TheDark Soulstrilogy is one of the most influential franchises in gaming’s modern history. From Software’s trio of action RPGs have led to all manner of successors, all included under the now ubiquitous umbrella term “Souls-like.” Yet despite its popularity and influence,Dark Soulsitself hasn’t led to a significant amount of official spin-offs or cross-media promotions. That’s why it’s quite surprising to see a sudden announcement of an originalDark Soulsnovel in 2022.Thursday afternoon Yen Press publishing, best known for licensing manga from Japan for release in the United States, announced a partnership withFromSoftwareparent company Kadokawa Games. Yen Press will publishDark Souls: Masque of Vindicationboth in print and digitally starting October 25. Kadokawa will also be releasing the novel in Japanese, delivering the book as a worldwide release.RELATED:Dark Souls Player Points Out Funny Detail About Solaire of Astora That They Never NoticedThe author ofDark Souls: Masque of Vindicationwill be particularly exciting to fans of theStar Warcomics and novels.Dark Souls: Masque of Vindicationis being written by Michael A. Stackpole,The New York Timesbestselling author ofI, JediandRogue Squadron. Not only has Stackpole written eightStar Wars novels, but he’s also authored original stories based on video games, includingWorld of WarcraftandGears of War. He’s also written for several games, includingWastelandandWasteland 2, as well asShadowrun Returns.
As noted,Dark Souls: Masque of Vindicationis an original story based in theDark Soulsuniverse. It’s not a novelization ofDark Soulsor either of its sequels. The story will revolve around a man named Ferranos, an undead sorcerer brought back with no memory of his past life, said to be embarking on an “epic adventure guided by fate.”
The brief introductory text provided to give an idea of whatDark Souls: Masque of Vindicationis about hints at the nature of its relation toDark Souls. Ferranos uses a flash of light to cast down an undead thief, perhaps aSoul Arrow, and sets off on his journey with just a dagger he took from the corpse. Odds are Ferranos may come to wield even greater sorceries and equipment as his journey continues.
To say that aDark Soulsnovel being released over 10 years after the first game’s launch is odd would be quite the understatement. It’s never too late, particularly for such a successful and popular franchise, but it’s not what anyone would have expected. Still, forDark Soulsfans hoping to potentiallyrevisit Lordranfor an entirely new adventure, this may be the best (and potentially last) opportunity.Dark Souls: Masque of Vindicationwill be released on October 25.
Dark Soulsis available now on PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
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