Today, FromSoftware revealed that Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin had its online features restored on PC. As you might remember, the discovery of a remote code execution exploit prompted the Japanese developers to deactivate online features across the entire franchise. Exactly two months ago, Dark Souls III was the first installment to get the restored features.
Do note that today's restoration only affects Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin, the remastered version released one year after the original game. Scholar of the First Sin is powered by the DX11 API, whereas Dark Souls II runs on the older DX9 API. Because of this, FromSoftware is still working to reactivate the online features, which will be available at later date.
As for the first Dark Souls game, the original Prepare to Die Edition will not get its online features back due to 'an aging system'. However, work on restoring online functionalities for 2018's Dark Souls Remastered (which just got a user-made 4K texture pack) continues.
Are you going to dive back into Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin now that multiplayer is back, or will you just keep playing Elden Ring?
DARK SOULS II: Scholar of the First Sin includes all the DARK SOULS II content released to date in one package and much more!
- A brand new experience and challenge. Enemy placement has been overhauled, resulting in a completely different play dynamic than experienced before. The safe zones that some players remembered are no longer safe! A new NPC invader called Forlorn will also play a key role in changing the gameplay experience. Hardened players will have to forget everything they thought they knew about DARK SOULS II.
- Online play has been enhanced with the addition of a special item to regulate souls acquired in battle - it’s now possible to match up more consistently online. The number of players who can participate in an online session has also been increased, from 4 to 6 people, completely changing the online play dynamic.
