coordination or design in general. Bland, one-dimensional characters, uninspired fetch/kill quests, and a railroaded love-interest with actual worst girl The Dutchess leave a sour taste in my mouth, even after the ending segments of the story manage to redeem the overall narrative. Whether the product of rushed production, discombobulated ideas, or simply being lost in translation, there's a very good reason many people recommend rushing to the post-dragon content as quickly as possible.

There are many more highly promising aspects of this game that I feel didn't get enough love during development, such as the map, romance system, inventory management, and more, but this review is already long enough. So instead:

Despite its many issues, Dragon's Dogma is a criminally underrated and overlooked game that every RPG fan should try. Given enough time and love during development to build upon the solid foundation it has provided, its sequel (please Itsuno) could easily become my favorite game of all time.

• Greatest combat in an action RPG to date
  
• Varied class vocations
  
• Pawn system
  
• Exciting enemies
  
• Enemy-specific learning curve (elements, weak points, etc.)
  
• Highly replayable endgame
  
• Locations with radiant enemy spawns
  
• Beautiful soundtrack
  
• Interesting climax/resolution to the story
  
• Interesting romance system

• Poor stat scaling and healing mechanics
  
• Story, characters, and quests need work
  
• Deceptively sized, sparsely populated map
  
• Inventory management becomes tedious

After over 100 hours on the original console version and nearly another 100 on PC, the conclusion I've come to on Dragon's Dogma is that it is not the greatest RPG of all time - but it is the tech demo for it. Often touted as the love child of Dark Souls, Monster Hunter, and Shadow of the Colossus, the combat of Dragon's Dogma is easily its greatest strength, and more than makes up for some of the more glaring issues that the game possesses. Scaling a raging cyclops and stabbing it in the eye is just as fun the 50th time as it is the first time you do it. This combat system is greatly benefited by the nine different classes to choose from, with the standard combat triangle of fighter, rogue, and mage, as well as advanced, specialized variants of those, and even hybrid vocations. With so many skills and weapon archetypes to choose from, there's definitely something for everyone in this game. The pawn system is another unique and versatile mechanic that adds to excellent foundation that the combat system presents, allowing for meticulous tweaking of party composition for almost any environment. The Everfall and Bitterblack Isle are where the combat truly shines, allowing for short downtime between fights as you travel through their various chambers encountering the more fun and engaging enemies in the game. The only two issues I have with the combat system as is would be the often ridiculous stat scaling and the consumable item mechanics. With an effectively unrestricted world to explore right from the get go, there are numerous areas that basically serve the purpose of being "noob traps", slaughtering unsuspecting new players who wander off the initial path the game expects of them. Enemies like chimeras, drakes, and even simple bandits can decimate low-level parties in an instant, with very little way of determining their strength beyond the "smack it and see what happens" approach. While enemy-specific weaknesses go beyond simple elemental variants to include targeting specific body parts is a fantastic mechanic, it is greatly hampered by how the game handles gear and stat scaling. Eventually as you progress, you will come to a point where you tear through common enemies like fodder, turning normal-sized enemies into an annoyance rather than a threat. This is exacerbated by instantaneous effects of potions and other consumables, which makes combat lose its sense of intensity and urgency once you are well stocked. And that doesn't even factor in wakestones, which can virtually remove any consequence from death if desired. Of course, this can be mitigated by limiting yourself to a set amount of potions, but I feel like a different healing system would have greatly benefited this game. The last thing I'll mention is the story, which is generally one of the more negatively viewed aspects of the game. The general gist is that you are the "Arisen", someone who controls the Pawn Legion (pseudo-humans with no free will) on your quest to kill a dragon that stole your heart (literally). While I found the climax with the dragon and everything that follows until completion of the story to be very enjoyable and even thought-provoking, everything leading up to the dragon showdown feels like nothing more than a vessel to get you to that point with very little thought put into its pacing, coordination or design in general. Bland, one-dimensional characters, uninspired fetch/kill quests, and a railroaded love-interest with actual worst girl The Dutchess leave a sour taste in my mouth, even after the ending segments of the story manage to redeem the overall narrative. Whether the product of rushed production, discombobulated ideas, or simply being lost in translation, there's a very good reason many people recommend rushing to the post-dragon content as quickly as possible. There are many more highly promising aspects of this game that I feel didn't get enough love during development, such as the map, romance system, inventory management, and more, but this review is already long enough. So instead: [h1]TL;DR[/h1] Despite its many issues, Dragon's Dogma is a criminally underrated and overlooked game that every RPG fan should try. Given enough time and love during development to build upon the solid foundation it has provided, its sequel (please Itsuno) could easily become my favorite game of all time. [h1]PROS[/h1] [list] [*]Greatest combat in an action RPG to date [*]Varied class vocations [*]Pawn system [*]Exciting enemies [*]Enemy-specific learning curve (elements, weak points, etc.) [*]Highly replayable endgame [*]Locations with radiant enemy spawns [*]Beautiful soundtrack [*]Interesting climax/resolution to the story [*]Interesting romance system [/list] [h1]CONS[/h1] [list] [*]Poor stat scaling and healing mechanics [*]Story, characters, and quests need work [*]Deceptively sized, sparsely populated map [*]Inventory management becomes tedious [/list]