{"id":2044923,"date":"2026-07-15T15:25:29","date_gmt":"2026-07-15T12:25:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2044923"},"modified":"2026-07-15T15:25:29","modified_gmt":"2026-07-15T12:25:29","slug":"the-duskbloods-promised-playtest-is-happening-next-month-on-switch-2-and-it-sure-looks-like-getting-in-will-be-hard","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2044923","title":{"rendered":"The Duskbloods&#8217; promised playtest is happening next month on Switch 2, and it sure looks like getting in will be hard"},"content":{"rendered":"<article class=\"article \" data-ads=\"true\" data-article-type=\"news\" data-article-group=\"news\" data-paywalled=\"false\" data-premium=\"false\" data-sponsored=\"false\" data-type=\"article\">\n<header class=\"article_header\" data-component=\"article-header\">\n<div class=\"breadcrumbs\">\n<nav class=\"nav_breadcrumbs\" data-component=\"nav-breadcrumbs\" aria-label=\"Breadcrumb\">\n<ul class=\"nav-links\">\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      Home<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/news\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      News<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/the-duskbloods\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      The Duskbloods<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/nav><\/div>\n<div class=\"headline_details\" id=\"main-content\">\n<h1 class=\"title\">The Duskbloods&#8217; promised playtest is happening next month on Switch 2, and it sure looks like getting in will be hard<\/h1>\n<p class=\"strapline\">Stressing out.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"headline_asset\">\n<figure class=\"headline_image_wrapper\">\n<p>        <img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"headline_image\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/The-Duskbloods-player-character.jpg?width=570&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;dpr=3&amp;auto=webp\" alt=\"The Duskbloods player character inside a scary building\" loading=\"eager\" data-uri=\"The-Duskbloods-player-character.jpg\" data-lightbox width=\"570\" height=\"321\"><figcaption>\n          <span class=\"attribution\">Image credit: <cite>Nintendo<\/cite><\/span><br \/>\n        <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"metadata\">\n<div class=\"avatar\">\n<p>    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Fran Ruiz avatar\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/fran-j-ruiz-author.png?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"180\" height=\"180\"><\/p>\n<p>  <img alt=\"Fran Ruiz avatar\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"fran-j-ruiz-author.png\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"180\" height=\"180\">\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"text\">\n<div class=\"byline\">\n                  <span class=\"article_type\" data-slug=\"news\"><br \/>\n                    News<br \/>\n                  <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"by\">by<\/span> <span class=\"author\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/authors\/fran-ruiz\">Fran Ruiz<\/a><\/span>                    <span class=\"job_title\"><br \/>\n                      Contributor<br \/>\n                    <\/span>\n            <\/div>\n<div class=\"published_at\">\nPublished on <time datetime=\"2026-07-15T15:25:29+00:00\">July 15, 2026<\/time>              <\/div>\n<div class=\"comments\">\n      <a class=\"comments__link comments-bubble\" href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/the-duskbloods-closed-playtest-dates?view=comments\" rel=\"nofollow\"><br \/>\n          1 comment<br \/>\n      <\/a>\n    <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"mypop-header-wrapper\">\n<p><button class=\"mypop-button button wide\" data-state=\"follow\" data-type=\"tag\" data-uuid=\"b574f1ea-a4d4-4017-8b34-ef0859405d07\" data-name=\"The Duskbloods\" data-follow-text=\"Follow The Duskbloods\" data-unfollow-text=\"Following The Duskbloods\" data-aria-follow-text=\"Follow The Duskbloods\" data-aria-unfollow-text=\"Following The Duskbloods\" data-popup=\"true\" data-force-login=\"true\" aria-label=\"Follow The Duskbloods\" title=\"Follow The Duskbloods\"><br \/>\n  Follow The Duskbloods<br \/>\n<\/button>          <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"article_body\" data-component=\"article-content\">\n<div class=\"article_body_content article-styling\">\n<p>The lack of news on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/the-duskbloods\">The Duskbloods<\/a> &#8211; finally ended by June&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/from-software-the-duskbloods-playtest\">Nintendo Direct announcement of a playtest<\/a> &#8211; has kept the hype for FromSoftware&#8217;s next game at bay for now, but that could change as soon as next month, when players finally get a taste of what the studio has been cooking.<\/p>\n<p>Via <a href=\"https:\/\/campaign.theduskbloods.jp\/p\/event\/networktest\/\">the game&#8217;s official site<\/a>, it&#8217;s been revealed the closed network playtest will take place from 21st to 24th August, even if the initial message sets the 23rd as the final day. To apply for a chance to get in, players need to own a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/platforms\/switch-2\">Nintendo Switch 2<\/a> console (of course) and an active Switch Online membership, which is a point worth underlining. The game was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/fromsoftwares-the-duskbloods-is-bloodborne-meets-sekiro-meets-dark-souls-with-jetpacks-and-dinos-thrown-in\">confirmed to be an online PvPvE experience<\/a> last year, yet it&#8217;d be reasonable to expect a closed test to welcome all sorts of users. Alas, that isn&#8217;t happening here.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<div class=\"video_wrapper youtube\">\n<a aria-label=\"The Duskbloods - Official Closed Network Test Trailer | Nintendo Direct June 2026\" class=\"video-facade full-size\" data-platform=\"youtube\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/dMrTr9cz53k?autoplay=1\" title=\"Click to play video from YouTube\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Cover image for YouTube video\" class=\"video-facade__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/dMrTr9cz53k\/hqdefault.jpg\"><span class=\"video-facade__title\">The Duskbloods &#8211; Official Closed Network Test Trailer | Nintendo Direct June 2026<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/a>\n<\/div><figcaption>The Duskbloods &#8211; Official Closed Network Test Trailer | Nintendo Direct June 2026<a class=\"video\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=dMrTr9cz53k\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Watch on YouTube<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The application period will also be extremely specific, with registrations starting 22nd July (Wednesday) at 15:00 BST and ending 28th July (Tuesday) at 14:59 BST. After that step, players will need to wait until 7th August (Friday) at 14:00 BST to learn if they&#8217;re in or not. For some reason, this whole process is more complex, prolonged, and time-sensitive than similar ones in the past.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"1\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Perhaps less surprising is the fact that &#8216;the lucky ones&#8217; will need to mark specific times and dates on their calendars. Network tests typically aim to put serious pressure on the server infrastructure and to group players together, and these are the slots when the game servers will be online:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>21st August (Fri) at 11:00 to 15:00 BST<\/li>\n<li>22nd August (Sat) at 03:00 to 07:00 BST<\/li>\n<li>22nd August (Sat) at 19:00 to 23:00 BST<\/li>\n<li>23rd August (Sun) at 11:00 to 15:00 BST<\/li>\n<li>24th August (Mon) at 03:00 to 07:00 BST<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>FromSoftware is letting everyone know in advance bugs are to be expected and the balance isn&#8217;t fully baked yet. It might sound obvious, but some players still expect closed pre-release tests to be smooth sailing &#8211; FromSoft is doing its due diligence here, then. While it&#8217;s unclear what the final game modes and player counts will be like, The Duskbloods&#8217; playtest will allow &#8220;up to eight players&#8221; to participate in online matches. Expect hacking and slashing, but most of what the game will offer is still shrouded in mystery.<\/p>\n<p>So far, Nintendo (publisher) and FromSoftware have delivered on the promise of giving us more news in 2026, but it remains to be seen whether The Duskbloods will actually <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/the-duskbloods-elden-ring-switch-2-2026\">release before the year ends<\/a> or slip into 2027. Here&#8217;s hoping for a smooth ride next month.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"preferred-source\" data-component=\"preferred-source\">\nLove Eurogamer.net? Make us a <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\">Preferred Source on Google<\/a> and catch more of our coverage in your feeds.  <\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div class=\"article_body\" data-component=\"article-content\">\n<div class=\"article_body_content article-styling\">\n<p>The lack of news on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/the-duskbloods\">The Duskbloods<\/a> &#8211; finally ended by June&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/from-software-the-duskbloods-playtest\">Nintendo Direct announcement of a playtest<\/a> &#8211; has kept the hype for FromSoftware&#8217;s next game at bay for now, but that could change as soon as next month, when players finally get a taste of what the studio has been cooking.<\/p>\n<p>Via <a href=\"https:\/\/campaign.theduskbloods.jp\/p\/event\/networktest\/\">the game&#8217;s official site<\/a>, it&#8217;s been revealed the closed network playtest will take place from 21st to 24th August, even if the initial message sets the 23rd as the final day. To apply for a chance to get in, players need to own a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/platforms\/switch-2\">Nintendo Switch 2<\/a> console (of course) and an active Switch Online membership, which is a point worth underlining. The game was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/fromsoftwares-the-duskbloods-is-bloodborne-meets-sekiro-meets-dark-souls-with-jetpacks-and-dinos-thrown-in\">confirmed to be an online PvPvE experience<\/a> last year, yet it&#8217;d be reasonable to expect a closed test to welcome all sorts of users. Alas, that isn&#8217;t happening here.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<div class=\"video_wrapper youtube\">\n<a aria-label=\"The Duskbloods - Official Closed Network Test Trailer | Nintendo Direct June 2026\" class=\"video-facade full-size\" data-platform=\"youtube\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/dMrTr9cz53k?autoplay=1\" title=\"Click to play video from YouTube\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Cover image for YouTube video\" class=\"video-facade__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/dMrTr9cz53k\/hqdefault.jpg\"><span class=\"video-facade__title\">The Duskbloods &#8211; Official Closed Network Test Trailer | Nintendo Direct June 2026<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/a>\n<\/div><figcaption>The Duskbloods &#8211; Official Closed Network Test Trailer | Nintendo Direct June 2026<a class=\"video\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=dMrTr9cz53k\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Watch on YouTube<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The application period will also be extremely specific, with registrations starting 22nd July (Wednesday) at 15:00 BST and ending 28th July (Tuesday) at 14:59 BST. After that step, players will need to wait until 7th August (Friday) at 14:00 BST to learn if they&#8217;re in or not. For some reason, this whole process is more complex, prolonged, and time-sensitive than similar ones in the past.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"1\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Perhaps less surprising is the fact that &#8216;the lucky ones&#8217; will need to mark specific times and dates on their calendars. Network tests typically aim to put serious pressure on the server infrastructure and to group players together, and these are the slots when the game servers will be online:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>21st August (Fri) at 11:00 to 15:00 BST<\/li>\n<li>22nd August (Sat) at 03:00 to 07:00 BST<\/li>\n<li>22nd August (Sat) at 19:00 to 23:00 BST<\/li>\n<li>23rd August (Sun) at 11:00 to 15:00 BST<\/li>\n<li>24th August (Mon) at 03:00 to 07:00 BST<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>FromSoftware is letting everyone know in advance bugs are to be expected and the balance isn&#8217;t fully baked yet. It might sound obvious, but some players still expect closed pre-release tests to be smooth sailing &#8211; FromSoft is doing its due diligence here, then. While it&#8217;s unclear what the final game modes and player counts will be like, The Duskbloods&#8217; playtest will allow &#8220;up to eight players&#8221; to participate in online matches. Expect hacking and slashing, but most of what the game will offer is still shrouded in mystery.<\/p>\n<p>So far, Nintendo (publisher) and FromSoftware have delivered on the promise of giving us more news in 2026, but it remains to be seen whether The Duskbloods will actually <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/the-duskbloods-elden-ring-switch-2-2026\">release before the year ends<\/a> or slip into 2027. Here&#8217;s hoping for a smooth ride next month.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Home News The Duskbloods The Duskbloods&#8217; promised playtest is happening next month on Switch 2, and it sure looks like getting in will be hard Stressing out. Image credit: Nintendo News by Fran Ruiz Contributor Published on July 15, 2026 1 comment Follow The Duskbloods The lack of news on The Duskbloods &#8211; finally ended [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,253],"class_list":["post-2044923","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-eurogamer-net"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2044923","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2044923"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2044923\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2044923"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2044923"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2044923"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}