FromSoftware closed the first session of The Duskbloods closed network test hours ahead of schedule on August 21 after server problems kept most participants from logging in at all.
The session opened at 3 a.m. PT / 6 a.m. ET, 11 a.m. BST, and was the first of five four-hour windows scheduled across the weekend for the Switch 2 exclusive PvPvE action game. Instead of matches, players got an error screen: "Failed to log in to The Duskbloods game server. Select 'OK' to attempt to log in again." Selecting OK loaded for a couple of minutes and returned the same message, according to Polygon, and repeated attempts ended the same way for the majority of testers.
Before the session was pulled, FromSoftware posted connection advice on the game's account, telling players that a wireless connection could be unstable depending on their network environment and suggesting they move closer to a router or modem, or switch to a wired connection. An official post on The Duskbloods website pointed players to Nintendo's support pages on Switch 2 online services. Neither addressed what turned out to be a server-side fault.
Roughly two hours in, the studio ended the session early and apologised on its official account.
We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience caused to those who were waiting for the first The Duskbloods network test due to game server issues. We regret to inform you that today's session is now closed. We will continue to work on improving the servers and will announce future schedules at a later date.
Four sessions remained on the published schedule at that point: a second slot the same day at 7 p.m. EDT, and further windows running through August 24. FromSoftware did not say whether those would go ahead as listed, and its promise to announce future schedules at a later date left the rest of the weekend in doubt.
The interruption landed on a test whose purpose is exactly this kind of stress: network tests exist to find the point at which servers fail before a game launches, and this one found it in the first two hours. The Duskbloods casts up to eight players as Bloodsworn of Dusk, "a supernatural being imbued with special abilities by the power of blood," in online battles for the right to First Blood, per its official description. It is a Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive without a release date, and is expected before the end of 2026.