Take it from a big fan of the first game, Dragon’s Dogma was overlooked — a sleeper hit, if you will. If you’re someone who didn’t give it the time of day or simply weren’ aware of it, you are forgiven. Now it’s hard to ignore Dragon’s Dogma 2‘s existence, but this does beg the question: do you need to play Dragon’s Dogma before the sequel? Normally I’d jump at the chance to share the first game, but the long and short of it is no.
Do I Need to Play Dragon’s Dogma Before Dragon’s Dogma 2? Explained
Simply put: your character, the Arisen, has amnesia, according to DD2’s director Hideaki Itsuno in an interview with GamesRadar. It isn’t the most elegant solution, but if you don’t want to play Dragon’s Dogma, it’ll save you a good 30 hours or so.
What that means in practice is NPCs, especially your Pawns, will clue you in on the world around you. Pawns in the first game were pretty chatty and offered lore bits much in the same way. Not only that, but you’ll learn the mechanics of the game, such as the nature of Pawns, mechanics, and vocations, which are classes with a different name.
Furthermore, Dragon’s Dogma 2 is set in a parallel world, so even veterans of the previous title will still witness plenty of surprises. The beastren, for example, are an entirely new race never before seen in the series until now, and you can even play as one!
While you don’t need to play Dragon’s Dogma before the sequel, it’s worth going back just to experience the awesome DLC that was Dark Arisen. It has its own story, memorable moments, and the same general mechanics only albeit in a slightly lesser form if you jump into DD1 after DD2.
