Dragon's Dogma 2 launched last week and received its first proper patch earlier today, following its popular yet controversial release. While the patch is small and won't solve many of the PC version's performance issues, it does add some notable improvements to Capcom's eccentric fantasy RPG.

The biggest change is the introduction of a "New Game" option, which allows players to "start a new game if save data already exists." The fact that "Dragon's Dogma 2" was released without this feature is, frankly, wildly disturbing. Restarting an RPG after a few hours to adjust characters and classes is practically a tradition at this point. But better late than never, I suppose.

After this, the most important change will be that "quests will be available early in the game that allow players to obtain their own dwellings (places where they can save and rest)." On pure principle, I am all for making it easier to have your own home. However, perhaps the reason for this is not so much because of progressive housing policies, but rather because players were frustrated by the long wait to gain control over their own savings.

Separately, Capcom adjusted the availability of the "Transformation Arts" item in the pawn guild, increasing the number available for purchase to 99. Given how extensive the game's character creator is (and the fact that you can customize your pawns), this probably sold out faster than the half-price Steam deck.

The patch notes also include fixes for "miscellaneous" bugs and text display issues, specific issues "related to the display of models under certain settings" and "improved visual quality when DLSS super-resolution is enabled."

The full patch notes can be read here.

While all of these changes are welcome, they don't seem to be enough to move Dragon's Dogma 2 away from its current "neither" rating on Steam. While some of these negative reviews stem from a slightly over-the-top reaction to the game's extensive, but mostly innocuous, list of launch DLC, the bigger issue is the game's performance.

In a separate announcement, Capcom explained that the frame rate issues many players are experiencing stem from high CPU load due to "a large amount of CPU usage being allocated to each character, calculating the effects of their physical presence in different areas." However, it remains a problem that Capcom currently lacks a solution to. The studio said it is "looking at ways to improve performance in the future." Let's hope it improves soon.