As a huge RPG fan I’ve felt like the market, although full with many fantasy games, has been empty on challenges, danger and realism.

The epic adventure of Skyrim is one of my favourite games which many others have tried and failed to rival, until now.

Capcom has delivered an all-out amazing, captivating and hardcore competitor to the genre in Dragon’s Dogma.

Your Local Guardian: Dragon's Dogma

I can honestly say that it’s taken everything you know from all other fantasy RPGs, thrown it into a magical pot, stirred it around and hey presto come up with an ingenious new addition with, dare I say, qualities that others have lacked.

You take the role of a hero (that you can fully customise) in the fishing village of Casadeis which has just been raided by a dragon. The beast approaches and informs you that ‘you are the chosen one’ before stealing your heart and leaving you for dead. However, a miracle occurs and the hero is revived as an Arisen whose destiny is to seek out the dragon and defeat it.

For anyone who played the demo you will already be fully aware of the extensive character customisation options available for yourself and your main pawn. The best thing about having made your characters in the demo is that you can now import them into the full version game and jump straight into the adventure. For those of you who haven’t, you really are in for a treat and, if like me, you will spend hours working on your perfect hero.

Your Local Guardian: Dragon's Dogma

You can change literally everything about your character - hair, eyes, height, voice, even stance. The possibilities are endless and one of my favourite options was actually being able to have long hair on my female hero. Now I know some of you will roll your eyes and will probably be thinking “typical girl gamer comment” but I assure you it’s not. If you notice, with most other games, graphically they haven’t been capable of pulling it off, as the dimensions of longer hair require more in-depth physics. So not only is this option appealing, it’s also a kick in the proverbials to customising options in other well-known RPGs out there.

Customising your character is not all cosmetic, however, and certain choices will have an effect on how your hero plays. Height and weight have an effect on weapons, carry capacity, reach and strength, so it is a good idea to keep this in mind before embarking further.

Once finished creating, you enter a cut screen, where the graphics are amazing. The dragon who steals your heart is a fire-breathing masterpiece as is your perfectly rendered creation that you will have probably spent a lot of time on.

There is nothing worse than taking hours of creativity to make a character only for them to look nothing like the edit once entered into the game. The visually pleasing scenes draw you straight into the story, leaving you instantly addicted, Dragon’s Dogma again doesn’t disappoint.

Your Local Guardian: Dragon's Dogma

On to the main game, your character is given options of a base vocation: Fighter, strider or mage. Once you have selected your preferred choice this will determine what type of killer/protector you will become, which weapons you are able to use and also your tactics throughout the game. I picked the strider who can almost be compared to a rogue class, involving ranged and quick attacks with your main weapons being daggers and a bow. Skills will become available as you level up but will require spending discipline points to unlock them.

From very early on you witness just how extensive the open world actually is. The landscape around you is colossal in size, almost never-ending which can be compared to that of Skyrim‘s. The NCPs are all interactive, each with something to say, and the in-game graphics are sublime.

Entering and exiting the various houses and inns doesn’t require a loading screen like other games in the genre, which for me is perfect - no more waiting around and instead a free-flowing format with unprecedented realism.

Dragon’s Dogma also includes other popular RPG options such as crafting, gathering, quest givers, ratings with various characters (hated or liked), and party options. The one unique aspect I did notice was how the world’s day and night environment would change, offering different enemies depending on the time, which means a place that may seem safe in the daylight would be fearfully dangerous at night.

Your Local Guardian: Dragon's Dogma

The combat system is again another winning feature of the game, adding an in-depth strategic approach to each of your kills. Notably, you can grab hold and climb upon your foes, allowing for clever attacks on vital points. Each enemy holds a different strategy on how to eliminate them, which adds an exciting and thought-provoking element. As well as applying all of the above into the kills, Dragon’s Dogma has reinstated the fear of dying back into games, with punishing and relentless opponents like that of Dark Souls.

Moving on to the pawn system, you are able to recruit up to three NPCs, with one being your main pawn that is fully customisable with a choice of vocations just like your main character. The pawns are AI teammates which you can summon via rift stones and will fight independently at your side. Only your main pawn will level up so it is important to remember to keep changing your other companions that are not customisable throughout the game.

Although there is no full multiplayer option available you can share your main pawn with other players. By doing so you can trade items and help each other through quests that may be harder to do without.

Your Local Guardian: Dragon's Dogma

For anyone who may not have an online feature there are a range of other pawns around the world that you are able to recruit just by talking to. Another online feature of the game is sharing your screenshots on social media sites to show off particularly impressive kills or just to advertise your available pawn.

Moving on to the new added expansion pack content Dark Arisen, this has been incorporated on to the disk much like that of Bioware’s Dragon Age Origins. For anyone who bought the original Dragon’s Dogma, they will be able to import all saved data including their character. If, however, you are starting the adventure from the beginning, you will have extra character customisation options available for your desired hero’s look.

Dark Arisen’s content is set on the island of Bitterblack, which you will be able to reach at the water’s edge of Cassardis. You will find a NCP called Orla who will take you there. I would not recommend embarking on this part of the adventure unless you are already a skilled level 40, as the enemies on this isle will destroy you. Noted added features for the new content are more than 25 new enemies to encounter, new equipment, skills, and new abilities to master.

Capcom’s imaginative and challenging action RPG is a stunning creation, pushing the boundaries that competitors thus far have not, adding adventure, mystery and a fear of dying, all with many unique features. I never thought I’d find a game that for me would rival Skyrim and give it an obligatory elbow but then along came Dragon’s Dogma.

Verdict: 9 out of 10 – for main game and expansion pack

Out now for Xbox 360 and PS3 – Xbox versions tested