Capcom has had its share of wild card announcements in recent years, but Dragon’s Dogma 2: Dark Arisen may be the most unexpected. It was simply revealed during the latest Nintendo Direct, and it’s out this October for all platforms, including Nintendo Switch 2. But as surprising as it may have been, the development team has been working since about six months after launch on the expansion, addressing what players would like to see the most and what they don’t.
To that end, director Kento Kinoshita confirmed to Famitsu that there wouldn’t be level scaling in Dark Arisen. “While some people like the system where enemies get stronger according to the player’s level, others dislike it, so we haven’t adopted it.” That said, the team is considering adding a Hard Mode for “experienced adventurers” to have a “more challenging and exciting gameplay experience.”
Of course, you’ll notice he said “considering,” and not confirmed. Producer Naoto Oyama added, “We are aware that many users have requested a Hard Mode since the release of Dragon’s Dogma 2. We are currently considering how it should be implemented in Dark Arisen. We envision a Hard Mode that can be played in both the main story and the new areas, but this is not yet officially decided, so we hope to discuss this further as the release date approaches.”
On the bright side, the expansion introduces transmog, finally allowing players to customize their look without having to swap gear and thus lose out on any valuable stats. Granted, the conditions for this have yet to be fully detailed, but it is tied to gameplay and will unlock as you explore Norgan.
Dragon’s Dogma 2: Dark Arisen launches on October 9th for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, PC, and Nintendo Switch 2. Between the new storyline, relic hunting in Norgan (which can be appraised for powerful new armor and weapons) and 12 new Challenge Dungeons, Oyama estimates about 25+ hours of new content for fans. For those diving in before launch, Capcom will release a major patch in late August to further improve performance.
