There’s excitement around Dragon’s Dogma 2 again, and not just because of big new updates. Its first expansion, Dark Arisen, is out this Fall, bringing a new region, storyline and even dungeons for players to get lost in. With over 25 hours of new content, it feels almost too good to be true.
Of course, fans have been burned before, especially when it comes to performance, and with the base game and expansion debuting on Nintendo Switch 2 on the same day, one has to wonder if it can handle them.
Speaking to Eurogamer, producer Naoto Oyama said, “The RE engine, which we’re developing our games on now, is something that has actually been a really great fit for Nintendo Switch 2. We’ve had some really well-received Nintendo Switch 2 versions of major titles – such as Pragmata and Resident Evil Requiem this year – and, because this is an internal engine, we’ve been able to accumulate knowledge and know-how from other teams.
“And that means that the improvements that are made to the engine with each title, and the different features that are added with new games, get to stay with us – and we get to benefit from them on future titles. It’s a really positive cycle for us.”
While the team is focused on ensuring optimal performance on the Nintendo Switch 2, other platforms aren’t being left out. For instance, a big update in August will address performance issues and provide other bug fixes. “In particular, we’ve been trying to find as many small tweaks as we can make so we can build up and have a big performance improvement on consoles when it comes to Performance Mode itself. That’s something we’re aiming for with the late August title update on the roadmap; Performance Mode on consoles will be able to reach 60 frames a second.
“That means that, commensurately, all that effort we’ve put into the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S versions of the game also pays off in the Switch 2 version, and we’re currently seeing a minimum 30 frames per second rate performance on that hardware (and, in many scenes, it’s even higher!) So it’s a little while to go until the game releases, but it’s exceeding our expectations on Switch 2, and I hope the players agree that we’ve done a great job again with bringing this game to that platform.”
Of course, for the PC versions of its titles, Capcom always notes that performance can vary in the busier scenes. Whether Dragon’s Dogma 2 can maintain 30 FPS on Switch 2 is the real test. But if the work on Dark Arisen – which began six months after launch – is any indication, the development team is committed to support (at least for the foreseeable future).
Dragon’s Dogma 2 and Dark Arisen launch on October 9th for Nintendo Switch 2, while the expansion is available for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC on the same date for $40. The base game’s price has dropped to $40 since, and a new major update introduces various quality-of-life features, which you can learn more about here.
