FromSoftware has pushed The Duskbloods, its Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive multiplayer game, out of 2026. The studio announced on October 29 through the official @TheDuskbloods account and the game’s Japanese site that the launch window is now 2027. No specific date was given.
What FromSoftware said
“While development of The Duskbloods is at the final adjustment stage, we have made the decision to move the launch window to 2027,” the studio wrote. “We apologize to players who have been kindly awaiting the release of this title and thank you for your patience and support.”
The reason is the August network test. FromSoftware said players showed “active interest” in the game’s core ideas, naming combat, strategic depth and player expression, and that it wants time for “final adjustments to game rules and balancing” to push those further.
A 2026 promise that slipped late
- April 2, 2025: revealed in the first Nintendo Switch 2 Direct with a 2026 window. Nintendo and FromSoftware publish it together, and Hidetaka Miyazaki directs.
- Earlier in 2026: FromSoftware owner Kadokawa told investors it was still a 2026 Switch 2 exclusive.
- August 21 to 24, 2026: closed network test on Switch 2, with one of three planned maps and six of ten planned Bloodsworn, according to VGC.
- September: no appearance in the Nintendo Direct.
- October 29, 2026: officially moved to 2027.
The exclusivity is not changing. Miyazaki has said the project started as a small Switch game and was rebuilt for Switch 2’s online features, and the delay notice still lists Switch 2 only.
Why balance is the whole game here
The Duskbloods is not a Souls game with co-op bolted on. Eight players control vampiric Bloodsworn across four timed phases, and only the players with the most Virtue survive each culling. Virtue comes from boss kills, exploration, items, ritual sites and fights with other players, until three Bloodsworn reach the final battle.
That design lives or dies on numbers. If one route to Virtue pays too well, every match collapses into the same plan. Tuning ten characters and three maps after a test that showed only part of the game is exactly the kind of work that slips a date.
What else FromSoftware has going on
The studio already shipped a Switch 2 game this year: Elden Ring Tarnished Edition arrived on August 28 after its own delay out of 2025. Elden Ring Nightreign launched in May 2025, and in August Miyazaki said FromSoftware still has “a heavy focus on single-player content.” Off console, A24’s Elden Ring movie is set for March 2028. Fans hoping the gothic, blood-soaked look meant a Bloodborne return will have to keep waiting too.
Our take
This is the right call. A 2026 slot now meant launching a balance-driven online game in the final weeks of the year, right next to GTA 6 in November. A multiplayer game gets one first impression, and FromSoftware fixing the rules before launch beats patching them after. The real question is how early in 2027 Nintendo can fit it in.
Featured image: FromSoftware / Nintendo (official The Duskbloods screenshot).
