Dark Souls II Out Today on PS3

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Dark Souls II Out Today on PS3

Dark Souls II

March 11th has arrived and it’s time to go beyond death. The Dark Souls II servers are live and we’re excited to see everyone online and exploring the world of Drangleic. Today, we wanted to give an extended look at some of the Covenants that you may be joining in Dark Souls II. This is not a complete list as we wouldn’t want to spoil the secrets that await you on your quest.

Covenant masters are scattered throughout the world of Dark Souls II and, under certain conditions, may invite you to join their ranks. Seek the protection of a noble order of knights. Defend against invaders from other worlds. Set out on a lonely and arduous journey. Lay a trap and draw other players into your world. Protect a long-forgotten tower. Thirst for more blood. These tasks and more are laid before you as you deceive, challenge, and offer aid to fellow players online.

Way of the Blue

Not everyone seeks to challenge other players online. Joining the Way of the Blue will give a player access to a ring that will summon a member of the noble Blue Sentinels if invaded by an enemy player from another world. If you’re not comfortable battling online in a PvP scenario, this Covenant is for you. Perfect for holding on to that human form as long as possible.

Blue Sentinels

Not everyone is fit to join the Blue Sentinels. When you first encounter this Covenant’s master, you won’t be able to join until you prove that you’ve assisted another player already. Once a member of the Blue Sentinels, PvP arenas will be opened up that allow you to duel fellow members. Blue Sentinels represent a noble cause and are encouraged to always be wearing their Covenant ring to assist other players in need.

Champion’s Covenant

Only the fittest are recommended to join the Champion’s Covenant. Accessible very early in the game, players will be asked “Are you sure?” when joining. Members of the Champion’s Covenant will find a more difficult and unforgiving world of Drangleic as they explore Dark Souls II. These players may also have difficulty summoning friendly phantoms. But surviving in this harsh world will net you special stones that can be offered to advance your rank within the Covenant. Champion’s Covenant members also have access to a leaderboard that displays players with the most offerings. Only the bravest will remain on top.

Dark Souls IIDark Souls II

Rat King Covenant

Join the mysterious Rat King Covenant and the sewers, dirt, and slime will be your new friends. Equipping the Rat King ring and lurking in one of the designated areas will draw other unsuspecting players into your world. You may also find that the denizens of these areas are a bit more friendly to one of their own. Will they escape with their lives, or will you cut them down as they try?

Bell Keeper’s Covenant

Not everyone will find the old Bell Towers. And once they find them, not everyone will want to stay. If you do wish to join the ranks of the Bell Keepers, then you’ll be provided a Covenant ring to equip. While patrolling the long forgotten towers, if an intruder wanders into the area, you’ll be drawn into their world to stop them. This covenant functions similarly to the Forest Keeper Covenant from Dark Souls.

Brotherhood of Blood

Blood, blood, and more blood. Some evil might never be sated. Members of the Brotherhood of Blood vow to spill as much blood as possible as often as possible. You’ll not be welcomed into the ranks of this Covenant until you offer proof that you have the will and the means to slay a fellow explorer in the world of Drangleic. Similarly to the Blue Sentinels, the Brotherhood of Blood offers its members PvP arenas to see who is the true champion of the Brotherhood.


For those who choose not to interact with the game’s online systems, offline play is always available. But we do encourage everyone to play online as From Software put a great amount of work into improving the online mechanics to be deeper and more rewarding for all players.

We’re very excited for everyone to dive in and explore the world of Dark Souls II. It’s a special launch day for many people as there’s a vast amount of mystery to explore and experience.

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205 Comments

18 Author Replies

  • @ J. Kartje- I am in Eastern USA, Philadelphia.

    • Servers should definitely be up. PS3 servers are under a bit of a load and are stabilizing over the course of a day. If you can’t connect at all try checking your NAT type? If it gets towards the end of the day and you still can’t connect hit us up at Community AT Namco DOT com and we’ll do some troubleshooting!

  • I picked up my copy at Gamestop. I’m just 5 blocks away from my house. Going to play the game for the test of the day.

  • Thanks again for the information.

    This definitely sounds more and more like something I want to play.

    I’m glad you/they included options that make it less punishing when playing online (for people like me I guess).

    I’d rather avoid spoilers, but thank you for the offer of more help.

    Being able to jump online for big fights is something I never even thought of.

    Thank you, after your replies and information, I’ve gone from casually interested, to 95% certain I’ll get this.

    Have a good day.

  • Well I, for one, am glad to see this series continuing on last gen hardware. This is great for those of us who don’t wish to move onto the next console generation yet. PS2 saw releases for several years after PS3 production. There’s no reason that PS3 shouldn’t get the same treatment.

  • @#15: agreed!

    There’s GOT to be a way to both keep the brutal difficulty for those that want it yet at the same time give the average player a fair chance to get through. Mr. Kartje, here’s my honest, constructive feedback to that issue I’d like to see passed on to the right people. Both my suggestions would apply to offline only and not affect the main online portion at all.
    1. There’s gotta be some way to implement an Easy, Normal, and Hard/brutal/hell without breaking everything else and keep everything stable. Block easy off from Online play is one thought I had. Easy offline, all other modes on or offline.
    2. If there really is no way to implement difficulty modes without breaking everything..what about offering a DLC or pre-order bonus of a weapon/armor pack that would give the average player a real chance to get through the game and enjoy the story/lore? Those of us that would like that can buy/get that while everyone else still has their brutal difficulty. Restrict the armor/weapon pack to offline play only. If you offer this option offline to people then both sides of the argument can have a happy middle.

    • Hey Mr. Red Car man! I 100% appreciate the honest feedback. I think your suggestions are some food for thought. We do our best to support FromSoftware, help them get their game out there, and in the end allow them the freedom to create their vision. Regarding DLC weapon packs – That actually exists in Dark Souls II! Pre-orders got a pack of weapons shields to help with the beginning of the game. I honestly believe that this game has been a little over exaggerated as “difficult”. I believe that the average player can plow right through the game and have an amazing experience, but that experience grows in so many wonderful ways if you talk with friends about how they played, watch some YouTube videos about different cool builds or hidden items, etc. (Not that that’s required at all – but it adds to it I believe). I think you have some great points and I’d love to talk more if you want – You can always email me at Community AT Namco DOT com. Cheers mate!

  • @#36: when you preorder a game on PSN, it works funny when it actually corms out. If you look at the page for the game you’ve preordered it’ll usually just look like you hadn’t even bought it. However, if you go into “download History” the game plus any bonuses for pre-ordering should be in that section! Sony should make that more clear when you pre-order. Hope that helps! While if may be padding on the game it doesn’t mean I can’t be helpful to others!

  • Sorry for typos! Should say while I may be passing on the game I can still help others! Excuse my iPad haha.

  • @bh7812

    Or you could try playing the games as they are and find out they’re quite easy once you get the hang of it?

  • I would like to deliver my soul, but my PS4 is not an allowed vessel. -_-

  • Hey, boomstick, this will be my third Souls game so I have some real life experience in this. In the prior 2 you could absolutely avoid invasion by being “hollow”. As soon as you beat a boss you regain your humanity. Every time I did that, within 5 minutes some doosh would invade me. So, let’s be real here.

    You could only invade within a certain range of levels, meaning a level 112 couldn’t pick on a level 5. I don’t know what the new game rules are yet. From Software will not program different difficulty levels. We are all equal in their eyes and they are sadists.

    But, going to give it my best as I love this series.

  • Servers are not online for EU! I pre ordered my copy and I was lucky to get it today, but I live in the EU so no online play for me until friday

  • J. Kartje question for ya.
    When my preordered equipment becomes available
    would I to start over to be able to use it? Or will it show up
    In my storage box?

    • Since this delayed delivery wasn’t planned, I’m actually not quite sure if existing characters will get the items. (I hope they will) I’ll be able to tell you more once I activate them tonight.

  • @lisatsunami

    Thanks for the first hand info on how it’s worked in the past.

  • SHWHERE IS UPDATE!?

  • it wont let me sign in to game servers is there a fix for it

  • …where’s the Store update for today?

  • For Dark Souls 2 DLC being not available. Online support says it will be available after system maintenance is completed. I just deleted my download & will have to wait for Sony to fix issue.

  • Thanks for the reply, Mr Kartje! It really means a lot to see someone from the company actually interact and converse with us! I will write you out an email later tonight, the whole topic of the difficulty with this series is a touchy subject so I will elaborate more in my email. I’m glad you’re willing to have a dialog on that subject!

    Enjoy the game everyone else! I’ve voiced my opinion but won’t put down those that have waited over a year to play!

  • If you guys had implemented a method for me to play online, to get the messages and the potential for friendly players, without risking invasion(as invasion is basically just griefing and I’ve never been a fan of griefing)… I would’ve given Dark Souls 2 a chance – I wasn’t a huge fan of Dark Souls but some of the concepts were interesting… but such does not seem to exist, so I’ll refrain. Best of luck, maybe someday you’ll patch in a no-grief mode and I’ll give it a try.

    And no, a covenant that ‘summons a helper’ when someone tries to grief me doesn’t really help… since that person is STILL griefing me, regardless of whether there’s a helper there or not. If I’m fighting someone who only cares about hindering me from enjoying the game means they win regardless of whether I come out on top, since even if I kill them, I’ve still wasted precious time on them… and thus I lose regardless. I don’t like games that take the ‘other people can cause you to lose regardless of what you do’ mentality.

  • Hey thanks for wasting my whole day waiting for your store update. I should expect this though. Heck everyone on the east cost should. I need to learn not to even bother on Tuesdays. Knowing nothing will come till near midnight. But hey we all gotta have faith even when it slaps you in the face multiple times!
    Remember store updates are on Wednesdays! NOT Tuesdays

  • I gotta brag I got my platinum in dark souls. Yup I love to break controllers lol. Can’t wait to really dive in to this. Also I’m a little glad I haven’t gotten my preorder bonus yet it gives me the original intended experience

  • Little bit late, but your current character gets the weapons. My character got the 5 of them.

  • I never played dark souls, i have however played demon souls and loved it to pieces, loved how the game could go from ok to brutal at the drop of a hat or depending on how you play. those who have the the game so far, what’s it like?

  • Kuddos on getting a PS4 version, what is the purpose of Next Gen if there are games like this only for old gen?

    Going out of topic: Am I the only one who have noticed that the PS Store has not been updated? What happened!? Two lines is all we require, delay, please check back on ______.

    There’s money waiting to be spent in here!

  • Angel, It finally has. I just was finally, after much waiting, able to buy Atelier.

  • @J.Kartje

    I still don’t have my black armor edit weapons. Is there a code or something I’m suppose to receive when I pre ordered it from psn? It just seems strange I don’t have mine but I’m in coop with someone who has theirs and they also pre ordered from the psn.

  • preordered the game because of the black armor & weapon. items were not provided. false advertising much?

  • So where is the PS Store update. 11pm here and still no update…Im not a huge xbox fan but at least their updates are consistent. Always update within the same hour every week where as PS Store seems to be whenever they feel up to doing it, poor service Sony, poor service.

  • Still no update? Um…it…IS tuesday, right?

  • @74: The game is really good. Dark Soul was a piece of cake after Demon’s Soul, but DS II is being a challenge for me. I died like 15 times already ( in like 2 hours).

  • We’ll, I’ve had the digital download code since midnight (Mon/Tues), and I still keep getting an error notice when I try to enter it. I called Sony, and they told me that the games publisher (Bandai) has to release authorization for the code to be activated, and that they have no idea when that will happen. So I basically have a $60.00 piece of paper, i.e. My receipt. I don’t get this.

    Dark Souls 2 has been slated for a March 11th release for a while now, how could Bandai not have been
    prepared for this, I was? Why would they wait for the actual game’s release day, to start getting things in order for digital downloads? Wouldn’t a day or two earlier be the more sensible and customer friendly approach? When you go to a restaurant and order a burger with cheese and mustard; they don’t take your order, and then run out to go buy ground beef, a bun, and some mustard so that your order can be cooked and served. No, they anticipate the need for buns, ground beef, and mustard, and make arrangements to already have those ingredients ready for a potential order. That’s just business 101.

  • I guess for now, all my adventures through Dark Souls 2 will be completely vicarious. So please feel free to share, and help out a hopeful/prospective co-adventurer. Thanks.

  • Good thing I’m not awaiting for the store to update.

    I’m just relaxing after getting to a frustrating level in Catherine. Yea, backlog isn’t pretty. But hey at least I’m getting to it.

    Amazing game so far, darn puzzles are frustrating.

  • To make this Namco related. Thank you for publishing Ni No Kuni. Seriously, Thank you.

  • I have eaten an 18x Oreos & quaffed 2x cups of milk since 10PM; I don’t feel so good, Grace. :(

  • So I wanted to buy DS II yesterday digitally on psn but the store hasn’t updated yet. Should I be upset should Bandai Namco be upset will we get some sort of explanation.

  • Also Ni No Kuni was amazing please give us a sequel

  • 12:23am Wed, and still haven’t received my preorder items yet.. Is this due to sony’s screwup with the tuesday playstation store, which has still to this moment not been updated.

  • @88, purse- we’ll, 1.7 mil. units were sold!! Let’s hope a sequel is in the works! :D

  • No PlayStation Update yet/ Sony is lagging, even Michael Jackson said it, “they don’t really care about us!” – all they care is out money, so sad.

    (Puts wallet back into his pocket) (sigh)

    ……..zzzzzzzzzzZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ!!!!

  • @ J. Kartje- Still cannot log into server yet on PS3 (East coast USA). Nat type? How do I do that and what am I looking for. I dont have issues with any other games. Thanks

  • Hey all, per the PlayStation Store twitter feed: ~4h

    “PlayStation Store: Apologies for the delay on today’s publish, we’re working on it and will provide an update as soon as possible”

  • My Nat is Type 2 as it should be for wifi. So I do not think it is that.

  • Can you guys at least log in to dark souls 2 server on PS3? or is it just me??

  • @95 I’ve been playing DS2 on East Coast here online all day no issues. I still haven’t received my preorder items yet though. :(

  • I don’t understand why I can’t login to the server and everyone else can. Makes no sense.

  • Whenever I turn the game on It tries to log in to the server automatically and after about 30 seconds of trying it says “failed to log in to Dark Souls 2 server” and shows a web address for Bandai Namco support.

  • It’s nearly midnight – where is the store update??

  • Go to bed. No update this week. Stop waiting around for it.

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