Dark Souls Remastered Nintendo Switch Gameplay Emerges From PAX East

Dark Souls Remastered is about a month away, and PAX East attendees have had a chance to play the [...]

By Matthew Hayes

Dark Souls Remastered is about a month away, and PAX East attendees have had a chance to play the game for themselves on Nintendo Switch before it launches on May 25. We've peeped a couple of new video previews of the game running docked, and though the footage is all off-screen, it's actually shaping up really nicely! Here's a quick five-minute gameplay segment posted by GameXplain, showing off the opening areas of the game:

Fumbling; struggling; wildly swinging, and estus chugging. This is pretty much everyone's first experience with Dark Souls in a nutshell, and this is exactly what you will look like trying to blast through this game on your first attempt as well. As far as the visuals go, it's hard to nail down any technical specifics but we have to say that things are looking like we hoped they would look.

The biggest compromise in the Nintendo Switch version, compared to its Xbox One and PlayStation 4 counterparts, is the frame rate. Dark Souls will run at 30 fps, both docked and in portable mode, on the Nintendo Switch, while the PS4 and Xbox One versions will target 60 fps at all times. From what we were able to watch here, it looks like the Switch version is meeting its 30 fps target at all times. Below you can see some additional off-screen footage from USGamer:

It's a bit of the same, really. Nothing mind-blowing, but we can tell that there have been some subtle touch-ups since the Xbox 360 and PS3 days, and the frame rate is holding steadily. For a game running on portable hardware, that's all we could ask for. It is worth noting, however, that we haven't seen any gameplay in handheld mode, and we haven't seen any gameplay from the more troublesome areas of the game world itself. Blighttown, we're looking at you. To be fair, we haven't seen any Blighttown footage from the Xbox One or PS4 versions of the game either.

At this point we feel compelled to remind you all that this is a remaster, and not a remake, so temper your expectations accordingly. This is going to be Dark Souls with improvements in performance, resolution, and in some cases, textures and lighting. Here's the official features rundown:

DEEP AND DARK UNIVERSE
• Delve into an epic dark fantasy universe stricken by decline and the Curse. Explore its intricate world design - full of hidden passages, dungeons and secrets - and uncover its deeply rooted lore.

EACH END IS A NEW BEGINNING
• Each playthrough surprises you with new challenges and unexpected facets of the game. Don't bet on completing the game only once.

GAMEPLAY RICHNESS AND POSSIBILITIES
• Hundreds of unique combinations of weaponry, armor, magic and crafting options to create your own playstyle and gaming experience.

SENSE OF LEARNING, MASTERING AND ACCOMPLISHMENT
• From your first steps to mastery, build your character while refi ning your playing skills. Learn to strategize freely and experience the rewarding taste of overcoming daunting foes.

THE WAY OF THE MULTIPLAYER (UP TO 6 PLAYERS WITH DEDICATED SERVERS)
• Whatever your motivations are to play online – collaboration or confrontation, support or betrayal – you'll find your true home among the nine covenants. Which allegiance will you choose?

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