What you need to know

  • As Dragon’s Dogma 2 launched on PC Thursday evening, a previously hidden suite of microtransactions became available for purchase.
  • Things you can buy for the single player ARPG include fast travel points, Rift Crystals for hiring Pawns and buying special items, appearance change and revival consumables, a special camping kit that weighs less than normal ones, and a few others.
  • In response to the microtransactions, Dragon’s Dogma 2 is being review bombed, with the game currently sitting at “Mostly Negative” on Steam.
  • @[email protected]
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    181 year ago

    Is this an always online game? If not, im sure wemod will have cheats for it soon enough to give you these items.

  • @[email protected]
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    111 year ago

    Only legislation will stop this.

    This abuse is the dominant strategy. If we allow this to continue, there will be nothing else.

    Nothing inside a video game should cost real money.

  • @[email protected]
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    1321 year ago

    $70 price point for entry, microtransactions for stupid shit, and launches with severe technical issues.

    I’m so sick of your shit Capcom.

    • @[email protected]
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      1 year ago

      When a game releases with multiple purchases along side it, it just means you chopped up my full price game and are charging me extra for what I should have already gotten

      WWE 2k24 in infuriating like this. If you want the full game on release, it’s actually like $150.

      • @[email protected]
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        61 year ago

        Exception to this is actual extras, like the game’s soundtrack or access to concept art.

      • @[email protected]
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        81 year ago

        Supposedly a lot if not all of these micro transactions are simply faster unlocks to the content/feature, still though not a good look.

        • @[email protected]
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          191 year ago

          That just means they deliberately made the game tedious with the goal of annoying people into paying

        • LeadersAtWork
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          1 year ago

          This is what I’ve pieced together as well. Everything can be fairly easily found and used (or hoarded) in game. However, this in no way excuses the other issues.

          That said, I don’t blame the devs. Someone light the C-Suite bonfire.

            • Ricky Rigatoni
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              131 year ago

              Peoole can’t just quit their jobs because they don’t like a few decisions by the suits. If that were feasible for everyone then the world would be a better place.

            • LeadersAtWork
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              131 year ago

              Following this thread of logic the thousands of devs laid off in recent weeks must be heroes. After all, if they don’t have a job, according to you they can do no harm, and that’s a good thing.

              Unless you think someone who refuses to do the work they’re assigned are likely to retain their position?

  • @[email protected]
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    201 year ago

    It’s sad that Japanese developers (and Japanese people in general) have no idea what is going on in the outside world, and are therefore always 10-20 years behind societal development. I remember going there when Pasmo (rechargeable card instead of buying ticket stubs from machines for the subway) was relatively new and having a very proud Japanese person explain to me that Japan was the most convenient place in the world to live because of this. This was in 2011. Fuckers still go to 7/11 to pay their bills.

    • andrew0
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      1 year ago

      And for some reason you still can’t charge transport cards online or with a credit/debit card if you don’t have a japanese phone. Think that’s coming in 2035 at this rate? 🤣

      • veroxii
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        11 year ago

        Yeah for years now (since 2019) in Sydney you can just tap on and off to travel directly with a debit or credit card. You don’t need the middleman opal card anymore.

      • oce 🐆
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        21 year ago

        You can use your phone or other smart devices as transport card, but it uses a specific wireless tech that is not included in western phones as far as I know.

        • andrew0
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          31 year ago

          Yeah, it’s the Osaifu-Keitai. Apple has it enabled for all phones on the market, while Android phone manufacturers avoid adding it to theirs outside Japan because they would have to pay fees to Sony for it. The funny part is that Sony itself doesn’t enable it for phones outside Japan, even though FeliCa is a subsidiary of Sony :D Another funny bit is that some phones, like the Pixel, are capable of running it on phones made for other markets. Some users were able to force the Osaifu-Keitai app to think the phone was made in Japan, and that was all it took to enable it (although you’d have to root your phone + the manufacturer should have released their phones in Japan, to ensure the chip is capable). So, yeah, although a few years ago it might have been a specific chip being needed in the phone, nowadays it’s mostly software that doesn’t allow you to use the one you have while in Japan.

          All in all, PASMO/Suica/etc is basically a very limited debit card company haha. I guess Japanese people enjoy using it mainly because it puts a cap on how much they can spend (iirc, about 100 euros allowed at once on the card). Japan is a highly consumerist society, so this format was probably adopted (instead of credit/debit cards) mainly to combat it somewhat :D

    • ඞmir
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      151 year ago

      Not saying you’re wrong, but this seems about equal to the shit Western developers pull on their game releases nowadays

      • Altima NEO
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        1 year ago

        Yeah, for years there Capcom was trying to be the next Activision

    • oce 🐆
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      31 year ago

      In which other country can you use the same transportation card in so many different cities, as well as a mean of payment in shops? Also, you can pay your bills online too nowadays.

      • ඞmir
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        11 year ago

        The Netherlands lets you use your bank card for all public transport now (OVpay)

        • oce 🐆
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          1 year ago

          That’s nice. How does it work if you have a transportation subscription, like paying once a month?

          • ඞmir
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            21 year ago

            You need an “OV chipkaart” for that, which then does work on all public transport, but you can’t buy things with that card in stores

  • @[email protected]
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    361 year ago

    Damn… I was really close to pre-ordering this one and I held off basically just because I wanted to wait for information about the Steam Deck compatibility. So glad I didn’t pre-order. I figured all of the glowing reviews that came out earlier this week would have mentioned secret microtransactions, but it seems like this was a very nefarious bait and switch. I like to give the benefit of the doubt and apply Hanlon’s Razor, but it really feels like this was a deliberate and sinister act.

    • @[email protected]
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      151 year ago

      There’s rarely any reason to preorder a digital thing. They don’t run out of stock.

      The preorder “bonuses” are rarely worth it.

      You made the right choice.

    • @[email protected]
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      31 year ago

      Never, ever pre-order.

      The only “advantage” is that you can play the game a few hours, maybe a day earlier, which makes no difference whatsoever in terms of the fun you get from the game, and to get that “benefit” you run a huge risk of not only wasting your money but also of getting to experience the actual feeling of having been scammed.

      I can understand that most people lack the impulse control to wait 6 months or more (by then getting it cheaper and with most bugs fixed) and just “have to have it right now”, but in the digital download era pre-ordering might at best get the game in your hands a few hours earlier than just buying it when it comes out.

    • @[email protected]
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      111 year ago

      Reviewers often get a free copy of the game, the DLC and unlimited consumables so most pre release reviews are far from honest.

      • @[email protected]
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        31 year ago

        Not really, they just hide the micro transactions during the review period, Activision did the same with CTR.

    • @[email protected]
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      11 year ago

      You not buying the game is 1 vote, someone that pays for micro transactions get multiple votes everytime they buy, you lost, they paid for your copy.

    • @[email protected]
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      11 year ago

      The ones who buy items in-game are the ones who buy the games. Those are the customers they want to appease the most.

    • @[email protected]
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      241 year ago

      They won’t stop doing it. Think of how many live service games have failed. Are the investors going to stop drooling over that Fortnight $$? AAA game are made to please investors, not players.

      Boiling everything down to econ101 serves to absolve the bad behavior or games companies as “rational actors” while placing the blame for shitty games practices on “stupid” gamers.

      • @[email protected]
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        81 year ago

        If enough people are buying it, they’ll keep doing it whether you like it or not. So why waste your energy getting mad about it?

        You already lost the fight when you start talking about “bad behavior” and “blame.” Just accept the fact that you’re not the target audience for shitty modern AAA games, and move on.

        It’s OK. I’m not the target audience either. I’m not the target audience for Taylor Swift concerts, either. Does that make it “bad behavior” if I don’t like her ticket prices?

        Stop getting mad about companies making money. That’s literally their purpose. There are plenty of other products out there to buy.

        • greenskye
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          81 year ago

          Regulation. Bad behavior that can’t be policed by econ 101, gets regulation. Stuff like recognizing the predatory nature of these micro transactions and limiting their exposure to kids and warning labels like we slap on actual gambling. Even higher taxes on profits derived from these sorts games. Maybe they aren’t so profitable when we actually protect the vulnerable and they have to truly rely on just the ‘stupid whales’ and not kids.

          • @[email protected]
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            41 year ago

            Is it predatory, though? Or are people just upset because they fell for pre-order hype, despite it being 2024 and they should know better.

            Let’s not muddy the waters by comparing it to gambling. Pay-to-win (or pay-for-convenience, which, in my opinion, is the same as pay-to-win) is not gambling. It’s just shit. You’re not paying for a randomized chance at a reward. You know exactly what you’re getting.

            I don’t have first-hand knowledge of the game, but from what I have seen, there are no predatory IU elements to lure vulnerable kids into stealing their mom’s credit card.

            Don’t get me wrong. I think the MTX is shit. I was mildly interested in the game, but now I won’t consider it even on 75% Steam sale. Capcom won’t be getting my money, that’s my choice.

            We don’t need the government involved in regulating shitty entertainment. It’s not water or electricity or healthcare. You can just not buy the thing. If you start calling for regulation of everything you don’t like, that’s how you get geriatric politicians who never played a game in their life and still call it “the Nintendo” deciding what you can and can’t have in your game.

            • greenskye
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              31 year ago

              I was responding in general to the concept, not specifically this implementation, which as you say is not the worst implementation for sure.

              We’ll have agree to disagree on pay2win not being predatory. Again, this specific implementation may not be as bad, but the market as a whole absolutely has examples just as dangerous as slot machines. They’re built on the same psychology.

              As for regulation, it doesn’t strictly have to come from the government. Both movies and games have rating boards specifically to avoid government intervention and I think they are failing consumers here. The threat of government intervention might see the ESRB and the various gaming marketplaces adopt more strict rules and warnings. Things like preventing the sale of games with specific, predatory mtx dark patterns and mechanics from sale to minors, stronger warning labels on games containing these sorts of practices and penalizing companies from adding MTX in a deceitful manner (such as after launch). A game would be heavily penalized for adding adult content this way and perhaps MTX should be treated in a similar manner.

  • cum
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    261 year ago

    Seems like it’s just being accurately reviewed. How else are companies supposed to learn this is not okay?

    • BruceTwarzen
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      121 year ago

      There is a pidcast that i like and they both praised the game and got sponsored by Capcom. I think i have to sit out the next episode, because i kinda don’t want to hear them vwing apologetic towards capcom.

      • body_by_make
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        231 year ago

        Nobody knew about the micro transactions until right before launch, to be fair

        • @[email protected]
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          21 year ago

          Agree, but I also read that it was in the review guide they provided for reviewers that apparently everyone missed.

  • @[email protected]
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    71 year ago

    Seeing this fuckery from Capcom has given me sight closure and a bit happy that MegaMan is dead

    • @[email protected]
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      31 year ago

      happy that MegaMan is dead

      Oh, but it isn’t! They keep releasing collections to test the waters. Also, there’s a Megaman gacha game! A fucking gacha!

      For my part, I’ll never forgive them for Megaman X 6 and beyond. The story was clearly written to end with Megaman X 5, then transition into the Zero series of games, but Capcom was too greedy to leave it alone.

      • @[email protected]
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        21 year ago

        For my part, I’ll never forgive them for Megaman X 6 and beyond. The story was clearly written to end with Megaman X 5, then transition into the Zero series of games, but Capcom was too greedy to leave it alone.

        Oh man, I got so many Vietnam flashbacks with Gears of War 4 and beyond. Microsoft really massacred my favorite video game saga :c

  • AutoTL;DRB
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    151 year ago

    This is the best summary I could come up with:


    As I write this, Capcom’s new ARPG Dragon’s Dogma 2 is now officially playable on PC through Steam, with the game slated to go live on Xbox and PlayStation consoles in just a few hours.

    “Then, after pre-purchasing the Deluxe Edition, I went to install it today and saw a whole page dedicated to it’s Micro Transactions in the store,” wrote player Superius.

    The former monetizes the ability to fast travel wherever you want in the game world — Portcrystals are extremely rare to find in gameplay — while the latter’s random nature essentially turns changing your Pawn’s inclination into a slot machine you can spend $2 to “re-roll.”

    We’ve only been able to find two Art of Metamorphosis tomes for sale at a single NPC’s shop despite finishing the game, for example, which suggests that there may be a limit on the number of times you can change your appearance unless you’re prepared to fork over some cheddar.

    In the past I’ve received review guides that included developer explanations with PR language that I felt might be designed to try influence my opinion of a game.

    It’s a slippery slope to ex-EA’s John Riccitiello and his infamous “I want to sell bullets in Battlefield” microtransaction quip of yesteryear.


    The original article contains 929 words, the summary contains 209 words. Saved 78%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!

  • kingthrillgore
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    101 year ago

    I was watching Suzi’s video on this and I was watching if she was gonna blink twice like she was in trouble.

    Capcom’s dick move with mods already poisoned the well, this is just salting the earth.

    • Drasglaf
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      111 year ago

      She (and other reviewers too ) should post a follow-up, it’s the right thing to do IMHO. She’s being called shill among other things in the comments although it’s obvious she didn’t know.

  • Fushuan [he/him]
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    181 year ago

    I’m going to be downvoted to hell, but I’m loving the game, and all the mtx and complaints about the easy to travel and such are from people that didn’t play the original, honestly. This game is like the original but better, maintaining the spirit of the original.

    Yes, you could buy revival stones in the original too.

    The legit complains are the performance issues and crashes, but anything else… Idk what to tell you, they knew that the slow gameplay that is expected of the player would not be well received but wanted to conserve the original feel, so if you want to bypass the original feel go for it. I won’t.

    • @[email protected]
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      171 year ago

      I think you’re missing the point.

      The fact that these microtransactions were sort of hidden by reviewers and then added just a day before launch is shitty.

      And if the game was designed to not have easy fast travel, they should have stuck to that vision and not introduced mtx to get over it. Offering these things to players shows a lack of adherence to their own design principles and instead shows their greed.

      The negative reviews are well deserved.

  • @[email protected]
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    341 year ago

    How’s dragons dogma 2? … To shreds you say… And how about the community… To shreds you say …

  • Jaysyn
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    201 year ago

    Capcom can join Blizzard, EA, Ubisoft & Frontier Developments on my “Never Buy” list.

    • @[email protected]
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      1 year ago

      Why didn’t they join that list when they had the exact same system with mtx in place in the first game? Or are you just saying it now because you want to be part of the angry internet mob about the current thing?

        • @[email protected]
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          11 year ago

          Lmfao what? I fucking hate the game and their shit devs and at least I’m consistent about it. Not like you and your small brain mob mentality. Do you always start swearing when you experience cognitive dissonance? Petty little loser.

      • @[email protected]
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        31 year ago

        Well, I would say that boy needs therapy. It’s psychosomatic

        Oh wait. I’m thinking of the song Frontier Psychiatrist by The Avalanches

      • Jaysyn
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        1 year ago

        Way back when Elite: Dangerous was being Kickstarted it was shilled as bascially a 3D Neverwinter Nights in space with players having access to a toolset & being able to create their own private servers. This was the only reason I was interested in yet another space sim game.

        A while after the Kickstarter was over, they completely changed the premises of what they wanted to make into what you see on Steam now. And were absolute assholes about it.

        The change was so egregious, that I was able to charge-back my Visa several months after the original donation.

        I’m sure the game is nice, but it wasn’t what I was sold on.

        (And don’t bother giving me any crap about Kickstarter, I’ve had a good experience using it, even with the few campaigns that I donated to that still haven’t delivered yet, looking at you Witchmarsh)

        • @[email protected]
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          71 year ago

          I love Elite Dangerous, but that sounds way cooler. Im still kind of pissed about the lack of ship interiors. Something that was promised way back when.