Dragon’s Dogma 2 players have already figured out they can improve the framerate by killing the game’s NPCs en masse.
Despite receiving high praise from critics and fans alike, it’s no secret that Dragon’s Dogma 2 has serious performance issues. It’s unsurprising, as the game packs in a huge and densely filled open world and a plethora of NPCs. Such ambition has come at the cost of performance across PC and consoles, with Steam players hit the hardest. The game’s poor PC optimization has left all but those who own the highest-end rigs out in the dark. However, players have already posted their strategies online to combat these lackluster framerates. They seem to take aim at Dragon’s Dogma 2’s NPCs.
Dragon’s Dogma 2 Players Go On NPC Killing Spree to Fix Framerate
Many players have expressed their desire to kill Dragon’s Dogma 2’s NPCs in droves. They believe this will significantly improve the game’s framerate. This is largely due to the game’s plethora of NPCs causing a huge strain on CPUs. Players believe that if they eliminate as many ‘expendable’ NPCs as possible, it will boost the game’s performance.
Previously, a Capcom representative told IGN about the impact of NPCs on CPUs: “In Dragon’s Dogma 2, a large amount of CPU usage is allocated to each character and dynamically calculates the impact of their physical presence in various environments. In certain situations where numerous characters appear simultaneously, the CPU usage can be very high and may affect the frame rate.” This has led the Dragon’s Dogma community to start planning bouts of NPC genocide to boost the game’s performance.
Reddit user r34 nuxia suggested that “any non shop keeper NPC” is ripe for the picking on Dragon’s Dogma 2’s list of inconsequential NPCs. They also say that “if we’re aiming for the best performance, then can’t optimize just the men, but the women and children too.” Absolutely brutal.
We strongly suspect this is not what Capcom intended for Dragon’s Dogma 2. This is especially true when considering the fact that NPCs have permadeath, meaning that you won’t be able to complete some quests after certain NPCs perish. This was likely an intentional choice to add more weight to the lives of the virtual townsfolk. However, if players plan on ruthlessly culling every NPC in sight to squeeze a mere +15 frames out of the game, they may lose out on some interesting quests and NPC encounters.
Here’s hoping Capcom will continue to look at the state of the game’s performance and optimize it for PC. It may just save some crucial NPC lives from “optimization.” Will you be killing NPCs in Dragon’s Dogma 2 to get a higher framerate? Let us know your monstrous plans in the comments below, and be sure to check out our Guide hub for more Dragon’s Dogma 2 content.