Dragon's Dogma 2's Microtransactions Are Causing Controversy At Launch

Maybe I’ll actually be First! this time…

No matter what, this is just a slippery slope that is heartbreaking, but also somewhat surprising how it took as long as it did to arrive.

depends: shall we take a stance against these practices, or not?
I didn't buy the game yet, but I have plenty of Capcom games.
I don't want to judge who is pro, against or Capcom itself, but there is something annoying and greedy about this kind of monetization that impact the perception of the game.

When did Capcom go Ubisoft with game designed MTX? Cosmetics I could care less about, but game affecting purchases? That's horrifying.

Is pure Xbox going to change the review score to reflect this?

@PsBoxSwitchOwner Why should they? They were able to get a 10/10 experience without having access to this Paid DLC (which means you can too).

Dropping Score for the sake of spite against MTX practices is relatively petty when the reviewer got the full experience without having to spend an extra dime.

With companies pulling stuff this after the review period, what's so difficult for outlets to pull back their reviews and update it accordingly?

Simple just don’t buy these games, money and sales speak louder than words to these cheapskate gaming companies.

Additional why buy the game now anyway, sounds like a good few performance patches are needed, no sure about bug patches.

So wait for everything to be fixed and patched then buy the game cheaper later on.

Speak with your cash and they will soon learn.

no wonder the easy mode option isn't in dogma 2, according to a search i did.

I get why people aren't happy to see microtransactions in a single player game, but let's face it, this is the reality of the present and future of games. Don't like it? Don't buy it. As someone who almost exclusively plays single player experiences, it's inclusion will not affect my initial purchase, and more often than not, I won't purchase anything beyond what was included initially.

It seems incredibly shortsighted to just ignore the entire game because of this single element, but if people feel that strongly about it, do we really care? Maybe they miss out on an amazing experience, but if their value system makes them feel that way, why can't we accept that?

Oh right, it's the internet, that's why. 🤣

@GamingFan4Lyf because it was a part of the game that was withheld from reviewers, to inflate the score. Because every publisher knows that MTX brings with it negative tones to a review and score.

A lame and sleezy move to be sure. However, I have the capacity to not buy things that are unnecessary. I can keep my credit card in my wallet easily enough.

@PsBoxSwitchOwner But, again, it had zero hinderance on their gameplay experience.

If the reviewer had reached a point where suddenly a paywall had come up, then, yes, I can see where that would reduce the score - part of the experience is inaccessible/significantly hindered due to having to fork over real money.

None of the actual game experience was hindered during the reviewers playtime. They reviewed the game...not the company's business strategy.

The game they played without shelling out money was a 10/10 in their view (bear in mind, it was also noted that MTX was going to exist when the review was written).

I am not defending MTX by any stretch. I think they are ridiculous, and I simply don't buy them. But if the game is 100% enjoyable without ever needing to fork over extra money, then I don't see dropping a score out of principal or to send a message - people's wallets are a better message to send than a review score.

If MTX were an unknown and then suddenly "poof", MTX showed up, then I can see that as a problem. The reviewer knew it was coming and still gave it a 10/10.

If the MTX suddenly made a whole new area available post-review, then yes, I could where the review would want to amend the review because they didn't get the "whole" experience at time of review.

Neither of those happened.

Without really having knowledge of the game, it looks like the MTX are nothing more than convenience fees for those who want an easier time with the game. The MTX don't seem to be intrusive in any way. Why amend the score?

The reviewer knew they were coming. You know there are there. If the MTX are a problem for you, don't buy them or skip the game all together. That's your choice, just like it was the reviewers choice to still give the game a 10/10 despite knowing MTX were coming.

They get a free pass because they're Capcom.

I'm not even willing to pay full price for this one so I definitely won't be paying for microtransactions.

For a game that does not perform well on any platform and doesn't currently allow you to have a second save file, it is kind of embarrassing that they have such a robust microtransaction setup out of the gate.

Imagine if film makers released edited "critic's cuts" that withheld controversial scenes or characters, or the low budget ending, until after the critical reviews were out before adding them back in for theatrical release.

How about some Friday drama?!

Interesting change, the Friday drama has usually been reserved for the Series S bashing...😅.
It sucks Capcom has done this, but this in no way will affect my enjoyment of the game. And that is because I won't be giving them a penny for the MTX.

Here’s a fantastic idea just don’t buy them? I had no idea they were even in the game but I have to say I’m not going to grab my pitchfork because I have this wonderful option called choice.

@PsBoxSwitchOwner

Is pure Xbox going to change the review score to reflect this?

Why would they start with Capcom when when both Microsoft and Sony first party outings are just as guilty of the practice? And this before we even consider EA, Ubisoft, Take-Two etc, etc.

For what is worth, I think the best way is to not touch their mtx with a barge pole and just play the game, which is brilliant by the way.

@Sol4ris I totally agree it should be done to all. But until sites start taking it up it will keep happening and it’s becoming more frequent (pushsquare have made a note of it in their review)

Steam users have stuck it with a "mostly negative" rating.

What makes this game different to the thousands out there that already have micro’s? We as gamers have let this happen, because the vast majority buy into this stuff and have done for years. I bet most leaving negative reviews have been a part of the problem. It seems a weird place to finally make a point about it again.

I don’t like it, but to single out DD2 seems strange.

@GamingFan4Lyf @Fenbops The thing to keep in mind with this game being particularly egregious is that the mtx is not a cosmetics store that launched after release. They're selling fast travel per-use. It's one step away from selling continues. And they hid it until after review embargo and preorders shipping.

In game fast travels are a rare item. And there's nothing preventing the game from being "updated" in a way that reduces the drop rates of those items or currency, at any time, after reviews, to compel players to be frustrated/bored enough to pay money, like cooldown unlocks in mobile titles.

When the devs talk specifically about intentionally not making fast travel easily available for reasons of exploration, and they day 1 they tell you, actually, they're selling you the fast travel for real money, it's not unreasonable to presume exploration is not the reason they were not originally common.

That's why there's backlash on this. This isn't the typical mtx store for skins and costumes. This is the introduction of full-on F2P mobile monetization in "Capcom's first $70 game." And they actively hid it until launch, not unlike CDPR hiding "PS4/X1 doesn't actually work" until after launch.

This is a very special case of hidden day 1 mtx, it's not comparable to, say, Tekken 8's store.

@NEStalgia ah fair enough. Shame, the games great apparently and they’ve messed it up.

@NEStalgia From what I have seen (on PushSquare), the press was given a list of the MTX that would be available at launch.

So while I certainly think the MTX are scummy, the press was aware when making reviews.

@GamingFan4Lyf They said that there was a press memo saying there were mtx but I did not see them say it listed what was in it. Did I miss that? I asked Sammy specifically to clarify that but haven't heard back from him.

You're allegedly able to use in-game currency. These are shortcuts, and nobody is forcing them upon the player. Everything's a controversy these days.

None of these dlc affect the game. You can get everything and sometimes better versions of things in the game. Anyone would think these are compulsory purchases based on the rage-bait

@NEStalgia Liam said they were provided a file with the list of the MTX and prices as part of the review code.

@GamingFan4Lyf at least it wasn't hidden then. That surprises me tbh . Now why did no reviews manage to mention that? I'd love to see that doc. Considering prices were they're in guessing an NDA/embargo has to be involved, they certainly wouldn't permit leaked prices....

Nobody has to buy any of these. You can earn items and rift crystals through normal play. I don’t see what the issue is. The game gives you a number of portcrystals.