Fans who stayed up for the Dark Souls 2 networking beta test in North and South America were set up for disappointment as Namco and From Software were unable to establish the connections necessary. Subsequently, Namco Bandai America cancelled and announced their intent to reschedule the test via their official Twitter account.
We're currently investigating issues players are having logging into the Dark Souls II PS3 Network Test servers – We'll have an update soon.
— NAMCO BANDAI America (@namcogames) October 27, 2013
Attention Dark Souls II Testers! It seems that North and South American players will not be able to log into the servers for this test.
— NAMCO BANDAI America (@namcogames) October 27, 2013
We thoroughly apologize for all of the confusion and issues. We will be rescheduling the Network Test for another date.
— NAMCO BANDAI America (@namcogames) October 27, 2013
Apparently, something in the beta turned out very badly, because the original post inviting people to join in has been taken down from the official Facebook account.
Some players were able to get into the European and Japanese networking betas. Some fans described fighting and/or getting past a skeleton boss, but they dealt with issues as well. Where they did work, fans got to play for about an hour, give or take five minutes.
The reaction from North American fans has been very agitated, but to be clear, Namco would of course not want to single US players for poor treatment. They definitely would have preferred for the beta to have gone as planned, especially in what is basically the biggest and most important region in the gaming market.
We know this is quite disheartening and we thank everyone for their enthusiasm.
— NAMCO BANDAI America (@namcogames) October 27, 2013
There is no conspiracy or complicated explanation here. Namco simply had problems setting up the networks for the beta, and considering this is precisely what they were testing out, everyone who signed up should have known that this could have happened. They did not promise a finished product here, they promised beta testers will get to help them.
Namco has sent a follow up tweet clarifying that everyone who signed up before will be part of the rescheduled network beta. You also will be able to use the same client to get in, but there will be a patch to ensure better connections. Dark Souls 2 fans, be patient. Namco will make it up to you.
Everyone who was in this test will be allowed in for the next Dark Souls II PS3 Network Test. Your spot is secure.
— NAMCO BANDAI America (@namcogames) October 27, 2013
@JosephGarcia74 Same client will work. Next time you'll just have to download the patch that will be available.
— NAMCO BANDAI America (@namcogames) October 27, 2013
