Vault’s Darkest Dungeon graphic novels will be written by John Lees, and drawn by Maan House, working in close consultation with Bourassa. Lees is known for his writing on acclaimed horror titles like “The Nasty” (Vault Comics) and “Hotell” (AWA). Meanwhile, House is known for drawing the Dark Souls adaptation from Titan Comics, along with other other horror titles like “The Cemeterians” (Vault Comics).

“I grew up reading comics. I learned to draw from studying the carefully crafted panels of the bronze age Batman books, and later, the exuberant splash pages of the Image Comics revolution. Darkest Dungeon was born of a deep love of this medium, and from day one, I’ve always dreamed of seeing it on the page. I couldn’t be more excited to work with the team at Vault to make this a reality – together, we’re going to do it right,” said Bourassa. “This book will be a meaningful, canonical entry in the ongoing lore of Darkest Dungeon, offering long-time fans new and important insights while introducing new readers to the characters, tone, and world that made our games so successful.”

Vault’s all-new graphic novels will tell a canonical story set in the universe of Darkest Dungeon, revealing new details and introducing new mysteries at the heart of the Darkest Dungeon core mythology. More details on the gracphic novels will be announced in the lead-up to launch.

“Our Darkest Dungeon graphic novel campaign will channel the spirit of the games—a realm filled with hidden rewards alongside myriad choices and dangers,” said Vault VP of Special Projects and Crowdfunding, Der-shing Helmer. “We’ll have a little bit of something for everyone, from those who are newer to graphic novels to the most seasoned collectors of curiosities. We hope you’ll join the adventure and add this new story to your bookshelf before the torch goes out.”

Meanwhile, the next Darkest Dungeon DLC in “The Fire’s Edge” arrives August 18 for PC via Steam, GOG and the Epic Games Store,  PlayStation and Switch (the Xbox version will arrive at a later date).

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The Fire’s Edge introduces two new characters in The Duelist and The Runaway. The Runaway is a position-flexible damage dealer utilizing a unique Burn damage type with high synergy for teams that like to utilize Stuns and Pull/Knockback/Shuffle effects. Meanwhile, The Duelist is a complex damage dealer that dances between the party’s ranks, able to freely maintain Riposte while alternating between her two combat stances, Defensive and Aggressive.

Those who have explored Darkest Dungeon II will be pleased to learn that the Burn combat mechanic from that game will be incorporated into Darkest Dungeon.

Players will also have three new districts in Academie Duello, Craftworks, and the Archaeological Base Camp. Trinkets, with unique mechanics such as Trigger Uses, Quest Charges and Progressive Trinkets, have also been added. And for those wishing to do a bit of modding, the devteam are working on tools to allow fans to do just that.

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The Darkest Dungeon II: Anniversary Edition is packed with nightmarish extras to accompany players on their journey for redemption. Along with the base game and three DLC released to date (The Binding Blade, Inhuman Bondage, and Infernal Supporter Pack) the set includes meticulously designed collectible items and digital bonuses that deepen player’s connection to the world of corruption and fragile hope created by Red Hook Studios:

• Collectible Steelbook: safeguard your journey with a steel game case adorned with Darkest Dungeon II key art
• In-Game Combat Pop-Up Diorama: a tangible tribute to the game’s brutal, turn-based encounters
• Stagecoach Papercraft: recreate the vessel of your desperate pilgrimage
• Playable Deck of Cards: a full standard deck featuring in-game characters reimagined across every suit
• Original Soundtracks: experience the sound of a world undone with over 20 haunting tracks, including the newly released Kingdoms OST

In addition to PlayStation and Switch, you can also grab Darkest Dungeon II on PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store, and the Xbox Series.

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“Secrets of the Coven is strikingly different to the initial Kingdoms offering, Hunger of the Beast Clan,” says Chris Bourassa, Red Hook Studios Creative Director. “The pacing, mechanics, and quest flow all have a remarkably distinct feel, to say nothing of the enemy faction itself. Our team has pushed into new and exciting territory with this one, and we’re eagerly awaiting our players reactions!”

For those that missed Aaron’s review of the new game mode, Kingdoms is a freegame mode that introduces a fresh, reimagined structure alongside three adventure modules. Unlike the original Confessions mode, Kingdoms tasks players with defending the realm and a network of inns against powerful new enemy factions, including the ravenous beastmen and duplicitous coven. One more adventure module is planned for release in 2025.

Besides Kingdoms, the next Darkest Dungeon II update is officially in the works: the Steadfast Steward’s Update will enlist the Darkest Dungeon community to collaborate with the Red Hook team on creating an update focused on quality of life improvements. Players will be able to play new builds weekly and relay their thoughts to the team directly in the Darkest Dungeon Discord. The areas of focus include Hero reworks, tooltip improvements, reworking existing features like the Academics View, and Token Glossary and other miscellaneous changes.

Darkest Dungeon II is available on PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store, PlayStation, Xbox Series and Nintendo Switch.

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Along with a physical copy of the game, the Darkest Dungeon II: Anniversary Edition includes several goodies:

• Collectible Steelbook: safeguard your journey with a steel game case adorned with Darkest Dungeon II key art

• In-Game Combat Pop-Up Diorama: a tangible tribute to the game’s brutal, turn-based encounters

• Stagecoach Papercraft: recreate the vessel of your desperate pilgrimage

• Playable Deck of Cards: a full standard deck featuring in-game characters reimagined across every suit

• Original Soundtracks: experience the sound of a world undone with redemption codes for over 20 haunting tracks, including the newly released Kingdoms OST

• Three DLC Codes (ESRB regions only): expand your journey with all DLC released to-date including The Binding Blade, The Inhuman Bondage, and The Infernal Supporter Pack

Red Hook Studios will also host an anniversary stream  May 9th at 3pm PT on Twitch where the devs will play the latest Darkest Dungeon II update, answer community questions and take a look ahead.

Speaking of which, Red Hook will be releasing the second Kingdoms module – Secrets of the Coven – to consoles this month to further celebrate the game’s anniversary. Currently available on PlayStation, the update will arrive on Xbox and Nintendo Switch later this month.

Darkest Dungeon II is also available on PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store.

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To celebrate the launch, Darkest Dungeon II will be 33% off on PlayStation until March 26. Players can also take advantage of a 10% launch discount on the Inhuman Bondage DLC. Alongside the DLC comes Kingdoms and its first of three adventure modules, Hunger of the Beast Clan (in case you missed it, check out Aaron’s take on the game mode).

Kingdoms is a free game mode that introduces a fresh, reimagined structure alongside three adventure modules—starting with Hunger of the Beast Clan. Unlike the original Confessions mode, Kingdoms tasks players with defending the realm and a network of inns against powerful new enemy factions, including the ravenous beastmen. Two more adventure modules featuring new enemy factions are planned for release in 2025.

Meanwhile, the Inhuman Bondage DLC brings even more depth to Darkest Dungeon II, introducing The Catacombs, a treacherous new mini-region, and the return of a fan-favourite hero—The Abomination. The Abomination sports unique mechanics, trinkets, signature items, palettes, weapon kits, and a fully voiced origin story featuring playable flashback encounters.

As for the new region, The Catacombs plunges players beneath the Kingdom into claustrophobic corridors, where a corrosive, oozing threat lurks in the shadows. This high-risk, high-reward region is packed with new enemies and powerful items, bringing fresh challenges to both Confessions and Kingdoms alike.

Darkest Dungeon II and the Inhuman Bondage DLC are also available on PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store.

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The art style is sublime, combining beautifully rendered characters with excellent animation that brings impactful emphasis to key moments. The audio is amazing, creating a dark musical soundscape with one of the best voice overs in games (R.I.P. to the outstandingly talented Wayne June, your voice will be missed in any future Red Hook project). The turn-based combat is second to none, giving you distinct character classes that can be customized by meaningful choices.

Last week, Red Hook Studios gave me another reason to return to Darkest Dungeon II with the release of their free new mode, Kingdoms, which completely revamps the structure of the game, changing it from a roguelike journey to a board game style fight for survival against invading forces.

When it was released two years ago, Darkest Dungeon II made improvements to the basic core combat while changing the format of the game from building up a large roster of heroes to taking a small party on a journey. It was a controversial change for many fans, but one that ultimately worked for me in huge ways and allowed players to explore the same core in an entirely new format.

Even though it’s not a sequel, Kingdoms feels like another stab at this, rethinking the overall structure in transformative ways. The new mode is completely separate from the Confessions mode of the base game, and nothing carries over between the two. The moment to moment gameplay still sees you guiding your carriage through areas, making choices about which of the stops you make along the way as your travel, but the overall framework is completely different.

Kingdoms presents you with a big map dotted with several locations, laid out like a board game grid. You’ll stop at inns, like in the base game, to do your improvements to your party, which is chosen at the beginning of your run, then decide which space you want to travel to next. Each journey between landmarks takes a day, and each day will bring a different boon or penalty to your crew. Eventually, you’ll find inns that are connected through underground passages, allowing you to move around the map more quickly. To traverse these underground passages, you’ll go through a new area: the Catacombs, which feature their own set of unique enemies.

Guiding your movement around the board are various countdowns at the location. There will be locations that will provide valuable resources for you, which must be picked up in a certain amount of days. These resources become crucial for upgrades, so you’ll need to put some level of focus on these in order to keep up with the escalating enemy threats. The main thing you’ll need to keep track of are sieges. Certain inns will be under siege, and once the countdown expires, you’ll have to battle the invading Beastmen. These are tougher enemies that are new to the game, so it’s key that you get your party there to make sure you’re able to fend off the horde. As the days pass, you’ll get more and more sieges added at a time, forcing you to think carefully about your path around the board. Is it worth going to grab the treasure if it means leaving a besieged inn high and dry? It’s a different level of decision making for the franchise, asking you to plan ahead several turns in order to be successful. Losing a siege means losing an inn, and five destroyed inns means game over for you.

In order to add an extra layer to the strategy, each inn must be upgraded individually to have access to basic elements of the game. You’ll need to spend resources to be able to buy the ability to upgrade your characters using mastery points, have access to better items, or improve the quality of your inn’s medic. One of the most important upgrade paths at an inn is the reinforcements that it can provide. If you don’t make it to the inn during a siege, or don’t have a full party when you arrive, you’ll be given some very basic arbalists or fighters to fill out your ranks. These start out fine, but can be upgraded through the inn, improving your chances at surviving a siege when things are getting desperate. It’s a great push and pull as you move around, figuring out how much you should focus on being able to improve your roaming party and how much you should improve the specific inn’s defense capabilities.

Unlike the main Darkest Dungeon II, you can swap your party around as the Kingdoms game goes on. At the beginning of a run, you’ll select your party of four, and the rest of the heroes will be placed at various spaces on the board. They can be moved around one or two spaces per turn, and if your carriage ends up at a location with other heroes, they can be swapped into your party. Each day, your active party will get fatigued, which will reduce their maximum hit points, so it’s beneficial to swap them out in order to keep your party fresh. These roaming party members will also take part in sieges, so if you can’t get your carriage to one by the end of a countdown, it’s worth it to try to send some heroes there to make sure your inn isn’t defended solely by generic units.

There’s a lot going on in this mode, but it’s very readable as far as figuring out how to defend yourself throughout the game. What is less easy is figuring out how to win. There are specific items that you’ll, starting with the telescope at the beginning, that will need to be used appropriately to complete quests to move forward your search for the leader of the Beastmen. The objective isn’t always clear, so you’ll need to make some leaps in logic in order to figure out exactly what to do next. There’s nothing on screen that tells you the next step, so you need to be observant and make sure you’re taking note of new unique items that you’re being given. Oftentimes this direction is kind of obtuse or vague, feeling like a quest in Elden Ring or Dark Souls. Darkest Dungeon hasn’t really had this kind of quest structure before, so I had trouble wrapping my head around it, but it’s a neat wrinkle that feels like it’s adding some more narrative elements to the game, like they were doing with the individual character vignettes in the base game.

I’ve only done a couple runs of Kingdoms so far, but it can definitely feel just as punishing as the other forms of the game. Having a total party wipe, which can happen pretty easily as the intensity of the sieges begin to escalate, doesn’t end your run immediately, but it becomes incredibly hard to continue. Your carriage will be placed at another inn, and you’ll start up your party with whatever heroes are there. If you’re not managing the movement of your roaming heroes well, this can leave with a party of one or two, which feels pretty much like an automatic death sentence. It can still be fun to try to come back from something like that, but it becomes pretty hopeless once failures start cascading.

One of the amazing things it does in regards to difficulty is it provides you with a plethora of options at the beginning of a run. Not only are there three different layouts that you can pick for the map, each providing a different level of challenge or intensity, but the amount of knobs you can turn to set your own challenge is remarkable. You’ll be able to set your lose conditions, adjusting things like day limit or inn loss limit, as well as the rate that trouble escalates as time passes. You can also adjust the way death works in the game, allowing you to have respawning heroes instead of permadeath. I love having options to make things easier or more challenging for yourself, which will give it a long life even after you get a victory.

If you asked me to pick between Darkest Dungeon one and two, I don’t think I could. While the combat improvements in the second one give it the edge gameplay-wise, they are both such unique flavors of the game core loop that it would depend on which I was looking for at the moment. The grand campaign of the first one definitely feels more epic, but the roguelike style of the sequel helps me get the amazing Darkest Dungeon experience in a much shorter time frame. Kingdoms is great because it provides a third option that feels just as unique as the other two. I’m still wrapping my head around it, trying to figure out the best strategies and determine all the steps to get the elusive win.

It’s exciting to know that I’ll definitely be spending just as much time trying to master this mode as I did with all the other iterations of this series, and there’s more content to come. Kingdoms released with the Hunger of the Beast Clan scenario, and Red Hook has promised that there are two more scenarios to come. I’m usually a person who would prefer a “new” game rather than a sequel from studios that I love, but it’s so clear that Red Hook not only loves this franchise, but has a wealth of ideas for how to mix up the already excellent formula, and I’m on board for whatever they have up their sleeve next.

Kingdoms is available now in Darkest Dungeon II on PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series and Nintendo Switch. The latest DLC, Inhuman Bondage, is also available now on PC.

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With Inhuman Bondage, players will explore a long forgotten subterranean mini-region in The Catacombs to face the liquefied dead. This is a high risk, high reward region featuring a faction of new slime sodden enemies and new items, that will bring variety and challenge to both the original Confessions mode and the upcoming new Kingdoms mode.

Aiding players in this new region is The Abomination, a reclusive alchemist that comes with a unique battle mechanic, allowing him to transform into a fearsome monstrosity. However, you’ll need to deal with his spiralling stress, as a result. The Abomination will come complete with unique trinkets, signature items, palettes, weapon kits and a fully voiced origin story including playable flashback encounters.

As mentioned, Inhuman Bondage will be accompanied by the new free game mode for Darkest Dungeon II in Kingdoms, along with its first of three adventure modules “Hunger of the Beast Clan” on the same day. Featuring a completely reimagined game structure, Kingdoms is a parallel game experience to the Confessions game mode. Players will be tasked with defending the realm from incursions by all-new enemy-factions, with the first being the rotting and ravenous beastmen.

Inhuman Bondage arrive January 27th for Darkest Dungeons II on PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store. The PlayStation 5, Xbox Series and Nintendo Switch will receive the DLC at a later date.

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Inhuman Bondage will be accompanied by the new free game mode for Darkest Dungeon II in Kingdoms, along with its first of three adventure modules “Hunger of the Beast Clan” on the same day.

Kingdoms is an entirely new game mode coming to Darkest Dungeon II, featuring a completely reimagined game structure. Kingdoms is a parallel game experience to the Confessions game mode, with players being tasked with defending the realm from incursions by all-new enemy-factions.

“At Red Hook we love going against the grain,” says Chris Bourassa, Red Hook Studios Creative Director. “When asking ourselves how best to expand Darkest Dungeon II, we were nonplussed at the conventional wisdom of simply packing in more content. Instead, we pushed ourselves to reimagine the very structure of DDII, and from that thought experiment was born an entirely new game mode: Kingdoms.

Kingdoms is a parallel experience to the main DDII narrative campaign (“Confessions”), and remixes almost every system in the game. Players will journey from Inn to Inn across a persistent Kingdom map, racing to complete a quest line before time runs out. They will defend territory against a new bestial threat, complete contracts, upgrade and protect Inns – all the while switching up their parties to rest their most beleaguered heroes.”

Darkest Dungeon II is available now on PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, and the Nintendo Switch.

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The physical edition of Darkest Dungeon II retails for $39.99 USD, and includes the following:

• The full game on a Nintendo Switch game cartridge, PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series disc
• An intricate build-your-own stagecoach model
• Redemption code for the Darkest Dungeon II soundtrack by Stuart Chatwood
• Slipcover replicating the cover art

The physical edition arrives after last week’s reveal of the next DLC for Darkest Dungeon II with “Inhuman Bondage”. No release date has been announced as of yet for the DLC, but according to the press release, the DLC and free content updates will be available to PC and Mac users in late 2024, with consoles receiving the DLC and updates in early 2025, and at that point will be available to anyone that had purchased the physical edition of the game.

The main free update will be a brand-new stand-alone game mode, called Kingdoms. This game mode challenges you to defend your realm from incursions by all-new enemy factions. Journey across the land on your stagecoach, upgrade your inns and defeat the final boss. Kingdoms will be released in thematic modules, each representing a different threat. The first of which, Hunger of the Beast Clan will see players tasked with fending off the pitiless onslaught of the rotting and ravenous beastmen.

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With Inhuman Bondage, players will explore a long forgotten subterranean mini-region in The Catacombs to face a corrosive, oozing threat. This is a high risk, high reward region featuring a faction of new slime sodden enemies and new items, that will bring variety and challenge to both the original Confessions mode and the upcoming new Kingdoms mode.

Aiding players in this new region is The Abomination, a reclusive alchemist that comes with a unique battle mechanic, allowing him to transform into a fearsome monstrosity. However, you’ll need to deal with his spiralling stress, as a result. The Abomination will come complete with unique trinkets, signature items, palettes, weapon kits and a fully voiced origin story including playable flashback encounters.

Inhuman Bondage will launch for Darkest Dungeon II alongside “The Hunger of the Beast Clan”, the aforementioned thematic module for the Kingdoms game mode. Featuring a completely reimagined game structure, Kingdoms is a parallel game experience to the Confessions game mode. Players will be tasked with defending the realm from incursions by all-new enemy-factions, with the first being the rotting and ravenous beastmen.

Darkest Dungeon II is available now on PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, and the Nintendo Switch.

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As with the other releases, the Xbox Series version of Darkest Dungeon II will include all current updates and DLC. Players can now pre-order the game from the Microsoft Store, with a launch discount of 15%. You can also spring for the Oblivion Edition of Darkest Dungeon II, which includes the base game and the DLC, The Binding Blade.

On top of all of that, Red Hook Studios will be bringing a major new campaign game mode to Darkest Dungeon II in the form of “Kingdoms”, a free content update slated to arrive later this year. With Kingdoms, this new mode challenges players in a desperate race against the clock to find and defeat a monstrous threat before it overwhelms and destroys the Kingdom.

Darkest Dungeon II is currently available now on the Epic Games Store and Steam. And check out Aaron’s review of Darkest Dungeon II, if you’re still undecided.

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As part of the recent Nintendo Direct stream, Darkest Dungeon II will release on Nintendo Switch on July 15th, 2024, with all current updates and DLC. Players can now pre-order the game in the Nintendo eShop for $39.99, with a 15% launch discount.

“We’re thrilled to bring Darkest Dungeon II to the Nintendo Switch, offering players the chance to experience the intense strategic depth and atmospheric horror of our game wherever they go,” says Tyler Sigman, Design Director for Red Hook Studios. “The Switch’s unique capabilities perfectly complement the immersive journey through the darkest reaches of our world.”

In addition to the main game, the DLC ‘The Binding Blade’ will also be available on Nintendo Switch. Players have the option to purchase the Oblivion bundle – containing the base game and DLC – on the Nintendo eShop. Key features of its update include the addition of two playable heroes, The Duelist and The Crusader, as well as the roaming mini-boss The Warlord. A major new campaign game mode, ‘Kingdoms’, will arrive as a free content update later this year. This mode challenges players in a desperate race against the clock to find and defeat a monstrous threat before it overwhelms and destroys the Kingdom.

Darkest Dungeon II is available now on the Epic Games Store and Steam. Check out Aaron’s review of Darkest Dungeon II, which only improves upon what Red Hook Studios established in the first game.

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“We have been very eager to bring Darkest Dungeon II to PlayStation players,” said Tyler Sigman, Design Director for Red Hook Studios. “The game feels great with DualSense Controller–we’ve been able to add touches like feeling the heartbeat of a hero on death’s door, or the rumble of the stagecoach’s wheels as it hits a trap. [The original] Darkest Dungeon was fortunate to find a strong community on PlayStation and we hope the same proves true with the sequel.”

As mentioned, in addition to the base game (which we reviewed here), “The Blinding Blade” DLC will also be available on PlayStation. The expansion sees players face off against The Warlord, a new roaming mini-boss to encounter on your journey to the Mountain in Darkest Dungeon II. The DLC also adds two new playable heroes in The Duelist and The Crusader, complete with a special unlock quest for the Crusader, unique trinkets, signature items and fully voiced backstories, including playable flashback encounters.

Darkest Dungeon II is available now on the Epic Games Store and Steam.

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If that’s not enough, for prospective players, Red Hook is also giving the base game a 25% discount on both storefronts.

The Binding Blade sees players face off against The Warlord, a new roaming mini-boss to encounter on your journey to the Mountain in Darkest Dungeon II. The DLC also adds two new playable heroes in The Duelist and The Crusader, complete with a special unlock quest for the Crusader, unique trinkets, signature items and fully voiced backstories, including playable flashback encounters.

Known for her disciplined combat style, The Duelist can switch between Defensive and Aggressive stances, piercing enemy defenses and lead her team with strategic buffs. Meanwhile, the fan-favorite The Crusader returns with his righteous blade, excelling in front-line combat with healing and stress recovery skills.

“The continued support for the Crusader from our community got us excited to bring this fan-favourite back,” says Chris Bourassa, Co-Founder and Creative Director at Red Hook Studios. “His updated design looks great, his skills are impactful, and his specialization paths provide a ton of strategic variety. But we wanted to go the extra mile and honor his status amongst our players, so we created a unique in-game experience to celebrate his addition to the roster.”

And in case you’re wondering what all the fuss is about, check out Aaron’s review of Darkest Dungeon II.

The post First ‘Darkest Dungeon II’ DLC in “The Binding Blade” Available Now [Trailer] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

And in case you’re in the splurging mood, if you snag the Steam version of Darkest Dungeon II, your Early Access Epic Game Store save will automatically migrate to the Steam version.

The full 1.0 release includes five Campaigns (“Confessions”), each with their own horrifying boss and pervasive mechanics. You’ll have access to a selection of 12 heroes, each with their own five-part backstory (save for the Bounty Hunter), each of which confers a persistent skill unlock. You’ll also have access to 10 different companion pets, each with different run-defining properties.

There are four major regions to traverse and explore in addition to the Valley, the dangerous but rewarding Sluice, and unique Mountains per Confession. And depending on your mood, there are also several optional thematic difficulty modifiers in the form of the Radiant and Infernal Flame equippable items, for those who want less or more challenge.

Darkest Dungeon II is a rogue-lite turn-based road trip of the damned. Form a party, equip your stagecoach, and set off across the decaying landscape on a last gasp quest to avert an apocalypse caused by your own failures. The greatest dangers you face, however, may come from within the group.

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The Vestal has been given a bit more versatility from the original Darkest Dungeon, acting now more as a “healer-tank” who is also able to deal significant damage to the enemies’ back row. She is unique in that her healing is tied to her Conviction, allowing her to smite her opponents as her Conviction grows. Players will be able to unlock her full suite of abilities by experiencing her backstory at Shrines of Reflection, which is told in five chapters, including playable flashback encounters.

The update also brings with it a few tweaks and bug fixes across the game, from its UI to combat.

The full version of Darkest Dungeon II will feature a dozen playable heroes, five regions, five end bosses, and a metagame hub (“The Altar of Hope”) with extensive persistent upgrades.

Darkest Dungeon II will fully release on May 8 on the Epic Games Store and on Steam.

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In addition, seeing as Steam Next Fest is underway, Red Hook has a few goodies in store. Later today at 11am PT, the team will have a Q&A livestream with Creative Director Chris Bourassa and Design Director Tyler Sigman, taking questions on all things Darkest Dungeon II. And tomorrow at 1pm PT, the team will have a gameplay livestream, where you can meet members of the Red Hook team.

Darkest Dungeon II is a roguelike road trip across a decaying landscape on a last ditch effort to avert the apocalypse.

Sporting a revamped 3D engine and combat system, the game is designed to allow for players to ease into the game before the real hell begins later on. The new Affinity System has your heroes bonding with each other (or the opposite) as your quest progresses, leading to potentially beneficial combat synergies, or soul-crushing dysfunction. That’s on top of the psychological stresses and horrors that will be inflicted upon them throughout the game.

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Namely, your party of adventurers getting the crap kicked out of them as they make a last gasp attempt to avert the apocalypse.

Sporting a revamped 3D engine and combat system, Darkest Dungeon II is designed to allow for players to ease into the game before the real hell begins later on. The new Affinity System has your heroes bonding with each other (or the opposite) as your quest progresses, leading to potentially beneficial combat synergies, or soul-crushing dysfunction. That’s on top of the psychological stresses and horrors that will be inflicted upon them throughout the game.

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Darkest Dungeon II will be an exclusive to the Epic Games Store during the Early Access period, but will be available on other PC storefronts when it finally launches. No word on how long the Early Access period will last.

Details on the sequel are still forthcoming, but you can expect the same gothic horror and tough-as-nails gameplay as in the first game.

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Now before people get up in arms over exclusivity, Red Hook Games producer John Lindvay took to the Steam Community page for Darkest Dungeon II to assure fans that the sequel will be exclusive to the Epic Games Store during the Early Access period, but will be available on additional PC storefronts when it launches in version 1.0.

Details on the sequel are light at the moment, other than Darkest Dungeon II claiming to “test your mettle and drive you to the brink of madness.” The original game is currently available on Steam, GOG, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and the Nintendo Switch.

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In fact, the game so far has crushed that initial goal with over $1.2 million (yes, you read that right) with 29 days left in the campaign. Needless to say, that’s a lot of stretch goals being attained. This includes the free Musketeer hero figurine, alongside an expansion for the game based on The Crimson Court DLC with new miniatures, tiles, and cards as add-ons. And yes, there are still more to come.

The Kickstarter campaign states that the board game will reamin faithful to the video game as a co-operative tabletop experience for up to 4 players. As in the original game, players will take on challenges by venturing into dungeons as various characters and classes, all the while dealing with the stress and effects of venturing into said dungeons.

Bear in mind that this board game is a Kickstarter exclusive, and won’t be coming to retail stores. So if you’re interested, hit the link above to donate/reserve your copy.

HUGE Thanks Torchbearers !!!
We are FUNDED and we are now LIVE !!!Join us on our brand new Twitch TV : https://t.co/45IgiY1gkn#DarkestDungeonBoardGame #boardgame #Kickstarter #tabletop #tabletopgaming pic.twitter.com/Gmjpei78ho

— Mythic Games (@MythicGamesMG) October 20, 2020

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Mythic Games in turn posted the same screenshot, as well as announcing that the board game will be receiving a Kickstarter later this Fall for fans to get a jump start in supporting the project. Mythic Games also had a bit of the preview of the gameplay during the final day of GenCon Online, which you can see in the video below (around the 30:15 mark).

Much like the video game, Darkest Dungeon in board game form is a campaign game, where you’ll be questing into dungeons to battle monsters, cultists and more. As you fight, you take on deadlier foes and battle bosses before being allowed to enter the Darkest Dungeon and defeat the final boss. The board game looks to remain as faithful to the video game as possible, using many elements from the video game, but tweaks things where necessary.

As for the sequel, Red Hook admits that things have been quiet, but want to share more “when the stars are right”.

This is not a trick of the light! It’s a preview of the miniatures for the upcoming DARKEST DUNGEON boardgame being made by @MythicGamesMG! Sneak peak details coming later today so be sure to follow them! Kickstarter coming this fall! pic.twitter.com/pGgRKazE7S

— Darkest Dungeon (@DarkestDungeon) August 2, 2020

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The brief announcement was made during The Dice Tower’s Board Game Spectacular Breakfast stream. “Darkest Dungeon is an indie video game that has been extremely popular,” said Mythic Games’ co-owner Léonidas Vesperini. “There are big fans out there, but just the game itself, the universe, and the atmosphere is just awesome, and we… we won’t tell you too much for now, but we can just say that this is our next [game].”

Obviously, that’s not a heck of a lot to go on, but in the meantime, if you haven’t already, you can pick up Darkest Dungeon with a cool 75% discount as part of the Steam Summer Sale. You can also grab the game on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and the Nintendo Switch.

The game’s sequel, Darkest Dungeon II, is currently in development.

The post ‘Darkest Dungeon’ Being Turned Into a Board Game This Fall appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Details are obviously scarce for the time being, although in an interview with PCGamer, Tyler Sigman and Chris Bourassa did mention a few details, such as how like its predecessor, the game will initially release in Early Access.

“It’s no secret that we are big fans of the Early Access model, but we also are advocates for only doing Early Access if it makes sense for the specific game. Although there are some massive differences in structure between DD1 and DD2, the sequel is still very appropriate for an Early Access type approach.”

The original Darkest Dungeon, released in 2016 on Steam and GOG.com, is also available for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and the Nintendo Switch.

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For those who want to play the game on the go, Red Hook heard you, and is adding touchscreen controls to this version for people who play in handheld mode. The developer is also planning to launch The Color of Madness expansion on Switch, but it hasn’t determined a release date for that piece of DLC as of yet.

Nintendo Switch release date announced!

January 18thhttps://t.co/sRIayOrKCR pic.twitter.com/f1YJLHL92K

— Darkest Dungeon (@DarkestDungeon) January 10, 2018

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In a surprise Twitter post, Red Hook Studios have announced that their hit Strategy RPG Darkest Dungeon will be coming to the Nintendo Switch. No information on when the game will hit the console, as the tweet was essentially just footage of off-screen gameplay that slowly zoomed out to reveal the source of the footage was the Switch itself.

Wait for it… wait for it… pic.twitter.com/7nx0zpDglG

— Darkest Dungeon (@DarkestDungeon) September 29, 2017

This is all welcome news, as Nintendo has struggled for years to get third-party developers to jump onboard with software, going back as far as the days of the Nintendo 64. And unlike something as technologically demanding as DOOM, Darkest Dungeon shouldn’t be much of a problem to port over.

This story was originally posted on Plenty Dreadful. Head there for more horror video game goodness!

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