The Duskbloods: What We Know About FromSoftware's New Game

The Duskbloods is a title by FromSoftware, the company behind Dark Souls and Elden Ring, games that left their mark on the industry and solidified the Soulslike genre. The game will be released in 2026 as a Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive, and there’s still no information on whether it’ll be released for other platforms.

Hidetaka Miyazaki, director of The Duskbloods, revealed details in interviews with Nintendo that explain how the game will differ from other FromSoftware titles. The game will focus on PvPvE and will be an experiment by the developer, who assures that this doesn’t mean they’ll abandon single-player games like the award-winning Elden Ring.

Gameplay

Following in the footsteps of the recent Elden Ring Nightreign, which focuses on multiplayer while blending elements of the Soulslike genre, Miyazaki revealed that The Duskbloods will be playable in online matches with up to eight players competing for victory. However, matches won't always be a direct battle between players, and special conditions may arise, such as teaming up to defeat a powerful common enemy, and other situations that will only be revealed after the release.

Furthermore, the game will feature random events that can alter the course of matches, adding new objectives for players.

This IP has been in development since the release of Sekiro and The Duskbloods, and is the title where the developer has worked the most on gameplay to date, with the potential to deliver gameplay with even more polished mechanics than Bloodborne or even Elden Ring itself.

Plot and Characters

Players will take on the role of Bloodsworns, individuals with superhuman abilities granted to them through blood, much like a vampire, but different from what is typically seen in pop culture.

Just like in Nightreign, players will be able to choose from a variety of different characters, but in The Duskbloods the characters will be, in a way, customizable. Furthermore, each character will have their own unique abilities, but there’ll also be universal abilities.

Each Bloodsworn seeks to obtain something called First Blood in an event known as the Twilight of Humanity.

In the trailer, it's possible to notice a visual style very similar to Bloodborne, featuring gothic design elements, as well as the emphasis on blood and the entire theme surrounding this element.

However, there's much more, as we can see in the trailer. The game will feature steampunk elements and brings the atmosphere we already know from FromSoftware games like Dark Souls and Elden Ring, but it should offer even more incredible combat, drawing from various sources, such as Sekiro.

Miyazaki also revealed that the game's lore will be told in his usual style, through fragments that together form a story that leaves room for interpretation and encourages the player to venture out in search of answers, but instead of using the Duskbloods items, it’ll do it in a slightly different way, involving blood and memories.

We saw this in Elden Ring Nightreign, where the lore is also told through fragments of the characters' memories. It remains to be seen how this will be presented in the new title.

When we talk about FromSoftware and Miyazaki, it's impossible not to get excited. Since the Souls saga, the Soulslike genre has become increasingly strong and widespread, winning over more and more fans and strengthening an active community eager for more.

The game's premise is very interesting and evokes the aura of Bloodborne, something the fanbase has been craving for years, but at the same time makes it clear that it’ll be something new and exciting.

Nightreign showed that focusing on multiplayer is a very promising path, and the developer has already proven itself capable, given the success the spinoff achieved. Even with the discussion in the community between hardcore fans and the "new audience," Nightreign sold millions of copies in a short time, which shows that The Duskbloods can easily achieve the same.

However, the negative point of this title is, in fact, being an exclusive, even more so if it's a Nintendo exclusive. The company is heavily criticized by the community for various issues, and the vast majority of FromSoftware fans are on PC or consoles like PlayStation and Xbox, which creates a major problem regarding the mandatory purchase of a Switch 2 to enjoy the new game at launch.

Most of the community seems to disapprove of this, but undoubtedly there’ll be those who’ll purchase the console simply because the game is available there.

It's worth noting that The Duskbloods is in a very different situation from Bloodborne, which was released as a Sony exclusive and whose IP was owned by the company, preventing FromSoftware from bringing the title to other platforms. This problem persists to this day.

The Duskbloods, on the other hand, is a Nintendo exclusive whose IP belongs to FromSoftware, and this allows for the game to debut on other platforms in the near future, to the delight of the community.

With no prediction of when the game should be released for other platforms, we can only wait for the launch, but one thing is certain: The Duskbloods is a game with great potential and should become another success in Miyazaki's portfolio.

With a release planned for 2026, The Duskbloods is FromSoftware's star project at the moment, but the company is also working on a new IP about which there’s no information yet.

That concludes another article. Leave your questions, suggestions, criticisms, and/or compliments in the comments. Thank you for reading and until next time.