Darkest Dungeon adds DLC and drastically drops down to a dollar

iPad, PC/Mac/Linux, Switch, Xbox, Playstation •

When Darkest Dungeon came out for iPad last fall, I instantly became addicted and played it more than I had in the previous three years it had dwelled on my laptop. I know the love for DD wasn’t universal with many complaining about the wonky UI that could be both tiny and fidgety at the same time, while others saying the difficulty level went beyond their definition of fun. Both were valid points–it’s close, but not a perfect port–but I loved it and kept throwing my hapless adventurers right into the woodchipper with the hope that the Crimson Court and other expansion content would soon arrive on the platform.

Today is that day.

Yes, today the iPad version of Darkest Dungeon has updated with both the Crimson Court DLC and the new adventurer, the Shieldbreaker now available via DLC. The Crimson Court is a whole new expansion that offers a new dungeon, a new hero, a new campaign, and a slew of new blood-thirsty monsters. It also features something called the Crimson Curse which, yep, will turn your characters into vampires.

The Shieldbreaker is a new character that that looks based on the Sand Snakes of Dornish lore from the Song of Ice and Fire series (at least in my brain…it’s been awhile since I’ve read the GRRM books, so I could be misremembering).

Hailing from the distant windswept dunes of the east, the Shieldbreaker arrives in the Hamlet! Deadly as a viper, her iron will has been forged in the heat of the blazing desert sun. Though outwardly demure, her emancipation from the barren wastes came at a price so terrible, it haunts her dreams even now…

Features:

• New hero class: the Shieldbreaker
• Dynamic, tactical skill set for the Shieldbreaker featuring all new combat mechanics including: Armor Piercing, Guard Break, and Stealth
• Shieldbreaker class-specific trinkets, including a set.
• 3 New Monsters – frightful illusions from the Shieldbreaker’s origin, now slithering forward to infest the Estate
• New Consumable Item – Aegis Scale, providing a last bastion of protection for when a hero truly needs it.

Both of the new DLC are supposed to be available, but the app currently doesn’t appear to be able to chat with iTunes about either of them, leaving me with a screen that looks like this:

I’m sure it will get sorted soon, but it prevents me from telling you just how much each of the new DLC will run you.

[Thanks to geigerm, I now know that while the app was updated today, the DLC itself will not be available until tomorrow. Why? Who knows! More in this blog post from Red Hook, including the prices: $5 for Crimson Court and $2 for the Shieldbreaker.]

Regardless, even if you don’t want to purchase the new content, there is still a reason to update and jump back into the quest to reclaim your ancestral home. That would be a whole new mechanism added to the game, Stealth, as well as some other updates to make life a bit easier:

– Added Curio Tracker As you interact with curios in the game, you will see icons on the items in your inventory that will help you remember which ones yielded positive or negative results! This feature will allow you to build up your own knowledge base of curio hints through experience!

You can turn this function off in the Gameplay Options. (Default is set to ON)

– New Combat Mechanic: Stealth. Stealthed monsters cannot be targeted by direct attacks unless that attack has the Bypass Stealth quality. Stealth generally lasts for the first 2 rounds of combat. Stealthed monsters can be hit with indirect attacks such as AOE.
These Monsters have been given Stealth beginning at Veteran level:
Brigand Fusilier
Brigand Hunter
Crone
Pelagic Shaman
Bone Soldier
Swine Slasher

These Skills have been given Bypass Stealth and De-Stealth. In other words, the attacks can hit stealthed monsters AND pull those monsters out of stealth.
SHIELDBREAKER (see DLC)
Highwayman: Tracking Shot
Arbalest/Musketeer: Rallying Flare
This skill now targets one enemy to remove stealth, while still granting its original party buffs.
Antiquarian: Flash Powder
Occultist: Vulnerability Hex
Leper: Intimidate

They also have a tiny little note at the bottom of the notes: “Some quality of life improvements regarding input.” Could it be that some of the issues people had with the iPad version have been cleared up? Just a quick check shows that manipulating adventurers in the main screen no longer causes them to select and pop-up their stats when I’m just trying to scroll. More research is needed.

If all that wasn’t enough, Red Hook also dropped the price of Darkest Dungeon down to only $1. Considering it’s $25 on every other platform, that’s a steal. Hell, even if it doesn’t sound like your bag, it’s worth picking up for $1. Now if I could just get that DLC page working…

• Darkest Dungeon: Tablet Edition for iPad, $1 (on sale)
• Darkest Dungeon for PC/Mac/Linux via Steam, $25
• Darkest Dungeon for PC/Mac/Linux via GoG, $25
• Darkest Dungeon for Xbox, $25
• Darkest Dugneon for Playstation 4, $25
• Darkest Dungeon for Nintendo Switch, $25

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