Developer and publisher Capcom knew what it needed to accomplish with DRAGON'S DOGMA. That is, they wanted this new title to be considered the best RPG around, either toppling THE ELDER SCROLLS: SKYRIM from its comfortable perch with a better overall game, or at least, offer something special which SKYRIM does not. DRAGON'S DOGMA manages to succeed (to a degree), and while most will still consider SKYRIM the king, its new aspects make this new arrival one of the best next gen console RPGs currently available.

DRAGON'S DOGMA takes you to the magical realm of Gransys where an ancient dragon has appeared and brought talks of Armageddon along with him. After easily laying waste to your small fishing village of Cassardis, the great dragon rips from you your heart and devours it, leaving you for dead. But the magic of this world is strong, and so you manage to survive the fatal attack to become the Arisen. As the Arisen, you have to power to call forth allies known as pawns, to assist you in battle. With these new allies by your side, you set off on an adventure to slay the fire-breathing behemoth, hopefully preventing the destruction of the world, and reclaiming your heart. DRAGON'S DOGMA is a compelling story from start to finish, and you can be sure the game's ending is one that will be talked about for a long time to come.

When you start up, you'll have to create your character and your first pawn shortly after. Each character can be customized to look just as you'd like, including aspects like body build, facial features, skin tone and sex. You'll also have to choose one combat class, which your character will specialize in, between Fighter, Mage and Ranger. Each class has their own unique traits, and later, you'll be allowed to further customize your abilities and even create hybrid classes. All of these options are available to both you and your pawn, as you set off on a quest full of dungeons, NPC missions and of course, powerful equipment and loot.

Where DRAGON'S DOGMA differentiates itself from other RPGs is combat. In addition to you and your initial pawn, you'll be allowed to bring two other pawns into combat. These two can either be characters built by the game, or if you're playing online, you can borrow pawns from other players (allowing you to also loan out your pawns as well). You and your pawns will get along just fine, thanks to some impressive AI. Of course, you'll have the ability to fire off magical spells and arrows from afar, but the real fun is getting in close with your enemies. DRAGON'S DOGMA features massive beasts, and when you're in combat with one of these gargantuas, you can grasp onto them and climb around its body in search of a weak spot. This creates one of the more interesting combat aspects, and clinging on for dear life, as a huge boss tries to shake you loose, is a blast.

DRAGON'S DOGMA features an excellent presentation that contains very few flaws. This goes a long way to create an immersive experience despite the occasional graphical hiccup. The enemy designs are especially beautiful, giving you a look into the impressive attention to detail on some of the game's most massive creatures. Sound design is up to par and contains a great soundtrack to adventure and explore to. Customizing, leveling and equipping your characters is simplistic thanks to some nice in-game menus and in-game tutorials, thus ensuring you never have to spend too much time away from the game's action.

If you've enjoyed the recent glut of RPGs, You'll enjoy DRAGON'S DOGMA. Incredibly fun from start to finish, the game manages to capitalize on a host of great ideas within its strong narrative, outweighing the few flaws that lie inside. DRAGON'S DOGMA is the best RPG of the year so far, and should not be missed by horror fans, as you can find plenty of darker elements in the game and early access to the RESIDENT EVIL 6 demo as well.

Bloody Blogs - Biogamer Girl