I don't know how many hours I've wasted in Gransys now, but I think at last count it was over 100. I finally finished it the other night properly, bawled my eyes out, and then literally started a new game.

I don't care. I will play it over and over. Just watch me.

Also, I've now played almost every class, and just gotta say, how good is Strider? Seriously.

Everything about this game just sucks me in. The open world element is incredible, and I can't stand limitations in games anymore, it feels wrong. And it is just so fucking epic. Like, I'm climbing up the back of a Cyclops to hack at his eye, my sorcerer pawn lights the fucker on fire and the incredible battle music is playing, as I swing from side to side trying to get a grip to keep climbing as flames roar below. It's just so cool. I love the fighting in the game. I have no qualms with respawning enemies because the attacks are just wicked.

I have to say, as a side note, I'm very disappointed to hear that Capcom have no plans to release the MMO in the West. Seriously. Y u do dis, Capcom. What do you possibly gain from not releasing it here? Dragon's Dogma Online looks fucking incredible, and I want it. You guys suck, seriously.

If you're thinking about playing DD, get the Dark Arisen expansion, I made a mistake and bought the plain ol' Dragon's Dogma by itself, and now I have to buy Dark Arisen as well. Also, you will love this game. Buy it, play it forever. You will not regret it.

I am on a journey to beat 360 random Xbox 360 games. Here's my next adventure

Game number 60 was Dragon’s Dogma. I do need to clarify, this was just Dragon’s Dogma, not Dragon’s Dogma Dark Arisen. I did not get any of the updates, extra waypoints, dlc locations, or anything else that was added into Dark Arisen. Because of this, I can definitively say that this is not the best version of the game to play.

Dragon’s Dogma is an action RPG where you need to complete a series of quests in order to defeat a world-destroying dragon. Dragon’s Dogma is an interesting game because of two of its unique mechanics: the companion system, and the monster hunter style boss fights.

Graphics/Sound: Dragon’s Dogma looks remarkably good for a 360 game. There are some large and vibrant character models for some of the boss monsters and the game world is rendered really well. There are multiple vistas where you can look upon the game world and they all look beautiful. I also like how dark it is during dungeons and at night. You cannot see anything that is not in your immediate vicinity and it makes the world feel immersive and scary at times.

The sound is also good. The music that plays during combat scenes got me amped up to fight some epic monsters. Additionally, there were some extremely powerful sound effects that make skills and spells feel incredible.

Story: Dragon’s Dogma is clearly not a story focused game. It starts out with the titular dragon attacking a seaside city, while the main character tries to defend it. My character was utterly destroyed and his heart was taken from him. After waking up, he finds out that he has become something called an arisen. These are people who can call upon “Pawns” and command them to do their bidding. Pawns are humanoid beings who have no sense of personality and they act as mindless companions for the player. After discovering his Arisen status, he is called upon to go help the Duke of Gransys (area the game takes place) and ultimately joins the cause to destroy the dragon.

Nothing about this story is either original or engaging. There is a major subplot about some cultists who are causing problems and that is sort of interesting, but still very standard fantasy writing. Quests additionally do not seem to affect your status with NPCs. I did one quest where I seriously pissed off the duke, was thrown into prison, and escaped. Afterwards, I was just allowed to walk back in the castle and interact with everyone there. It broke all of the attention I had for this story. Yeah… the story is clearly just here to serve as glue in between the monster-slaying quests.

Gameplay: Dragon’s Dogma lives and breathes interesting gameplay. You get to pick one of 9 classes and then go out into the world and fight epic monsters! One of my biggest gripes about the game comes out of this class system. The class you pick is essentially the difficulty of the game. The most OP classes are the ranger type classes. Magic Archer in particular is an absolute boss. Then come the pure mage classes, and finally the fighting classes.

SO MANY OF THE MONSTERS IN THIS GAME FLY (or have weak spots off of the ground). That makes the experience as a fighter kinda terrible. You will spend more time dodging attacks and waiting for the monster to get into a position to attack you.

Getting back to praise, I don’t think there has ever been a game that has done archery and magic as well as this. You get to cast your spell and aim for the spot on the monster that you want to hit. The casting time makes it feel like you are doing something powerful. Furthermore, some attacks can absolutely destroy monsters and will take down multiple health bars at once.

One of my biggest issues with Dragon’s Dogma was the lack of a fast travel system and the amount of time it takes to reach each destination. To clarify, there is a fast travel system, but you cannot fast travel anywhere except for the main city (except until very late in the game). I spent HOURS traveling the path between Gransys and Cassardis. I probably made that trip 25 times over the course of my playthrough and it takes 15ish minutes each time. And that is just the commute between 2 main cities. If you want to go somewhere more remote then it will take much longer. To top this all off, the ability to teleport requires a resource that is extremely limited and very expensive until late game.

I know some people will say that my complaints about fast travel are unwarranted because I need to experience the world or something, but even the developers would disagree because Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen updated the game to add a fast travel point at Cassardis, more port crystals (and you can get them MUCH earlier), and unlimited teleports.

My experience: I played through Dragon’s Dogma primarily as a fighter (though I tried other classes). I have always enjoyed tanky melee characters, but it was immediately apparent that I didn’t do much damage. I eventually got the hang of things and was able to find good pawns that covered my weaknesses; as well as grab some powerful skills. My team and I were able to take down most of the main quest and a large amount of side quests pretty well. The game was never easy, but it wasn’t too much of a problem either. My biggest gripe was the large number of flying enemies and the lack of fast travel. Everything changed when I went into the final mission though. The enemies got way more difficult (but didn’t pose too much of a problem), and the final boss was miserable. It took me about 45 minutes to fight the stupid dragon because I couldn’t do any damage to it. I had to wait for my mage and archer to hit it with their attacks, while I kept everyone alive. I honestly hated every second of that fight and it has left me with a terrible taste in my mouth. The bosses should all be fightable for every class! Do not make something that the player cannot fight because of the class/skills they chose.

Overall, Dragon’s Dogma was a good game that had some absolutely miserable moments. I spent waaaay too long walking the paths I have already walked 20 times and I wish there was more fast traveling. The combat was fun and there were many interesting enemies to fight! THE FINAL BOSS WAS MISERABLE AS A FIGHTER. PLEASE PLAY A RANGED CLASS WHEN YOU DO THIS. Probably my largest issue with this game is that there was really no reason to play it since Dark Arisen exists. You should definitely play that instead. (6/10)

I spent 43 hours, 25 minutes, and 10 seconds playing Dragon’s Dogma.

I have spent a total of 776 hours and 4 minutes on the Road To 360 challenge so far.

Next Game: Walking Dead: Survival Instinct