Darkest Dungeon 2’s carriage of horrors trundles onto PlayStation this summer

Darkest Dungeon 2, the sequel to developer Red Hook Studios’ acclaimed Lovecraftian roguelike RPG, is launching for PlayStation 5 and PS4 on 15th July.

Darkest Dungeon 2 launched for PC last May, after some time in early access, taking players on a grim Lovecraftian road trip – one of bone-juddering carriage rides through nightmarish locales – that Eurogamer contributor Edwin Evans-Thirlwell called a “copious and often brilliant, if not quite unmissable reworking of a powerfully grim fantasy” in his Recommended review.

The original’s tactical turn-based combat is back too, of course, described by Edwin as “clearer and snappier and more oriented toward collaboration between party-members” this time around, and PlayStation owners looking to bolster Darkest Dungeon 2’s core roster of 12 playable heroes can pick up its Binding Blade DLC alongside the main game come launch day.

This adds two new heroes – the “disciplined and deadly” Duelist and the “battle hardened” Crusader – who each come with unique trinkets and signature items, as well as fully voiced backstories that’ll include playable flashback encounters. Additionally, The Binding Blade introduces a new roaming mini-boss threat known as the Warlord.

“We have been very eager to bring Darkest Dungeon 2 to PlayStation players,” Red Hook’s Tyler Sigman said in a statement accompanying today’s release date announcement. “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.”

Darkest Dungeon 2 will cost £32.49 when it launches for PlayStation 5 and PS4 on 15th July. Pre-orders are open now on the PlayStation Store, and there’s a 15 percent discount – bringing the price down to £27.61 – for PlayStation Plus subscribers until launch day. There’s also a £36.99 Oblivion Edition, which includes the main game and Binding Blade DLC.

Today’s news follows last week’s announcement Darkest Dungeon 2 will be getting a free new campaign mode, known as Kingdoms, later this year. Red Hook says it’ll combine the permanence and roster management of the original Darkest Dungeon with the traversal and combat of Darkest Dungeon 2.