I remember watching the February 20, 2013, PlayStation 4 announcement live stream, eager to learn what the new console would bring me. It was a lengthy affair and looking back I barely remember what was announced—Except for one title that etched itself onto my mind: a Capcom dungeon crawler called Deep Down. I got a PS4 later that year, and eagerly awaited the game’s release. The years passed and it never came, stuck in development hell and relegated to vaporware status. Yet I still can’t let go of what it would have been like. Now, after playing Dragon’s Dogma 2, I think I know.
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Dragon’s Dogma 2 is akin to Deep Down in many ways. Its predecessor was released in 2012, becoming a cult classic RPG championed by the few who did play it and forgotten by everyone else. Years passed and any hope of the series continuing felt misplaced. The existence of Dragon’s Dogma 2 seemed like an impossibility—until it wasn’t.
Dragon’s Dogma 2 exists and it’s everything fans imagined it would be. I’ve fallen in love with its complex web of gameplay and narrative systems that invite me into a world that feels more alive than almost any other game I’ve played. And my admiration for Dragon’s Dogma 2 thrives because of its often abrasive systems, not despite them. Limited resources, an aversion to fast travel, even the game’s mysterious plague are things that bring me joy rather than turn me off . But the game’s caves are something truly special. After thinking for over a decade about what it would be like to play Deep Down, Dragon’s Dogma 2’s caves are my imagined ideal for the long-dormant dungeon crawler.
From what footage we did see of Deep Down (which amounts to a couple trailers and a 2013 Tokyo Game Show demo) we know that the game was a claustrophobic and atmospheric dungeon crawler. Players would take on the role of medieval soldiers exploring procedurally generated tunnels and caverns. They were filled with classic fantasy monsters: ogres, mimics, and dragons were all possible dangers . Progress through the dungeon looked slow and methodical, like it would test the player at every turn.
As described by Game Informer, Deep Down’s combat focused on precision: “Holding the left trigger brings up a reticle, allowing precise javelin pikes at arrow-shooting statues, pots holding experience or items, and enemies. Aiming a thrust at an ogre’s knee causes it to stumble and opens it up for a devastating attack.” This description feels like it could also describe Dragon’s Dogma 2. Combat, while lacking the ability to lock-on to enemies, allows for players to carefully engage with opponents. This includes shooting projectiles, or climbing on large enemies and weakening specific areas to open up the chance for larger attacks.
Combat in Dragon’s Dogma 2’s sprawling open world doesn’t satisfy that itch that Deep Down promised to fulfill— until you venture into one of its many caves. Suddenly the nearly endless map feels so constrictive. Bright skies are replaced with low rocky ceilings that seem to absorb the light from your lantern. Suddenly you don’t have the safety of escape, there is only the path forward or backward, and both are usually drenched in darkness or low light. It unsettles you, puts you on edge. And even the co-op promises of Deep Down feel realized to an extent thanks to Dragon’s Dogma 2’s pawn system, which lets you explore the world with three NPC party members at your side.
All of these systems in Dragon’s Dogma 2 work together in a way that leads to sequences that feel straight out of Deep Down’s reveal trailer. Dim lantern light illuminates a winding tunnel, bouncing off of damp stone and armor. A small party of adventurers tentatively make their way through the unknown, fighting off enemies in close quarters. The right path opens up to a large cavern in which a hulking beast awaits, maybe even a dragon.
It’s an awe-inspiring moment. The caves of Dragon’s Dogma 2 are just one aspect of what its world offers. But the dark depths of those caves are cavernous enough to hold all the expectations of Deep Down I had built up in my head for over a decade.
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