Dragon’s Dogma 2 romance: Is the beloved system used?

In Dragon’s Dogma 2, romance could be a strong way to pick and choose your favorite NPCs. However, will the game allow you to choose a beloved as you build out your story?

Dragon’s Dogma 2 sees the return of the cult favorite RPG after an agonizing twelve years. While historically not as big as its contemporaries like Skyrim or Baldur’s Gate 3, the fantasy game is poised to draw in a whole new crowd. 

The franchise’s world of monsters and vocations makes it a ripe canvas to paint your story of glory (or hilarity). You’ll be building out your party and interacting with NPCs all through the world. This will all go towards increasing your affinity with those NPCs in your save file. 

However, you may be wondering, can you take things even further? Can you get your relationship high enough to take things past just pals? Here’s what you need to know about romance in the game. 

Does Dragon’s Dogma 2 have a beloved system?

While not confirmed, it seems very likely you will be able to romance NPCs in Dragon’s Dogma 2. In the first game, you could get affinity high with an NPC and make them your “beloved”, who eventually gets involved during the climax of the original game.

The “beloved” system ran as an invisible stat in Dragon’s Dogma, as you build affinities with NPCs that you may have interacted with a lot, or completed quests for, resulting in occasionally hilarious results. One possibility was accidentally falling in love with a mischievous court jester, entirely unbeknownst to you until the climax of the game where they are kidnapped in a dramatic fashion. Spoilers for the original Dragon’s Dogma follow in the video below.

It seems likely that will be expanded on in the sequel, as the affinity system is getting more complex. 

In an interview with IGN, game director Hideaki Itsuno, spoke on the more complex affinity systems. Essentially, group dynamics will emerge, as NPCs will have their own relationships meaning your actions can affect your standing with those close to others. Itsuno said: “As far as affinity goes, it only existed between the player and NPCs in the previous game, but this game features affinity and relationships between NPCs as well. For example, if you find a pair of friends, hitting one will cause the other to get mad at you too. Or if you do something nice for the child, the parent might thank you and like you more as well.”

In fact, it seems like you might be able to get embroiled in romantic triangles too. While Itsuno shot down love, it seems you will be able to make deeper connections. He said: “I don’t know if I’d call it love, but if you become friendly with characters in-game, there are internal parameters for determining that kind of thing. A character who grows close to you might come over to your house to play, but if they meet another character there who’s done the same thing, a fight might break out.”

That’s all we have for now. As more is confirmed around the game’s release, we will be sure to update this article.