Dragon’s Dogma was originally an action role-playing video game for the Playstation and Xbox, launched in 2012. Created by video game legend Hideaki Itsuno, Dragon’s Dogma followed a character known only as the Arisen, who could be endowed with various skills, and who was assisted on their quest by a group of pawns.

Related: 10 Things That Make No Sense About Dragon’s Dogma On Netflix

The game’s popularity led streaming service Netflix to create an anime series based on Dragon’s Dogma, which was released in September 2020 and came to an end after seven episodes. Fans of the game will have noticed that while there were many similarities between the two, Netflix had also made lots of changes for the sake of entertainment.

Ethan Uses The Same Fighting Techniques As In The Game

One of the first things that viewers of the Dragon’s Dogma anime series will notice is that the nameless Arisen character has been given a name; Ethan. Making the Arisen more human helps viewers to identify with his plight, but Netflix has borrowed elements of the Arisen’s video game behavior.

For example, Dragon’s Dogma viewers will note that Ethan often climbs on the back of monsters he is fighting, a tactic that has been directly lifted from the way that the Arisen fights in the video game.

 And Hannah Uses Many Of The Same Spells

The soulless pawns of the video game have been replaced by one character called Hannah, who sticks close to Ethan throughout his quest. She certainly shares many of the attributes of the video game pawns – her lack of personality, and the way that she talks about humans as a separate species even though she looks humanoid herself.

Pawns are useful in the Dragon’s Dogma game as they can cast magic spells, and Hannah has the same abilities in the anime series, even to the point of casting the same spells that players see in the game.

The TV Show Hasn't Given The Dragon A Name

The Arisen, or Ethan as he is known in the anime series, may be the main character in both versions of Dragon’s Dogma, but as the name suggests, the dragon which he sets out to destroy also has a key role to play.

Related: Dragon’s Dogma Netflix: 5 Things That Changed From The Video Games (& 5 Fans Wish Hadn't)

In the game, there is a suggestion that the dragon has human qualities and may even have been human itself at one point, with the discovery that it actually has a name; Grigori. The dragon in the Netflix series remains nameless, and one of the more interesting character arcs from the game is lost.

Balthazar Looks Like A Character From The Game

In the Dragon’s Dogma game, the Arisen comes across many different characters on his quest, both allies, and enemies. While few of the video game characters have made it into the TV show, there is one individual that players will find familiar.

Balthazar is a soldier who at first seems to be helping Ethan, though it later turns out that he is more interested in self-preservation and greed. Dragon’s Dogma video game fans have noticed that Balthazar’s personality is very like that of Julien, a soldier from the game.

Ethan's Red Hair Has Been Kept For The TV Show

Dragon’s Dogma is far from the first video game that has been turned into an anime series or even a Hollywood movie. The difficulty with these projects is that fans have a very clear idea of what the characters should look like after years of playing their favorite games.

While there have been some reviews that have criticized the quality of the anime animation in general, fans were relieved to see that Ethan’s appearance was very similar to the Arisen, including the iconic red hair.

Hannah Has Some Unexpected Powers

Pawns in the Dragon’s Dogma game are more like possessions than people; the player, as the Arisen, can order them around and use their skills to help him in his quest.

Related: Dragon’s Dogma Netflix: 10 Differences Between The Video Game And The Show

Hannah, Ethan’s pawn in the TV series, has a bit more to offer than her video game counterparts, including some unexpected skills that prove invaluable to Ethan. While magic is a standard pawn talent, Hannah can shoot magical arrows in the anime Dragon’s Dogma, an upgrade on the video game abilities of a pawn.

And She Seems To Be Able To Feel Emotions

Hannah hasn’t just had her skills boosted in preparation for the Dragon’s Dogma Netflix series; she also appears to have had something of a personality transplant! Pawns in the video game are completely emotionless creatures, with few human qualities.

The makers of the TV show obviously decided that a soulless pawn wasn’t going to make for an engaging leading character, and gave their pawn a bit of backbone, resulting in scenes where Hannah acts kindly towards Ethan, gives him advice, or even criticizes his actions.

Ethan's Scar Is In Exactly The Right Place

One very specific detail that the anime creators have got just right is the scar on Ethan’s chest. In the Dragon’s Dogma game, the Arisen is hunting down the dragon Grigori because the creature stole his heart in their first confrontation.

Netflix has kept that same plot detail, and therefore the animated Ethan also needed a large scar on his chest.

Lennie Should Have Been Killed By The Hydra

Not everything in the TV series follows the rules of the original game so faithfully, however. In episode four, Ethan and Hannah meet a young girl called Lennie, whose village is later attacked by one of the Dragon’s Dogma universe’s most feared monsters; the hydra.

Lennie is apparently eaten by the hydra, which in the video game would always lead to death, yet in the show, Ethan can rescue Lennie, who seems none the worse for wear despite her ordeal.

The TV Dragon Is Much More Vindictive

Grigori, the dragon in the video game, has a much more developed back story than the creature in the television series, but that is not the only difference between the two. The Netflix dragon is also more destructive, going much further than just removing Ethan’s heart.

This dragon also destroyed Ethan’s village, Cassardis, killing his pregnant wife Olivia at the same time, before stealing Ethan’s heart and leaving him for dead. This is a much more powerful motive for revenge than the character has in the game.

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