FromSoft Built Duskbloods for Switch 1, Then Switch 2 Saved It
FromSoftware didn’t skip the original Switch because it looked down on the platform. Hidetaka Miyazaki has confirmed that The Duskbloods started development for the Switch 1 back in 2021—and the studio was stuck asking, ‘How are we going to do this?’ When Nintendo finally pulled the curtain off the Switch 2, those questions vanished. Miyazaki tells The Verge that the team was ‘definitely very happy’ and that ‘all of those problems were solved.’
Handheld players should read that as more than a behind-the-scenes anecdote. The Duskbloods being a Switch 2 exclusive isn’t a marketing decision; it’s a confession that the original Switch’s hardware wasn’t going to cut it for a FromSoftware online multiplayer title. And Nintendo’s help extends beyond silicon—the publisher is also coaching the studio on tutorials, an area Miyazaki admits his teams are ‘historically not great’ at.
A Switch 1 Game That Couldn’t Fit in Your Bag
FromSoftware’s history on Nintendo handhelds is basically one meme: Dark Souls Remastered on Switch was a minor miracle, and Elden Ring never showed up at all. The Duskbloods was apparently different—it was being built for the Switch 1 from Day One, and the devs quickly hit a wall. As a competitive multiplayer game with ranked matchmaking planned, it couldn’t survive on the original hardware’s compromised frame pacing and load times. Miyazaki says the team was wondering how they’d ever make it work before Switch 2’s reveal solved the problem.
That’s the part that matters for Switch 2 owners. Instead of a port that had to be chopped down to fit a hybrid, The Duskbloods is a game that was waiting for the right hybrid. The switch to a new console isn’t a downgrade path—it’s an upgrade that lets FromSoftware build the game it actually wanted to make. The Switch 2’s generational leap may not be fully quantified in teraflops yet, but for this studio, it meant the difference between impossible and imminent.
Nintendo’s Second Job: Fixing FromSoft’s Tutorial Problem
Hardware was only half the relief. Miyazaki is also unusually open about Nintendo’s role in the development itself, specifically around systems design and onboarding. The Souls games are legendary for opaque mechanics—anyone who has looked up how poise works knows the drill. In a competitive multiplayer game with ranked matchmaking planned, that won’t fly. Nintendo providing support for tutorials and fine-tuning suggests The Duskbloods might be the most approachable FromSoftware game ever made, at least in terms of getting players in the door.
This matters because ranked matchmaking means new players aren’t just exploring—they’re competing. The Duskbloods is described as a challenging game for the studio because of new systems and rules. If Nintendo can help FromSoft communicate those rules clearly, Switch 2’s online ecosystem gets a serious win. That’s not something we normally say about a FromSoft title, but it’s exactly what the game needs to survive beyond its first week.
No Frame Targets Yet—But the Ceiling Is Gone
Miyazaki didn’t provide frame rate or resolution targets, and we won’t invent them. What he did confirm is that FromSoft’s biggest technical blocker for a Nintendo version disappeared the moment the Switch 2 was announced. That’s a stronger signal than any 30 vs. 60 FPS debate: this is an original FromSoftware game designed around the new hardware from the ground up, with Nintendo’s own support team helping with the rough edges.
The takeaway for handheld players is simple. The Duskbloods isn’t a compromised curiosity; it’s a flagship reason to care about Switch 2. If Nintendo’s support extends to performance profiling and network testing, we might finally get a modern FromSoft game that doesn’t make the hardware sweat. That would be a first—and the studio seems genuinely excited about it.