Dragon’s Dogma 2 director Hideaki Itsuno says he is “very proud” of the highly anticipated sequel even though the game may not have suited “a certain type of audience.”
Speaking to VGC, Itsuno intimated he intentionally designed the sequel to be the antithesis of “a Nintendo” game, saying: “It’s normal if some people outside that target audience” didn’t quite appreciate the game.
“I made the game not like a Nintendo one to be liked by all the people, but for a certain type of audience, so it’s normal if some people outside that target audience don’t like the game,” he said. “However, people who enjoyed the game really loved it, appreciated the details and work. I’m very proud of it.”
As for what’s next now Itsuno has left Capcom?
“For me, based on my age, this is my last chance,” Itsuno said. “The gaming industry has decreased the number of AAA releases, and I was asked to create a new AAA [by Lightspeed]. I’m not young anymore, so more than ‘now it’s the right moment,’ it’s more like, ‘this is my last chance’ to challenge myself.
“For Capcom, creating Devil May Cry and Dragon’s Dogma sequels is always going to be the top priority, and keeping in mind that making a game takes 4 to 5 years, this might be my last big opportunity.” He also added that while he “held several talks” with other studios when working on Dragon’s Dogma 2, he “didn’t even think of leaving while making the game.”
“I wanted to finish it and after release, there still was some work to do, so I decided to go to the new studio once I was done with all of that,” he explained.
“More of a redo than a sequel, Dragon’s Dogma 2 is a strange and wonderful action-RPG that bolsters the original’s strengths without addressing its weaknesses,” we wrote in IGN’s Dragon’s Dogma 2 review, awarding it 8/10.
An October patch for Dragon’s Dogma 2 introduced options within the game’s settings to prioritize either graphics or performance. The latter helped improve the game’s oft-lamented framerate issues, which developer Capcom is now saying were a direct result of Dragon’s Dogma 2’s many NPCs thinking too much.
Vikki Blake is a reporter for IGN, as well as a critic, columnist, and consultant with 15+ years experience working with some of the world’s biggest gaming sites and publications. She’s also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.
