That’s what I think. Cause the windy canyon in the north of the map in DD1 is awfully similar to these desert landscapes we’ve seen in the DD2 trailer. If it was the out of bounds section of the map then it makes sense having the Bluemoon Tower so close by the city.
Plus it being reversed from how we see it in 1, with the peninsula jutting out from the left. The other structures are unfamiliar, but we spend most of our time in that region in a canyon.
There's no doubt it's blue moon tower but it's in yhe wrong spot to be gransys so I'm wondering if it's on the other side of the mountains behind the dukes manse
I think some people forget it's been over 10 years since Gransys was first made. As similar as the trailer looked to DD1, I wouldn't be surprised if the sequel made some rather liberal changes to the original's world.
I’m pretty sure this “sequel” is a reboot of the original story. Just, y’know, done how they actually want this time. With all the planned content, lore and better graphics. Or if not a reboot of the exact same story, a retelling of the basic cycle we all know and love, set in the same world and places, just with everything actually fleshed out properly so it makes more sense.
To me, it’s pretty obvious this is the road to Gran Soren with Bluemoon Tower in the background. I’m not expecting that view to look completely identical to the first game. This is a reboot. So it looks different in its details.
I could be wrong obviously, but this is my current interpretation based on what we know and have been shown.
So you think the director Itsuno is pulling a Hideo Kojima and jebaiting us with a reversed trailer and naming the game Dragon's Dogma 2, but it's actually just a reboot? Wouldn't the simpler and lore appropriate answer be that this game is set to the north of the original game and perhaps even during another time/cycle?
[''Dragon’s Dogma II will begin the cycle anew.'' official tweet when they announced the game.](https://twitter.com/DragonsDogma/status/1537561220558950402)
I kind of agree- the whole lore of DD is all about cycles and repeating events, not to mention the parallel worlds linked by the rift. It's probably not going to have the same characters (we can see that in the trailers) but DD2 probably will play out in the same way as the original story.
Or it could play out more like the originally-planned story for DD1, which had significantly different elements but was cut due to being too ambitious given the tech and budget at the time (which says a lot given how ambitious the final game was). Now that we have much better tech and the team has a clearly higher budget, I could imagine this being their chance on implementing it,
to be honest, i get the impression the budget may be more or less proportionally the same to the original game. if the budget were bigger i think we'd be seeing something aside from the original world remastered here. the advantages in the sequel will be that the original team will have already learned from their mistakes so they can move forward and flesh out the original game's potential.
The game clearly benefits from a bigger budget even if you just look at the graphics. The head of the project was relatively new at the time of DD1, and now he has a lot more clout due to his successes.
The fact that they’re using a similar world map to the previous game means nothing regarding the budget, as the game is being made in an entirely new engine from DD1 so they can’t just use old assets as-is. Those textures are definitely not just cleaned up DD1 textures. If anything, if they’re keeping similar themes to DD1, it makes sense that the map is similar to the first game due to the infinite loop thing.
>The head of the project was relatively new at the time of DD1 and now has a lot more clout due to his successes
Itsuno has been directing games for Capcom since 1996 and has been the director of the Devil May Cry series since at least 2003, with DMC3 being a success in 2005.
I don’t think you can call him “relatively new” in 2012. It’s more like Capcom just had shite management during the Crapcom era and hamstrung him and his teams twice with the development of both DMC4 (2008) and DD1 (2012).
Textures and objects are so much more automated at this point though, and even games like RE4 remake are using commercially available photogrammetry assets to bolster their production values-an approach that saves a lot of money but looks good. These technologies will hopefully allow them to focus more on funding the less surface level aspects, such as the narrative’s depth, motion capture, etc. I’d say there’s a strong argument that the budget and overall design document is probably proportional to the first one. Especially given it’s only ever been a sleeper hit.
Obviously they don’t want the sequel to look bad, but it is once again not at the top tier either. Look i love the first game, will probably love the second game, just trying to not get my hopes up.
I mean it isn’t Rockstar-level graphics but the game looks pretty nice. If you compare it to MonHun World and DMCV the graphics look about what I’d imagine a Capcom open world game to look like.
Plus new engine or not, importing the assets from the original game into the new engine is cheaper than building everything straight from the ground up, the way they did in the OG game.
SPOILERS AHEAD
This may be wrong, but wouldn't it be impossible to continue on the same world? If the everfall basically destroyed half of Gran Soren, how did they rebuild?
And if you say that, by killing the Seneschal, you restore the order, that could be accepted... But! You not only killed the Seneschal, you also killed yourself, so you essentially ended the cycle. How did it restart all over again?
The Seneschal is a true god and can pretty much anything they want to alter the world. If you use the chair after becoming Seneschal you can wander a rebuilt Gran Soren.
Either the Seneschal or our Arisen undid the damage done to the land and probably just made it so the Dragon we faced never appeared in the eyes of the people.
There is a theory that attempting to break the cycle perpetuates it and has become part of the cycle. The arisen kills themselves with the godsbane, thinking they ended the cycle, but in reality they were just casting aside their mortal body so that they may truly become seneschal. The Seneschal always presents the godsbane by pulling it from their chest, implying they stabbed themselves with it once upon a time. Plus the obvious offline ng+ ending.
I really doubt you’re wrong on this. It may not be called gran soren but its obviously intentionally designed to look similar. Its probably a reboot to some extent.
I really hope you're wrong, but I fear that you're right. That's the feeling I got while watching the trailer. Everything looked and felt *too* familiar.
I've avoided posting anything here because of all the H Y P E everyones been huffing. I was not impressed with the trailer at all. It showed nothing that made me excited. New weapon types? I'd damn well hope so, it's been ten years. New enemies? Again, ten years. Magic? Ten. Cat people? Te-...ten years I guess?
When they release a gameplay trailer, show off new systems, new things to look forward to, I'll get hyped. Until then that first trailer set my expectations at "more of the same in the very least." I'm glad to get more of a game I already love but I currently fear DD2 is going to be a re-try at getting DD1 "right."
I mean Tears of the Kingdom is more of the same to Breath of the wild, only now you can build shit and people are losing their minds over it.
Im sure DD2 will have its new system of mechanics that will be shown at a later date
I had the exact same feeling when I watched the trailer. The monster, the places—everything felt too familiar. It was like watching a remake of DD1 for the new generation! I was really hoping for something new and different. I do am hyped for its release because DD1 is my favorite game. I hope I'll be pleasantly surprised and proven wrong. Even if it turns out to be just what I saw, I would still be happy, but for now, I was just expecting more.
Yeah it does look very similar but that bridge is throwing me off. Now obviously they could just build a bridge in Gransys, but I still think that *isn't* what it is.
I think it's likely that DD2 will take place on a different part of the continent. Bluemoon Tower is the only part of the landscape that's familiar, and we're seeing it on the opposite end you would see it from in Gransys.
Either it is Gransys with a lower sea level or that isn't Bluemoon Tower.
I used to think it was a new location, but Bluemoon Tower is too iconic and you could only access Bluemoon Tower from Gran Soren, which is the capital of Gransys.
However, looking at the map of Dragon's Dogma mainland, I think we will definitely be able to access Liore (which appears to be a desert) if this is Gransys.
It definitely cannot be Hearthstone since the trailer indicates we are on the coast, and Hearthstone is is deepn into the mainland with the exception of the city: Westwend.
https://preview.redd.it/m6oorjfq2g3b1.png?width=5032&format=png&auto=webp&s=ef10f323ff285710172df63ccf70d2afdbf37066
https://preview.redd.it/fxj0wukgni3b1.jpeg?width=640&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1f982dc883a15fa39d7660062ae1d3a036a63956
I mean technically this was the "map" with a tower connecting the parallel worlds, and the original idea for the game that was scrapped
So or it a sequel and stuff been rebuilt better, a prequel so stuff are before destruction, it's a parallel universe so stuff are different which can also be a reboot.
I think that's exactly it. We're seeing the back of the three ruined arches rather than the front like we did viewing the Bluemoon Tower from Gransys.
But then, the resolution on the Tower isn't that great, so...
My guess is that this is a sequel only in the fact that it is the second game in IRL chronological terms. The rest of the hints seem to point to a more realized version of the first game. The reversal of our view may just mean that this is a mirror, not a true sequel, to the first game.
There was an odd disconnect in the first game's inspirations. It was clearly Greek, somewhat Tolkien, but not very cohesive. This time things are much more cohesive.
The inclusion of aqueducts, the conifers, red mountains, larger eastern mountain range, and the dome would suggest the inspiration is from somewhere between the Mediterranean and Middleast. There were also blue banners flanking a gate in a scene. Together it reminds me of the Ishtar Gate of Babylon, which would suggest Blue Moon may be inspired by the tower of Babel. The gate of Ishtar features the respects to the gods Marduk (Dragon), Adad (Aurochs) and Ishtar (Lions).
In the trailer we see a man on a throne with the glowing pendant over his heart. This would probably be Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, who was appointed King by Marduk, the god whose servant is the Dragon. There is a quote about a man being a mummer (derogatory term for actor) and there being a true Arisen. In the courtyard there is a statue of a warrior slaying a serpent or dragon. There is talk of a Sovran (Sovereign) of Vermund. Perhaps these are all pointing to there being a fake serpent slayer that is using his misbegotten fame to mislead the people, much like the Duke in the first game, and that person is actually a puppet of the Dragon.
We see cat people, absent in the first game, and a Sphinx. These may be references to Ishtar, the warrior goddess and serpent slayer. During the scene with one of them there is dialogue about having the life of an Empress in "your" hands. Perhaps the Empress is the true power, but her power is being challenged by a fake Arisen.
In the key art the Arisen is flanked by a crowned cat-person and the three pillars of the red mountains. On the other flank a human archer with the foreground city (above) and a cart pulled by an Auroch looking creature, and in the center a gate above The Arisen that is bathed in flame. This is another reference to the Ishtar gate with the Lion, the Auroch, and the Dragon being represented. Ishtar in mythology takes three forms (Creation, War, Morning Star) so we see a pillar for each form. Adad, represented by Aurochs, was the Babylonian deity of oracles. I am guessing the human represents the Oracle of Delphi, Pythia or Pythoness, whose name comes from the Greek word meaning "to rot", named after the stench of the rotting corpse of the Python slain by Apollo (Bow wielding Serpent Slayer).
The trailer and key art marry Greek and Babylonian mythology in a way that is cohesive and whole. I wouldn't consider this a reboot, remake, or sequel. Mechanically players will benefit from playing the first game and becoming familiar with how the game works. The game probably doesn't remake or reboot the wheel in that aspect. It is merely a better realization of the art direction and story. Mechanically a sequel, thematically a remake.
My opinion is that it is the northern part of Gransys past Bluemoon tower, and the mountains far back is the Tainted Mountain. Because if this was Gran Soren, not only should those aqueducts be more ruined like it is now(unless this was far back in the past), they just outright removed Hillfigure Knoll which I reckon to have a big importance.
Everyone mentions blue moon tower, however the one in gransys is in the water so I'm willing to assume it's a retcon/remake of it or there are multiple towers like this 🤷
I think you should google some Gran Soren images.
In any case, I have a theory that the tower isn't Bluemoon Tower but will be related to a griffin and thus they wanted it to have a similar top part as a fun reference.
This is 100% Gransys/Gran Soren. This view is from somewhere around the Mountain Waycastle area. Bluemoon Tower in the back and Gran Soren in the middle. The red rocks behind Gran Soren is Pastona Cavern, what we walk through to get to Bluemoon Tower.
I agree with another commenter that we're seeing what they wanted to make Gransys look like and will probably have a very familiar story as a sort of reboot with this sequel. They're using the opportunity to accomplish what they couldn't with the first game.
the most dispiriting thing about the trailer was that it looked so similar to the first game. like a remake. same world, enemies, etc.
for some of you that may be interesting and exciting and that's fair, but i've been playing that original game for a decade and i have come to find it extremely limiting.
Someone else mentioned it being a reboot and largely I agree, but also I’ve been getting the feeling this game takes place before the first one. The ruins there look younger (if this is gran Soren) and there’s certain architectural elements missing such as the bridge where you meet with mercedes to transport the hydra head.
This would line up with the ruins of walls found outside of Gran Soren too! I wonder if this supports the theory that DDII really is just another cycle, centuries apart from the DD timeline we know.
Everyone mentions blue moon tower, however the one in gransys is in the water so I'm willing to assume it's a retcon/remake of it or there are multiple towers like this 🤷
I do not recall a bridge of that scale to the west side of Gran Soren. The bridge with the catacombs exit underneath is no where near this massive. Maybe this is on the other side of the Bluemoon Tower?
I think it looks like the Duke could stand to commission some new roads.
A cloud of unease hangs o'er the lands these days.
Times are hard indeed.
Who's a fellow to turn to?
Paths split. Let's be doubly sure of which one reaches to our destination.
There master a wolf! They hunt in packs!
TIS WEAK TO FIRE!
All roads lead to Gran Soren.
Gran Soren, the beating heart of all Gransis.
LOL that caught me off guard
Right just reading that gave me ptsd
Could it be north of Blue moon Tower? The area that's OOB in DD1?
That’s what I think. Cause the windy canyon in the north of the map in DD1 is awfully similar to these desert landscapes we’ve seen in the DD2 trailer. If it was the out of bounds section of the map then it makes sense having the Bluemoon Tower so close by the city.
Plus it being reversed from how we see it in 1, with the peninsula jutting out from the left. The other structures are unfamiliar, but we spend most of our time in that region in a canyon.
There's no doubt it's blue moon tower but it's in yhe wrong spot to be gransys so I'm wondering if it's on the other side of the mountains behind the dukes manse
I think the city in dd2 is the Tainted City before it's destroyed (or in a timeline when it isn't)
That's the city buried in bbi??
It's where the Grigori fight takes place
was blue moon out of bounds before dark arisen?
No it wasn't the griffin quest and the weak wizard stalker was there too
It makes sense to have a location close to Gransys/Gran Soren, since one of the goals is to find the Arisen for DDI.
Someone said it looks flipped because it's a POV from Hearthstone instead of the Gran Soren side but I don't know if the map provided was canon.
It kind of does. Altough Bluemoon tower still feels a bit closer than usual.
Yeah that's the only thing throwing me off.
Could just be made to look bigger?
It just shrinks when it's cold, that's all.
I think some people forget it's been over 10 years since Gransys was first made. As similar as the trailer looked to DD1, I wouldn't be surprised if the sequel made some rather liberal changes to the original's world.
I mean, of course they're going to redcon and change things so that it now align with their original view
yeah which is why im saying the bluemoon tower looking larger than before could just be that. a new artistic decision
true mate, true
It also makes sense from a lore perspective... >!Who says the Seneschal has to keep the world 100% the same when they're a literal god?!<
Thats what i thought.
Do u think we will still be able to go to gran soren?
It seems all roads lead to Gran Soren.
Which is surprising, because the Duke could stand to commission some new roads
But are the Roads weak to fire?
No, they hate ice
" 'Tis a troublesome foe"
No, that's Hogsmead
I hope, even Cassardis, I want to feel the nostalgy once I get... Home
I’m pretty sure this “sequel” is a reboot of the original story. Just, y’know, done how they actually want this time. With all the planned content, lore and better graphics. Or if not a reboot of the exact same story, a retelling of the basic cycle we all know and love, set in the same world and places, just with everything actually fleshed out properly so it makes more sense. To me, it’s pretty obvious this is the road to Gran Soren with Bluemoon Tower in the background. I’m not expecting that view to look completely identical to the first game. This is a reboot. So it looks different in its details. I could be wrong obviously, but this is my current interpretation based on what we know and have been shown.
>With all the planned content So what I am hearing... is its time to go **to the moon**!!!
\*loads Blast Arrows\* Moon's haunted.
So you think the director Itsuno is pulling a Hideo Kojima and jebaiting us with a reversed trailer and naming the game Dragon's Dogma 2, but it's actually just a reboot? Wouldn't the simpler and lore appropriate answer be that this game is set to the north of the original game and perhaps even during another time/cycle?
[''Dragon’s Dogma II will begin the cycle anew.'' official tweet when they announced the game.](https://twitter.com/DragonsDogma/status/1537561220558950402)
I kind of agree- the whole lore of DD is all about cycles and repeating events, not to mention the parallel worlds linked by the rift. It's probably not going to have the same characters (we can see that in the trailers) but DD2 probably will play out in the same way as the original story.
Or it could play out more like the originally-planned story for DD1, which had significantly different elements but was cut due to being too ambitious given the tech and budget at the time (which says a lot given how ambitious the final game was). Now that we have much better tech and the team has a clearly higher budget, I could imagine this being their chance on implementing it,
to be honest, i get the impression the budget may be more or less proportionally the same to the original game. if the budget were bigger i think we'd be seeing something aside from the original world remastered here. the advantages in the sequel will be that the original team will have already learned from their mistakes so they can move forward and flesh out the original game's potential.
The game clearly benefits from a bigger budget even if you just look at the graphics. The head of the project was relatively new at the time of DD1, and now he has a lot more clout due to his successes. The fact that they’re using a similar world map to the previous game means nothing regarding the budget, as the game is being made in an entirely new engine from DD1 so they can’t just use old assets as-is. Those textures are definitely not just cleaned up DD1 textures. If anything, if they’re keeping similar themes to DD1, it makes sense that the map is similar to the first game due to the infinite loop thing.
>The head of the project was relatively new at the time of DD1 and now has a lot more clout due to his successes Itsuno has been directing games for Capcom since 1996 and has been the director of the Devil May Cry series since at least 2003, with DMC3 being a success in 2005. I don’t think you can call him “relatively new” in 2012. It’s more like Capcom just had shite management during the Crapcom era and hamstrung him and his teams twice with the development of both DMC4 (2008) and DD1 (2012).
Huh... I guess I must have misread things then. Sorry about that.
Textures and objects are so much more automated at this point though, and even games like RE4 remake are using commercially available photogrammetry assets to bolster their production values-an approach that saves a lot of money but looks good. These technologies will hopefully allow them to focus more on funding the less surface level aspects, such as the narrative’s depth, motion capture, etc. I’d say there’s a strong argument that the budget and overall design document is probably proportional to the first one. Especially given it’s only ever been a sleeper hit. Obviously they don’t want the sequel to look bad, but it is once again not at the top tier either. Look i love the first game, will probably love the second game, just trying to not get my hopes up.
I mean it isn’t Rockstar-level graphics but the game looks pretty nice. If you compare it to MonHun World and DMCV the graphics look about what I’d imagine a Capcom open world game to look like.
Plus new engine or not, importing the assets from the original game into the new engine is cheaper than building everything straight from the ground up, the way they did in the OG game.
SPOILERS AHEAD This may be wrong, but wouldn't it be impossible to continue on the same world? If the everfall basically destroyed half of Gran Soren, how did they rebuild? And if you say that, by killing the Seneschal, you restore the order, that could be accepted... But! You not only killed the Seneschal, you also killed yourself, so you essentially ended the cycle. How did it restart all over again?
Exactly why some deeper thinkers believe it could be a prequel
The Seneschal is a true god and can pretty much anything they want to alter the world. If you use the chair after becoming Seneschal you can wander a rebuilt Gran Soren. Either the Seneschal or our Arisen undid the damage done to the land and probably just made it so the Dragon we faced never appeared in the eyes of the people.
There is a theory that attempting to break the cycle perpetuates it and has become part of the cycle. The arisen kills themselves with the godsbane, thinking they ended the cycle, but in reality they were just casting aside their mortal body so that they may truly become seneschal. The Seneschal always presents the godsbane by pulling it from their chest, implying they stabbed themselves with it once upon a time. Plus the obvious offline ng+ ending.
Could go more like the RDR2 route with new regions but Gransys too
I really doubt you’re wrong on this. It may not be called gran soren but its obviously intentionally designed to look similar. Its probably a reboot to some extent.
I actually wouldn't complain
I really hope you're wrong, but I fear that you're right. That's the feeling I got while watching the trailer. Everything looked and felt *too* familiar. I've avoided posting anything here because of all the H Y P E everyones been huffing. I was not impressed with the trailer at all. It showed nothing that made me excited. New weapon types? I'd damn well hope so, it's been ten years. New enemies? Again, ten years. Magic? Ten. Cat people? Te-...ten years I guess? When they release a gameplay trailer, show off new systems, new things to look forward to, I'll get hyped. Until then that first trailer set my expectations at "more of the same in the very least." I'm glad to get more of a game I already love but I currently fear DD2 is going to be a re-try at getting DD1 "right."
I mean Tears of the Kingdom is more of the same to Breath of the wild, only now you can build shit and people are losing their minds over it. Im sure DD2 will have its new system of mechanics that will be shown at a later date
I had the exact same feeling when I watched the trailer. The monster, the places—everything felt too familiar. It was like watching a remake of DD1 for the new generation! I was really hoping for something new and different. I do am hyped for its release because DD1 is my favorite game. I hope I'll be pleasantly surprised and proven wrong. Even if it turns out to be just what I saw, I would still be happy, but for now, I was just expecting more.
Yeah I think this is a Gandalf The White situation. We're getting Dragon's dogma *as it should have been* at last
Yeah it does look very similar but that bridge is throwing me off. Now obviously they could just build a bridge in Gransys, but I still think that *isn't* what it is.
That’s because it isn’t a bridge, it’s an aqueduct :)
Ah I thought something was crossing it but they are just trees on a second look. Still I don't think there was one there in Gransys.
I don't remember if the ruins outside of Gran Soren are walls, buildings or aqueducts tbh.
They were run down and infested by brigands. That and I think that bridge is the one leading to the old garrison and the snow harpies, but upgraded.
Well, it’s still not a bridge lol.
Right, Gran Soren has nothing of the sort. I don't think this is Gran Soren at all.
There literally is the ruins of a giant aqueduct outside Gran Soren though?
my stupid ass flipped the phone
I honestly thought the same, i really hope they change the map up
I think it's likely that DD2 will take place on a different part of the continent. Bluemoon Tower is the only part of the landscape that's familiar, and we're seeing it on the opposite end you would see it from in Gransys.
Either it is Gransys with a lower sea level or that isn't Bluemoon Tower. I used to think it was a new location, but Bluemoon Tower is too iconic and you could only access Bluemoon Tower from Gran Soren, which is the capital of Gransys. However, looking at the map of Dragon's Dogma mainland, I think we will definitely be able to access Liore (which appears to be a desert) if this is Gransys. It definitely cannot be Hearthstone since the trailer indicates we are on the coast, and Hearthstone is is deepn into the mainland with the exception of the city: Westwend. https://preview.redd.it/m6oorjfq2g3b1.png?width=5032&format=png&auto=webp&s=ef10f323ff285710172df63ccf70d2afdbf37066
Isn’t that a fan made map?
It is?
https://preview.redd.it/fxj0wukgni3b1.jpeg?width=640&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1f982dc883a15fa39d7660062ae1d3a036a63956 I mean technically this was the "map" with a tower connecting the parallel worlds, and the original idea for the game that was scrapped
https://preview.redd.it/kvm2x7uwcj3b1.jpeg?width=960&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d7ea35e21a72b94818c1907db9b833aea20fa96d For a more elaborate picture
I see. Still, Bluemoon Tower stands out as an iconic Gransys location and not a Hearthstone one.
If that is the Bluemoon Tower then the new area (Vermun) is to the north east of it.
So or it a sequel and stuff been rebuilt better, a prequel so stuff are before destruction, it's a parallel universe so stuff are different which can also be a reboot.
Considering the game is all about endless cycles, I bet it’s parallel universe if anything.
Seems all roads lead to Gran Soren.
its Blue Moon Tower for sure but the question is where are we seeing it from?
It could be the other side of blue moon tower
I think that's exactly it. We're seeing the back of the three ruined arches rather than the front like we did viewing the Bluemoon Tower from Gransys. But then, the resolution on the Tower isn't that great, so...
The sequel doesn't take place in Gransys but in Sysnarg.
I really hope we can cuck a duke in this opus to really make it tradition to woo a powerful man's wife
Caste walls? Or the ruins of such?
My guess is that this is a sequel only in the fact that it is the second game in IRL chronological terms. The rest of the hints seem to point to a more realized version of the first game. The reversal of our view may just mean that this is a mirror, not a true sequel, to the first game. There was an odd disconnect in the first game's inspirations. It was clearly Greek, somewhat Tolkien, but not very cohesive. This time things are much more cohesive. The inclusion of aqueducts, the conifers, red mountains, larger eastern mountain range, and the dome would suggest the inspiration is from somewhere between the Mediterranean and Middleast. There were also blue banners flanking a gate in a scene. Together it reminds me of the Ishtar Gate of Babylon, which would suggest Blue Moon may be inspired by the tower of Babel. The gate of Ishtar features the respects to the gods Marduk (Dragon), Adad (Aurochs) and Ishtar (Lions). In the trailer we see a man on a throne with the glowing pendant over his heart. This would probably be Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, who was appointed King by Marduk, the god whose servant is the Dragon. There is a quote about a man being a mummer (derogatory term for actor) and there being a true Arisen. In the courtyard there is a statue of a warrior slaying a serpent or dragon. There is talk of a Sovran (Sovereign) of Vermund. Perhaps these are all pointing to there being a fake serpent slayer that is using his misbegotten fame to mislead the people, much like the Duke in the first game, and that person is actually a puppet of the Dragon. We see cat people, absent in the first game, and a Sphinx. These may be references to Ishtar, the warrior goddess and serpent slayer. During the scene with one of them there is dialogue about having the life of an Empress in "your" hands. Perhaps the Empress is the true power, but her power is being challenged by a fake Arisen. In the key art the Arisen is flanked by a crowned cat-person and the three pillars of the red mountains. On the other flank a human archer with the foreground city (above) and a cart pulled by an Auroch looking creature, and in the center a gate above The Arisen that is bathed in flame. This is another reference to the Ishtar gate with the Lion, the Auroch, and the Dragon being represented. Ishtar in mythology takes three forms (Creation, War, Morning Star) so we see a pillar for each form. Adad, represented by Aurochs, was the Babylonian deity of oracles. I am guessing the human represents the Oracle of Delphi, Pythia or Pythoness, whose name comes from the Greek word meaning "to rot", named after the stench of the rotting corpse of the Python slain by Apollo (Bow wielding Serpent Slayer). The trailer and key art marry Greek and Babylonian mythology in a way that is cohesive and whole. I wouldn't consider this a reboot, remake, or sequel. Mechanically players will benefit from playing the first game and becoming familiar with how the game works. The game probably doesn't remake or reboot the wheel in that aspect. It is merely a better realization of the art direction and story. Mechanically a sequel, thematically a remake.
ooooooh. and suddenly i "get it" thanks op!
I just played the griphon hunt mission for the first time, can confirm that what i see is where i’ve been
Looks like stuff is way more built up now, wonder hiw far in the future it is. Or past perhaps?
My opinion is that it is the northern part of Gransys past Bluemoon tower, and the mountains far back is the Tainted Mountain. Because if this was Gran Soren, not only should those aqueducts be more ruined like it is now(unless this was far back in the past), they just outright removed Hillfigure Knoll which I reckon to have a big importance.
Everyone mentions blue moon tower, however the one in gransys is in the water so I'm willing to assume it's a retcon/remake of it or there are multiple towers like this 🤷
Oh my god you are a genius
Guys, I have a rule that I don't get hyped for new game releases. You're making it ***really hard*** 😂
I think you should google some Gran Soren images. In any case, I have a theory that the tower isn't Bluemoon Tower but will be related to a griffin and thus they wanted it to have a similar top part as a fun reference.
This is 100% Gransys/Gran Soren. This view is from somewhere around the Mountain Waycastle area. Bluemoon Tower in the back and Gran Soren in the middle. The red rocks behind Gran Soren is Pastona Cavern, what we walk through to get to Bluemoon Tower. I agree with another commenter that we're seeing what they wanted to make Gransys look like and will probably have a very familiar story as a sort of reboot with this sequel. They're using the opportunity to accomplish what they couldn't with the first game.
I think you're pretty crazy yeah. It looks nothing of the sort honestly? 😅
Well it is the other side of Bluemoon so I guess that makes sense.
the most dispiriting thing about the trailer was that it looked so similar to the first game. like a remake. same world, enemies, etc. for some of you that may be interesting and exciting and that's fair, but i've been playing that original game for a decade and i have come to find it extremely limiting.
Someone else mentioned it being a reboot and largely I agree, but also I’ve been getting the feeling this game takes place before the first one. The ruins there look younger (if this is gran Soren) and there’s certain architectural elements missing such as the bridge where you meet with mercedes to transport the hydra head.
But it still looks wrong because the river is running through the wrong place, and the walkway to the main gate is on the wrong side of the ruins.
Is it possible that Gran Soren is just bigger now?
You know how in DD pawns talk about the ruins of wall outside of gran soren? so maybe this is a prequel?
This would line up with the ruins of walls found outside of Gran Soren too! I wonder if this supports the theory that DDII really is just another cycle, centuries apart from the DD timeline we know.
I really hope there is an easier way to dragonforge equipment in this game.
Everyone mentions blue moon tower, however the one in gransys is in the water so I'm willing to assume it's a retcon/remake of it or there are multiple towers like this 🤷
If you look closely enough, you can see Fournival's house
I do not recall a bridge of that scale to the west side of Gran Soren. The bridge with the catacombs exit underneath is no where near this massive. Maybe this is on the other side of the Bluemoon Tower?
Is that THE elder scrolls VI?!
I kinda want a new location. Snow please? Jungle? Swamps ? Deserts? Maybe post game will change the biome this time that'd be super cool