This is an analysis of the first trailer of the highly-anticipated Dragon’s Dogma II, which was presented at the PlayStation Showcase 2023. This is a short trailer, but it contains a lot of details that veteran Arisen might notice. It also contains minor bits of information about new additions to gameplay and the world, among other things.
We could also speculate on the game’s story but I believe it is not very rational to do so with so little information and source material. Read the article fully to learn about possible new gameplay changes and additions, the world, the creatures, and more.
Before reading this, you should watch the trailer. Also, check out the official website for more information. So without further ado, let’s get into it!
A quote by a prominent French author
One of the simpler things from the first game that instantly intrigued me immensely was a brilliant and deep quote by Henri-François-Joseph de Régnier – commonly known simply as Henri de Régnier – who was an important symbolist poet: “le plaisir délicieux… d’une occupation inutile”.
It translates to: “The delightful and ever-novel pleasure of a useless occupation.” Of course, the ones who finished the game and understood much of it will quickly get what this quote was meant to say; and what it was foreshadowing.
To my utmost pleasure, a similar quote by another great French author appeared in the recent trailer: “La conviction est la volonté humaine arrivée à sa plus grande puissance”, which translates into: “Conviction is the human will that reaches its greatest power.” This is a quote by one of the pioneering realism writers in European history, Honoré de Balzac. I am sure that the meaning of this quote will resonate in the game’s story, as Régnier’s quote did in the first game.
The Bluemoon Tower
Right at the beginning of the trailer when they showcase the game’s title, you can easily notice a tower that looks strikingly similar to the Bluemoon Tower; a place many an old Arisen will be rather familiar with. It’s situated to the north of Gran Soren, and you can reach it by traversing through the narrow Windworn Valley. We cannot be exactly sure if this is the same tower we saw in the recent trailer for DD2, but it bears a striking similarity.
However, it appears that the direction in which we see the tower is not the same as the direction in which we saw it in the first game. It appears as if we were seeing the tower from behind or in some other direction. This leads me to believe that the game will include a new area other than Gransys alone. Or maybe another region that was cut from the original Dragon’s Dogma.
But once you revisit the Bluemoon Tower from the first game, you may think it’s reasonable to speculate that the tower we saw in the trailer could also be another place that looks similar. Observe the following picture I took in the original game.
With how the Bluemoon Tower is situated here, one would think it’s nigh impossible to catch such a clear view of it from another land. In the end, we can only speculate so far and it remains to be seen if it really is the Bluemoon Tower or another altogether new location.
An Urban Area
Fortunately for every player, we’ll be able to explore a new city in Dragon’s Dogma II. If you go back to the previous section and take a look at the first image, you will no doubt notice a city with tall bridges (that resemble ancient Roman architecture) that apparently lead in and out of the settlement. While one could think that this is Gran Soren at first glance, looking carefully reveals that it looks rather different.
In the above picture, you can clearly see that it’s indeed a new location, as the majestic statue of a warrior was seen in no place in the first game. Speaking of the statue, let’s attempt to understand what it is. It looks to me like a warrior who’s beheading a draconic creature, maybe even a true wyrm like Grigori.
The Warrior in the above picture
Now, let me diverge from our original topic of the urban area we saw for a bit and discuss who the warrior apparently slaying the dragon might be. In my mind, there are three possibilities: the most probably of which is that it’s the Sovran of Vermund. The other two are our previous Arisen (very unlikely in my opinion) and Godking Leonart. We already know our Arisen from Dragon’s Dogma I very well. Before we talk about the Sovran of Vermund, let me explain to you who Godking Leonart is.
In the land of Meloire, where Aelinore the duchess and Feste come from, a great king once ruled. He was called Godking Leonart and he was a genius tactician who unified the lands, and many call him a legendary hero. Other than the Arisen from the first game and Edmun Dragonsbane, Leonart is the other person who was said to have slain a dragon. But the lore tells that he, like Edmun, actually took the dragon’s bargain and sacrificed a loved one. If the warrior depicted in that statue is Leonart, the game would have to be set in Meloire. But that may or may not be the case.
Now, let’s talk about this so-called “Sovran of Vermund”.
Vermund
“Long Live the Sovran of Vermund!”
“Sovran” is the Archaic English word for “Sovereign”. Dragon’s Dogma was a game that utilised Archaic spellings often, and this is such a word. The most probable person who that statue depicts is the Sovran of Vermund. That would also mean that the game will be set in this region or province named Vermund. But a place called Vermund was never mentioned in the first game or the lore and if this is where the game will take place, it’s a completely new area.
In the Dragon’s Dogma universe, there’s a “Mainland”. Maybe Vermund is a province of the mainland.
As for the town depicted in the trailer, maybe it will be one of many urban cities we will get to visit in the game. It would definitely be interesting to explore multiple different towns.
The huge wall reminds me of the Greatwall from the first game, that protected Gransys from the Wastelands that were situated to the west of the peninsula.
A Tavern or an Inn
Possibly situated in a town, we also saw a place that definitely looked like a tavern in the trailer. The inn (hopefully one in many) in DD2 seems to be much better than the one we got to lodge in the first game. You can see in the following picture of the inn that it’s much busier than the Union Inn from Gran Soren.
New Races
In the trailer, we saw characters of different races that weren’t featured in the first game. For example, many characters with dark skin were noticeable and may be prominent characters in the story.
Possibly the most notable race was the feline characters that look similar to the Khajiits from The Elder Scrolls franchise. A variety of races will undoubtedly make the game more three-dimensional and deeper. It might even be possible for us to create characters of various races, but that remains to be seen.
These multiple different races and groups of people suggest that the world of Dragon’s Dogma II will indeed be huge. In the above image, an Empress named Nadinia is mentioned. Before, we talked about another ruling figure named the Sovran of Vermund. It is unlikely for two rulers to harmoniously rule over one land, unless this Nadinia is the Sovra,n’s wife (that is, I will admit, quite far-fetched).
Creatures
In the trailer, we saw multiple creatures we have experience fighting in the first game, and also a few new ones that I personally can’t wait to test my might against.
As seen with the fights against a Griffin and an Ogre, the iconic and badass ability to climb onto foes and deliver damage to weak spots returns in Dragon’s Dogma II. We also saw a Golem.
Other common creatures like goblins were also present in the game, and I personally am happy to see that their appearance hasn’t changed a lot from how they looked in the first game.
Medusa?
A notable monster from the trailer was the creature that strongly resembled a Medusa from Greek mythology. As Dragon’s Dogma also included many monsters from various world mythologies, it is not surprising to see a Medusa appear in the game. Possibly, her gaze would make the Arisen and his Pawns suffer from petrification.
A Sphinx
At first, this creature might look like it belongs in the family of harpies and succubi. In Greek and Egyptian mythology, this creature, with a woman’s head, the body of a lion and the wings of an eagle is called a “Sphinx”. This monster shown in the trailer is most definitely a Sphinx.
A Cyclops destroying a bridge
This scene confirmed that the combat in Dragon’s Dogma II will be even more dynamic and mind-blowing than it was in the original. Whilst fighting a Cyclops on a wooden bridge, you can observe the monster crushing a pole from which the bridge is fortified upon. This caused the bridge to collapse and take the persons on it with it.
A creature that looks like a Minotaur
In this somewhat unclear image, a monster that looks rather similar to the Greek mythological monster “Minotaur” is shown. Mythology describes the Minotaur as a creature that is half man and half bull. In any case, we saw some unique, new creatures in this trailer and it’s safe to say that the bestiary of Dragon’s Dogma II will be far expansiv,e than that of the first game.
The Dragon
Of course, we cannot forget the titular antagonist of the game. A mighty and majestic dragon that looks like Grigori from the first game was shown in the trailer. As Grigori did, this dragon also consumed a heart, possibly of the Arisen. His striking resemblance to Grigori will prove something important to the ones who finished the first game. I will not spoil it here. And notably, the voice seemingly belonging to the dragon sounds quite similar to Grigori’s voice. Maybe the talented voice actor, David Lodge, voices the dragon in DD2 as well.
The Dragon attack on Viete
Let me now speak a bit about an incident that happened before the events of Dragon’s Dogma I because the second image of the dragon reminds me of it. At the very beginning of the first game, you play as Savan, an Arisen who eventually felled the Dragon and became the Seneschal. The actual game’s main story takes place far into the future. A small town named Viete was located near the Barta Crags in Gransys, and the Dragon destroyed it. In fact, the state the Barta Crags is in at the time of the first game is precisely because of this Dragon attack. Now, what if the Dragon attack shown in the trailer and the second Dragon image I posted is actually the attack on Viete?
If that’s the case, it would mean that a scene from the past will be featured in Dragon’s Dogma II as well.
Classes and new abilities
The classes I recognized from the trailer are Fighter, Warrior, Magick Archer, Strider/Assassin and Sorcerer/Mage. All of these classes were seen in the first game, but I have reasons to believe that Dragon’s Dogma II will also include a few new classes.
Among familiar abilities like the Blink Strike, Bolide and others, I noticed a character who was looking like a priest or a monk, temporarily making a bridge. The Arisen seemingly made a path between two ledges (the place where the bridge that was destroyed by the Cyclops was in) in order to cross it, or easily combat foes. It also leads us to the fact that there may be a class based on a monk or a priest. The character was seen holding something that looked like an incense burner.
Pawns
An interaction between a Pawn and the Arisen was seen by many people and there already are countless fans online admiring the feature that may be implemented into the final game, hopefully.
A Ruler?
The following picture shows a ruler of sorts, apparently. Maybe he’s like Duke Edmun Dragonsbane from the first game. He’s also wearing a glowing pendant that clearly has magickal properties. We previously talked about the Sovran of Vermund, and this might actually be him. Let us assume, because of the statue we talked about earlier, that he is another Arisen (one we’d never heard of in the first game’s lore). If that’s so, the player character would have opposition… or a friend, but I suspect it might be the former.
Anyway, in the trailer, we also saw that this medallion-wearing ruler had pawns at his side. No one other than an Arisen can command pawns effectively, as said by Ser Mercedes in Dragon’s Dogma I. Then, it’d definitely mean that this person is indeed an Arisen.
A Spirit
You might remember encountering a woman who looked similar to this spirit in the first game: Sofiah. She was an Arisen from a distant time and she appeared spectral. This character we saw in the trailer looks like one that offers insight and guidance in the Arisen’s adventure. Maybe she’s another Arisen like the Dragonforged or Sofiah, or maybe, she’s an altogether different being. Say, like a guiding deity.
