Lords of the Fallen is a reboot of sorts to a 2014 Souls-like action RPG of the same name. Things are much different this time around, from Adyr resurrecting to cause mayhem in the world of Axiom to players being able to traverse Umbral, the land of the dead. It’s a pretty hefty package, especially for Dark Souls lovers, which has been improved multiple times courtesy of dozens of patches.

If you’ve seen Lords of the Fallen 2, then this is a good way to get on the hype train before its alleged launch in August. As for Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered, it collects all three of Lara Croft’s original adventures into a single package. The visuals have been revamped (though you can still enable the original art style), and there’s even a Challenge Mode with ten new outfits to unlock.

As for Sword Art Online Fractured Daydream, well, it’s SAO. Not much else to expect if you’ve played the previous games, but at least there are 21 different characters, and you can team up in a party of four to undertake a raid that supports 20 players online.

It’s been scrubbed with the last line now reading, “I look forward to discussing it more here once the game has released!” But not before Reddit user CrazyFly7494 screen-captured and shared it.

Of course, the main part is “expected.” The sequel may internally be targeting that date if everything goes according to plan and is waiting to hit key milestones before an announcement. Either way, it wouldn’t be surprising – even if its predecessor launched in October 2023, CI Games may want to get ahead of the busy Autumn season.

Besides Grand Theft Auto 6, which could be the most expensive game ever made and then some, you have Marvel’s Wolverine, the potential release of Gears of War: E-Day, Fable, and more. Halo: Campaign Evolved is also allegedly arriving before September.

We’ll have to wait for official confirmation, but this may be good news for fans of the original, seeing as it’s not too long a wait. Head here for more details on Umbral 2.0 and how Hexworks have revamped the land of the dead to be even bigger than before.

But what’s changed? Chief creative officer and creative strategist Ryan Hill said in a press release that it’s more like the “realm of the undead.” “Its former scab-like crust has been ripped away, revealing the raw flesh beneath—an open wound that seethes with newfound hunger.”

Thankfully, game director James Lowe offers something more concrete in the latest “Lifting the Veil” Developer Update video. He described it as “a lot bigger and better,” and how it feels less distinct from Axiom because the two realms have begun to bleed into each other.

The team is aware that the first game’s take on the Umbral wasn’t very satisfying. To incentivize exploring the realm and not simply running through as quickly as possible, Lowe says that some things are only possible in Umbral (and vice versa in Axiom). Furthermore, killing things in the land of the living will result in them re-emerging in the land of the dead with “different forms,” which probably explains the “undead” part.

So while Axiom may come across as more like a Souls-like, the development team is really leaning more towards Umbral feeling like a horror game. There’s a definite fear of the unknown, where you won’t know what to expect.

Lords of the Fallen 2 will launch later this year for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC. The first game will reportedly be offered for free with PlayStation Plus Essential this April.

No, not the 2014 title but the more recent 2023 successor developed by Hexworks. Reportedly available on April 7th (with the announcement seemingly set for March 31st), it focuses on the Lamp Bearer. Set in the world of Axiom, which is soon to face the tyranny of Adyr, they can use a special lamp to traverse the land of the dead, Umbral.

The goal is to venture across Axiom and cleanse the five beacons put in place to prevent Adyr’s return, battling monsters and corrupted Sentinels along the way. As a Souls-like action RPG, Lords of the Fallen offers the usual – numerous character classes, tons of weapons, and overwhelming bosses. There have been numerous changes and revamps over the years, including Veteran Mode’s tougher enemies and bosses.

With over 2.5 million copies sold as of February 2026, CI Games is focusing on the next title in the series, Lords of the Fallen 2. It’s out this year for Xbox Series X/S, PS5 and PC (via the Epic Games), and takes place centuries later. Alongside improved combat and more build diversity, it also promises to let you chop off all the limbs from enemies. Stay tuned for more details and an official announcement of its predecessor’s addition to PlayStation Plus Essential.

On Twitter, founder and CEO Marek Tyminski said, “The Demon’s Souls remake was an incredible achievement, and we’d be honoured to speak with the talented people behind it about opportunities on Lords of the Fallen 2 and beyond. We have multiple roles available, including some not yet listed on our website.

“If this speaks to you or someone you know, please reach out today – we’d love to hear from you and explore how your skills could help shape our next chapter.”

Besides serving as an incredible gesture for those affected, Tyminski’s statement is notable for the “and beyond” part. Granted, this could mean several things, from DLC to post-launch support. Following its release, Lords of the Fallen (2023) received dozens of updates that added new modes, features, difficulty options, and extensive revamps of the combat.

Bluepoint developers may also lend their expertise for optimization. All of its games have been a masterclass in the same, especially the Demon’s Souls remake, while delivering some of the best graphical fidelity out there. Given the performance problems that Lords of the Fallen launched with, it might help to get that talent on board to prevent the same issues with the sequel.

Lords of the Fallen 2 launches later this year for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC. You can check out the latest details here, including improvements to the animations, world design and dual-wielding.

“With a FromSoft game, and I’m not slamming FromSoftware, once I find my build, I’m in,” said Lowe in the video, which you can check out below. “That’s probably the build I’m going to use for the entire experience, and I’m not going to really mess around with it.”

“Whereas in Lords of the Fallen, I have a few more drives to experiment a bit more and go, ‘Do you know what? I want to try dual-wielding. How does that feel?’ And it’s not that I don’t feel attached to my build, but I feel confident enough as a player to go, ‘I’m going to mess around with this for a few hours.’ Or, ‘You know what, I’ve really struggled against this encounter, let me try and play with something else and see how it goes.’”

It is worth noting that, while FromSoftware’s titles typically do allow players to respec their builds, especially in more recent games like Dark Souls 3 and Elden Ring, doing so is typically a more arduous process than simply picking a menu option. Elden Ring, for instance, needs you to find a special item that can then be consumed to completely reset your build.

The decision to allow players greater or lesser freedom in changing their builds is a fundamental one when it comes to game design. Depending on the developer’s priorities, experimentation can either be encouraged or discouraged. With FromSoftware’s titles, it comes down to the studio’s emphasis on giving players consequences for the choices they make, while still allowing a little bit of leeway by including a way to reset builds.

Back in June, The Outer Worlds 2 game director Brandon Adler had spoken about his own studio’s decision to now allow respecs. He noted that the core vision behind the RPG was to encourage roleplaying.

“Look, if we’re going to do The Outer Worlds 2, I want to make sure that the role-playing is really strong,” he explained. “I want to make sure that you’re building your character and really doubling down – making sure that role-playing comes through the whole experience.”

Despite this decision, Adler was also clear in noting that he doesn’t think allowing players a way to respec their builds is a bad idea.

“There’s a lot of times where you’ll see games where they allow infinite respec, and at that point, I’m not really role-playing a character, because I’m jumping between – well, my guy is a really great assassin that snipes from long range, and then oh, y’know, now I’m going to be a speech person, then respec again, and it’s like… for me, it’s not wrong that people like to play like that,” said Adler.

Lords of the Fallen 2 is being developed for PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, and is slated for release later this year. Check out the gameplay trailer from December, as well as the PC hardware requirements.

It’s easy to see why – squint hard enough and the figure, a devotee of moon goddess Menasilde that underwent a drastic change under “death’s shadow,” resembles the Wylder from Elden Ring Nightreign. However, CI Games CEO Marek Tyminski has since hit back against the accusations by revealing that its armor design was finalized in July 2024, several months before Nightreign’s reveal.

“I’m pleased to prove that yesterday’s accusations of plagiarism are 100% false,” said Tyminski on Twitter, who added that it was implemented in-engine by October 2024. Once again, that’s before the existence of FromSoftware’s co-op rogue-lite title became known to the world. Chalk it up to coincidence, especially since both companies dabble so much in fantasy.

“Visual overlap can occur in medieval fantasy design. We respect FromSoftware, but we do not copy other studios,” he said. “The armour designs in Lords of the Fallen were widely praised, and we’re confident Lords 2 will be no different. We stand fully behind our artists, their originality, and the integrity of their work.”

Launching in 2026, Lords of the Fallen 2 will be available for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC (which is published by Epic Games). The first gameplay debuted at The Game Awards 2025, showcasing epic bosses such as the Heartroot Warden and Koydreth. Brutal dismemberment was one of the highlights, and creative strategist Ryan Hill later confirmed that players could lop off all of an enemy’s limbs. Head here for more details.

When it comes to how Lords of the Fallen 2 will tell its story, Hill spoke about wanting to ensure a fine balance struck between being accessible and character-driven, while also featuring environmental storytelling that tends to be more in line with Soulslike games. This means that, while most players will get to understand and enjoy the main story, there will also be plenty for players that want to dig deeper into the world.

“With the sequel, we wanted to craft a narrative that’s more accessible and character-driven, while still honouring the environmental storytelling that Soulslike fans love,” Hill explained. “Players who want to dive deep into the lore absolutely can, but we also want every player to reach the end of the game understanding the journey they’ve taken and the pivotal role they’ve played in shaping this world.”

Hill also spoke about how the trailer showcased one of the major new features in Lords of the Fallen 2—dismemberment. Through the system, players can over the course of gameplay cut limbs off their enemies. Hill explained that the decision to include the system in the sequel essentially came from fans wanting the developers to “go all in” on pushing the gore levels in the game. He also confirmed that every limb on an enemy can be cut off.

“When we asked our community just how far we should push the gore in the next Lords of the Fallen, the answer was loud and unanimous: ‘go all in’,” Hill noted. “This is a game made by adults for adults, and we didn’t want to dilute the brutality or intensity of that experience. Soulslikes thrive on challenge, and that rush you get when defeating an enemy is unlike anything else. Enhancing that moment with a dynamic dismemberment system takes the satisfaction to another level – instead of enemies simply ragdolling to the floor, players can literally tear them apart.”

As for how things will play out differently for Lords of the Fallen 2 when compared to its predecessor, Hill acknowledged that Lords of the Fallen has seen several updates since its release (including the recently-released version 2.5 update). This, he noted, helped drive the evolution of the game. When it comes to Lords of the Fallen 2, however, he has said that the studio plans to remain “actively engaging” with its community from day one.

“For the sequel, we’ve been actively engaging our fast-growing community from day one, understanding exactly what they want from the next chapter,” he said. “You can already see some of those requests reflected in our new gameplay reveal trailer: a more varied game world, more distinctive and memorable boss encounters, and a deeper, more meaningful Umbral realm experience.”

Lords of the Fallen 2 is coming to PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S in 2026. Check out the game’s PC requirements that were revealed earlier this year.

Both Legacy and Veteran modes have seen upgrades to enemies and bosses, changing their attack timings, improving their behaviour trees, and rebalancing their cooldowns. For example, Pieta makes use of more varied and refined combos, along with her grab being more dangerous. The Congregator of Flesh, on the other hand, has reduced downtime between its strikes. Non-boss enemies have seen adjustments made to their damage values and cooldown timers, making them more responsive to players’ actions, in turn making fighting them deadlier as well.

Completing Veteran Mode comes with its own reward—the Veteran of the Veil warplate. The warplate is a high-end armour set that features increased item drop rates when equipped. The mode also has its own set of achievements and trophies that players can earn. These new trophies, however, aren’t necessary for getting the Platinum trophy. Both Veteran and Legacy Modes can be played in co-op as well as long as both players are on the same difficulty mode.

For more details about all of the changes made to Lords of the Fallen with the 2.5 update, check out the full patch notes below. While you’re at it, check out our review of the game from when it first came out. Also check out the gameplay trailer for Lords of the Fallen 2 that was showcased during The Game Awards 2025.

Lords of the Fallen Update Version 2.5 Full Patch Notes:

Further Changes and Updates

PvP and Consumables

• Added usage caps to key consumables including Heavenly Vials, ammo types, and mana stones.
• Reduced damage on Harrowed Dervla’s Crossbow, Lightreaper Daggers and Flickering Flail’s light attack.
• Increased mana cost of Orius’ Judgment.

Improved Lock-On System

• Refined distance weighting for target selection.
• Fixed several cases where lock-on would fail to register.

Inventory Lock System

• Added the ability to lock favourite items to prevent accidental selling or dropping.

Shop Inventory Sorting

• Added improved shop sorting options, now consistent with the player inventory sorting system.

Quit Game Button (PC Only)

• Added a Quit Game option to the Exit tab of the Pause Menu.
• Players can now close the game directly from the Pause Menu without returning to the Main Menu.

Boss Weapons

Updated animations for several boss weapons to better reflect how their wielders fought:

• Pieta’s Sword
• Punishment and Judgment Hammers
• Flickering Flail

Bosses Enhancements

Pieta, She of Blessed Renewal

Legacy Mode

• Reduced frequency of special attacks to emphasize melee-focused combat.
• Updated combo timing to create clearer, more distinct pacing across each chain.
• Reduced special attack frequency to improve readability.
• Smoother combat cadence for clearer telegraphs.

Veteran Mode

• Includes all Legacy changes.
• Reduced gaps between chained attacks.
• More aggressive light-chain follow-ups.
• Increased HP and damage.
• Stronger pressure during phase transitions.
• Increased damage, expanded combo variety, and more evasive behaviour.
• Light beam variants now differ more noticeably in speed, demanding sharper reactions.
• Longer anticipation on the grab attack with faster travel speed on execution.
• Phase 2 revised to increase combo interruption, grab frequency, and variation in attack sequences.
• Added a new close-range response: two fast swings triggered when the player remains near her for an extended period.
• Added a quicker grab attack that can now occur mid-combo.

Congregator of Flesh

Legacy Mode

• Camera position update.
• Updated animations to reduce downtime and increase overall intensity.
• Adjusted attack-string cadence for more readable punish windows.
• Reduced maximum HP and significantly lowered stagger health to make the enemy easier to stagger. Since he cannot be hit with a finisher, staggering now functions only as a brief interruption.

Veteran Mode

• Includes all Legacy changes.
• Faster recovery on most swings.
• Increased HP and damage.
• Higher chance to chain heavy attacks.
• New combo routes including more chained attacks and additional leap follow-ups after his side flop.
• Adjusted cooldowns and attack triggers to make his offence more relentless.

The Hushed Saint

Legacy Mode

• Retimed all unmounted attack sequences.
• Most attacks are now parryable.
• Reduced the time mounted and increased the time in a blocking stance.

Veteran Mode

• Includes all Legacy changes.
• Increased HP and damage.
• Remixed and extended mounted attack patterns.
• Earlier phase transitions.
• Added new mounted pressure options.

Spurned Progeny

Legacy Mode

• Adjusted animation timings to refine combat tempo, improving readability and reducing floatiness.
• Updated lock-on behavior during certain sequences to better guide player targeting.
• Slightly reduced aggression during ground-floor phases.

Veteran Mode

• Includes all Legacy changes.
• Increased HP and damage.
• Several attacks now generate fire pillars and/or fire explosions.
• Increased overall aggression.
• Adjusted first-floor behavior to reduce early openings.

The Hollow Crow

Legacy Mode

• Improved summoned enemy animations and accuracy.
• Tweaked aggression levels of summoned enemies.
• Reduced HP of summoned enemies, the Daughter, and the Crow.
• Reduced how often the Daughter teleports out of the arena, and the time she remains outside.
• Reduced the number of attacks during phase transitions.
• Crow attacks now damage summoned enemies (but not the Daughter).
• Daughter’s shockwave now damages summoned enemies.
• Increased the number of summoned enemies that can appear at once, while lowering their aggression.
• Reduced aggression of the large axe-wielding soldier enemies.
• Reduced the total number of enemies spawned overall.
• Reduced the size of multiple explosions.

Veteran Mode

• Increased HP and damage.
• A Kinrangr Guardian now appears in Phase 2.
• In Phase 3, a Kinrangr Guardian will respawn each time the Daughter returns to the arena.
• During Phase 2 and 3, while a Kinrangr Guardian is alive, the Daughter receives reduced damage.
• Added a visual effect linking the Daughter to the active Kinrangr Guardian to communicate the damage-reduction mechanic.
• The Crow will also attack during phase transitions and when the Daughter is teleported out of the arena.

Elianne the Starved

Legacy Mode

• Improved unique animations not already covered in Pieta’s update.

Veteran Mode

• Includes all Legacy changes.
• Cooldown adjustments.
• Added separate Veteran-specific behavior.
• Added additional complexity and clone-spawn logic (aligned with Pieta-style Veteran design).

Lightreaper

Legacy Mode

• Retimed several attacks.
• Added variations to mounted attack sequences; Lightreaper now performs fewer repeated patterns and mixes between different variants, reducing the time spent mounted and preventing repetitive loops.
• Increased the projectile speed of the half-moon attack.

Veteran Mode

• Includes all Legacy Mode changes.
• Phase transitions occur faster.
• Multiple combos have been remixed for increased pressure.
• Added a new combo.
• Air Devastation moves now occur only in Phase 3.

Sundered Monarch

Legacy Mode

• Reduced HP.
• Added additional collision to close-quarters attacks.
• Reduced cooldowns on several attacks during Phases 2 and 3.
• Updated attack timings for improved pacing.

Veteran Mode

• Includes all Legacy Mode changes.
• Increased tempo of close-quarters attacks.
• Final rage combo now features a different sword-pattern spawn sequence.
• Uppercut now chains into the charge attack.
• Spiraling attack now spawns blades in five circles instead of three, with the final two returning inward.
• Phase 3 triggers earlier.
• Increased HP.
• Increased poise HP.

Rest of bosses

Reinhold the Immured, Tancred Master of Castigations, Harrower Dervla the Pledged Knight, The Unbroken Promise, Judge Cleric the Radiant Sentinel, & Corrupted Judge Cleric.

Legacy Mode

• No Legacy-specific changes.

Veteran Mode

• Increased HP and damage.
• Reduced cooldowns on major abilities.

Full List of Mini-Bosses

Holy Bulwark Otto

Legacy Mode

• Increased damage.
• Faster animation times.
• Shorter cooldown between attacks.
• Fixed instances where the boss appeared to slide across the ground during certain attacks.

Veteran Mode

• All Legacy changes apply.
• Updated cooldown timings.

Scourged Sister Delyth

Legacy Mode

• Small increase to HP.
• Faster animation times.
• Increased aggression.
• Higher damage.

Veteran Mode

• All Legacy changes apply.
• Increased health and stagger health.
• Updated cooldown timings.

Gentle Gaverus, Mistress of Hounds

Legacy Mode

• Increased HP.
• Increased damage dealt.
• Faster startup on attack animations.
• Reduced cooldown of the smoke teleport move.
• Increased HP of summoned Radiant Hounds.

Veteran Mode

• All Legacy changes apply.
• Reduced cooldown timings.

Mendacious Visage

Legacy Mode

• Reduced cooldowns and reorganised the behaviour tree for more consistent pacing.
• Increased damage and faster charge attack.
• Improved animations.
• Added conditions to stop repeated hand-slam loops when the player is too close.

Veteran Mode

• All Legacy changes apply.
• Reduced cooldown timings.

Ruiner

Legacy Mode

• Improved attack animations.
• Cooldown pass.
• Can block more frequently during downtime between attacks.
• Improved combo timing.

Veteran Mode

• All Legacy changes apply.
• Reduced cooldown timings.

Abbess Ursula

Legacy Mode

• Improved attack animations.
• Cooldown balance pass.
• Increased the distance at which she transitions into close-range attacks.

Veteran Mode

• All Legacy changes apply.

Griefbound Rowena

Legacy Mode

• Improved animations.
• Cooldown pass.
• Slight adjustments to attack-trigger distances.

Veteran Mode

• All Legacy changes apply.

Crimson Rector Percival

Legacy Mode

• Retimed animations.
• Reduced stamina damage dealt.

Veteran Mode

• All Legacy changes apply.

Rest of Minibosses

Infernal Enchantress, Kinrangr Guardian Folard, Skinstealer, Bringers Trio, Blessed Carrion Knight Sanisho, Abbess Ursula, Kyra and Lirenne, Rapturous Huntress of the Dusk, & The Sacred Resonance of Tenacity.

Legacy Mode

• Improved animations.
• Cooldown updates.

Veteran Mode

• No further updates.

Regular Enemies Full List

All regular enemies have received increased stats and global cooldown adjustments in Veteran Mode. They have also undergone behavioral changes in both Legacy and Veteran Modes. See the detailed changes below.

Remnant

• Increased damage.
• Faster animation times.
• Shorter cooldowns.

Shrouded Remnant

• Increased damage.
• Faster animation times.
• Shorter cooldowns.

Womb of Despair

• Reduced HP.
• Reduced cooldowns and idling behaviour.

Shrouded Sparrow

• Reduced cooldowns on attacks and emote behaviour.
• Retimed animations.

Mendacious Visage

• Reduced cooldowns and reorganised behaviour.
• Faster charge.
• Improved animations.
• Added conditions to prevent repeated hand-slam loops at close range.

Scarlet Shadow

• Improved attack animations.
• Cooldown updates.

Bringer of Stillness

• Improved attack animations.
• Cooldown updates.

Corrupted Pilgrim

• Increased damage.
• Faster animation times.
• Shorter cooldowns.

Rhogar Hound

• Increased damage.
• Faster animation times.
• Cooldown updates.

Raw Mangler

• Improved animations.
• Cooldown updates.
• Improved attack range to reduce whiffing.

Proselyte

• Increased damage.
• Improved animations.
• More aggression.

Trapper

• Improved animations.
• Cooldown updates.
• Stops firing when the player gets close.

Ruiner

• Improved attack animations.
• Cooldown updates.
• Blocks more often in between attacks.
• Improved combo timing.

Skinstealer

• Cooldown updates.
• Improved animations.

Infernal Enchantress

• Improved animations.
• Cooldown updates.

Seared Soul

• Reduced cooldowns between attacks.
• Faster animations.
• Adjusted attack-trigger distance.
• Improved movement flow after attacking.

Pureblade

• Increased damage.
• Faster animations.
• Increased aggression.
• Improved shield usage.

Crimson Rector

• Retimed animations.
• Reduced HP and damage to stabilize pacing.

Carrion Knight

• Improved animations.
• Improved combo fluidity.
• Cooldown updates.

Sin-Piercer

• Faster attack startups.
• Reduced cooldown on smoke teleport.
• Behaviour tuned to punish players more effectively.

Receiver of Sacred Resonance

• Cooldown updates.

Enslaved Miner

• Cooldown updates.
• Faster animations.

Kinrangr Guardian

• Cooldown updates.
• Improved unique animations.

Kinrangr Hunter

• Improved animations.
• Cooldown updates.
• Improved rotation tracking and close-range behaviour.

Kinrangr Hound

• Cooldown updates.

Shuja Warrior

• Improved animations.
• Reduced cooldowns.
• Runs during attacks instead of walking.
• Uses poison buff only at range.
• Better rotation tracking.
• Higher dodge chance.

Fetid Sacrifice

• Reduced cooldowns.
• Faster attack animations.
• Adjusted attack-trigger distance.

Shuja Strider

• Reduced dodge cooldown.
• Adjusted dodge trigger distance.
• Reduced idle time between attacks.
• Improved melee and throw animations.

Griefbound

• Improved animations.
• Cooldown updates.
• Adjusted attack-trigger distances.

Accursed Wretch

• Cooldown updates.

Fungal Bowman

• Increased transition distance for close-range mode.
• Cooldown updates.
• Improved attack rotation and animation timing.

Brogid

• Reduced cooldowns.
• Improved close-range movement to be more active.

Deep Sparrow

• Reduced cooldown of attacks
• Increased cooldown of emote action
• Retimed animations

Ice Zombie

• Cooldown updates.

Bug Fixes

• Corrected dual wielding animation issues affecting head movement.
• Additional community-reported fixes and stability improvements.
• Fixed an issue where the game could crash during boss encounters if the host died, particularly when the client was also defeated.

Built on Unreal Engine 5, the sequel is targeting a 2026 launch on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC via the Epic Games Store, and is available to wishlist now. Lords of the Fallen 2 returns to a human realm under siege by the dead realm of Umbral. Players take on the role of the Lampbearer, using a new dismemberment system to tear enemies apart and trigger fresh execution animations.

CI Games is pitching the sequel as an across-the-board step up, with faster, more unforgiving combat and a significantly expanded enemy and boss roster. The game supports solo play, shared-progression co-op, and optional PvP multiplayer. The reveal specifically spotlights three major boss encounters: the armored Heartroot Warden and its chain-bound greatsword, the mirror-dwelling winged horror Koydreth, and Lingao the Souring Storm, a colossal dragon commanding wind and lightning.