Dark Souls III's DLC Is Coming Earlier Than We Thought

Dark Souls 3
(Image credit: Bandai Namco)

After the hiccup with the Dark Souls III DLC being released onto the Xbox Store due to an error over the weekend, Bandai Namco decided to rectify the problem with something that you probably didn't see coming: releasing the DLC earlier than expected.

Gamespot reached out to Bandai Namco about the issue when gamers on Xbox noticed that the store listing for the Dark Souls III: Ashes of Ariandel appeared to have launched earlier than expected over the weekend. Bandai caught the issue and tried to fix it as soon as possible, notifying Gamespot that the issue was a logistical error that took place and that the game would actually be releasing a day earlier than it was scheduled to on October 24th.

That's right, due to the logistical error on Bandai's end -- actually making a convenient opportunity available for gamers -- they decided to release the Dark Souls III DLC a day early. Originally it was scheduled to go live on October 25th on Tuesday for the Xbox One, PS4 and PC. Now, the DLC will be out later today for Steam and console players.

(Image credit: Bandai Namco)

Steam gamers will be able to get their hands on the new Dark Souls III DLC at 3PM PST while Xbox One and PS4 owners will be able to get their hands on the Ashes of Ariandel starting at 9PM PST.

I'm still not sure how the error occurred, but Xbox gamers went on to the store to check up on the content, and those who had already purchased the season pass for Dark Souls III saw that the DLC had an "Install" button by it. Quite naturally, anyone who wanted to play the new content instantly hit that install button and began downloading the new content for From Software's action-RPG.

The news ran rampant throughout the core gaming communities who spotted the error and were able to get in game time with the title, as they took the opportunity to alert everyone else about the early release of the Ashes of Ariandel for Bandai's title. This eventually made its way to video game news sites that also began reporting on the early release of the DLC.

Gamespot decided to test out the issue to see if what was being said on Reddit and other sites was true or just one big troll hoax. It turns out that it was not a hoax and that gamers were actually able to get their hands on the Dark Souls III DLC a couple of days ahead of its official release.

As a bit of compensation Bandai decided to not make gamers wait longer than usual and decided to release the new content a day early.

It's rare for a company to take this sort of step and give gamers a treat. Usually, there are punishments handed out when a game releases early, sort of like what happened when a guy paid more than $1,000 to get his hands on No Man's Sky ahead of release, and Sony was quick to hit YouTubers with copyright strikes for uploading footage early.

The new DLC for Dark Souls III introduces lots of new content for $14.99. However, if you have the season pass you'll be able to get it at no extra cost.

Will Usher

Staff Writer at CinemaBlend.