Capcom
How to start a new game in Dragon’s Dogma 2 on PC, PS5, or Xbox Series X|S?
Players were surprised to see that Dragon’s Dogma 2 has no option to start the game over with a new file, but there is a way to delete your file to do so.
Dragon’s Dogma 2 was released to mixed reception just last weekend. While the game is excitingly unique and brings with it a well-developed world full of epic encounters and fun systems, it has also suffered in public opinion due to its poor performance on PCs, as well as the sudden revelation of many microtransactions that, while optional, soured many players on getting the game.
Capcom has already announced that they are working to fix many of the games issues (as well as explained that those optional purchases are all obtainable in the game for no extra cost), and among those future updates is something that many players want: the option to start the game over from the beginning. At the time of writing this article, there is no in-game option to start a “new game” in Dragon’s Dogma 2. This is because the title is designed for you to keep going regardless of the outcome of many of its quests, with systems in place to allow you to finish the story even while surprising events may alter the world completely.
Side quests can be failed, which could alter interactions with certain NPCs. There’s also a recently discovered plague that is transmitted between pawns, which when left unchecked can kill every NPC of a main city, even quest givers and shopkeeps. This doesn’t mean that the game becomes unbeatable, and without going into too many details in the sake of not spoiling the adventure, there’s also various reasons why New Game+ is such an interesting (and fundamental) part of the experience.
Still, perhaps you’re tired of your main pawn or want to completely change your appearance. While there are ways to change both of these completely while playing regularly (specifically at Vernworth, the first big city you visit in the game), you can also delete your save file directly in your PC, as well as on consoles. But be aware that doing so this way could cause more trouble that you think.
How to delete your saved files to start a new game in Dragon’s Dogma 2
Be aware that deleting local data won’t do you much good if you still have cloud saves on, which is the automatic case for every version of the games. At the same time, should you delete the data from the wrong folder on PC, you’ll end up deleting files for other games you have installed. Make sure to find the correct files every time you try to do this.
Starting a new game on Steam (PC)
- Open your Steam Library, right-click on Dragon’s Dogma 2, and select ‘Properties’.
- Under the General tab, toggle off the option to ‘keep game saves in the Steam Cloud for Dragon’s Dogma 2′. This will disable cloud saves.
- Open File Explorer and navigate to this folder: C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\userdata\[[folder with personal numbers for a name]\2054970. This is the folder for Dragon’s Dogma 2.
- Delete all files and folders within this folder to get rid of your Dragon’s Dogma 2 save. The files and/or folder will be called “remote” or “remotecache”.
- Boot up Dragon’s Dogma 2 and start a new game. Once you’ve got started, you should go back to the Properties menu mentioned above and turn Steam Cloud saves back on.
Starting a new game on PlayStation 5
- From the main dashboard, open the Settings menu, then scroll down to ‘Saved Data and Game/App Settings’.
- On the ‘Saved Data (PS5)’ tab, choose ‘Sync Saved Data’, then toggle the ‘Auto-Sync Saved Data’ option off. This means your save data for your PS5 games will no longer sync with cloud saves.
- Back out to the Settings menu and scroll up to ‘Storage’, then click the ‘Saved Data’ section with the orange circle next to it.
- Choose ‘PS5 games’, then find Dragon’s Dogma 2 in your list. Select it, then press ‘Delete’.
- With your save gone, boot up Dragon’s Dogma 2 and start a new game. When your new character is up an running, you can go back to the Sync Saved Data menu and toggle Auto-Sync Saved Data back on to sync your new save with the cloud.
Starting a new game on Xbox Series X|S
- Open the Settings menu, and open ‘Network Settings’ under the ‘General’ tab.
- Select the ‘Go offline’ option to disconnect your Xbox from the internet. This stops it from uploading and using cloud data.
- Find Dragon’s Dogma 2 on either the main dashboard or in the ‘My games and apps’ and press the menu button, then select ‘Manage game and add-ons’.
- Navigate to ‘Saved data’ at the bottom of your screen, select it, then press ‘Delete All’.
- Boot up Dragon’s Dogma 2 and start a new game. Once you’re happy with your new save, go back to the Network Settings menu and reconnect your console to the internet.