Dragon's Dogma 2 (previously at Boing Boing) is a hit for Capcom, but the $70 game being littered with unexpected microtransactions has led to a backlash among players. Katharine Castle writes that the critically-acclaimed fantasy RPG is getting review-bombed.
These weren't present in the press build of the game, and players are so up in arms about them that the game is currently sitting on a fat red "Mostly Negative" Steam rating based on over 11,000 reviews and counting.
Judging by the game's Steam page, there are 21 DLC items available for Dragon's Dogma 2 right now, ranging in cost from 89 pence to £4.45 in the UK. These include various items such as Wakestones, which can bring you back from the dead, Rift Crystals, which you can spend to hire additional pawns to join your party, a Port Crystal, which (only in conjunction with a Ferrystone, an item you cannot pay real money for) can be used for fast travel, a makeshift gaol key and a camping kit among others. You can also pay £1.70 for a character editor called Art Of Metamorphosis, which, sure, doesn't look or sound great when viewed out of context.
Apparently it's easy to ignore the microtransactions and just get on with playing it, but no-one wants to feel quite so frisked after dropping all their pocket money on a top-shelf title like this.
