Dark Souls Remastered was announced for Nintendo Switch back in January, with fans of the new Nintendo console excited to play the ultra-hard RPG on the go. The game had been scheduled to release in May, but publisher Bandai Namco later announced that the game had been delayed to summer 2018. Unfortunately, it seems that even "summer" was an optimistic timeframe, as the new Dark Souls Remastered Nintendo Switch release date is later than expected.

Today, Bandai Namco confirmed that Dark Souls Remastered will be released for Nintendo Switch on October 19, 2018. In addition to the remastered version of the hit action title, an amiibo of Solaire of Astoria will be available too.

Bandai Namco also confirms that an online Network Test will take place ahead of launch and that fans should "stay tuned" for more information about these tests. It's worth noting that as Dark Souls Remastered now releases after the paid-for Nintendo Switch Online service goes live, Dark Souls players on Switch will likely have to pay for the privilege of using those network features once the game has been released.

In fact, some fans are speculating that the Switch Online service is why the game has been delayed. Given that Dark Souls Remastered was announced during a Nintendo Direct and PC, PS4, and Xbox One players have been enjoying the game since May, Switch owners are understandably upset.

In the replies to Bandai Namco's tweet announcing the new release date, several fans suggest that Nintendo encouraged the company to delay the game in an effort to push more people to pay for a Switch Online subscription. There is absolutely no evidence to support these claims but it highlights how frustrated fans are and how eager people are to play it.

Conspiracy theories aside, others are just delighted that the game will finally be available on Nintendo Switch. There is some suggestion that additional Dark Souls games could be remastered for the Nintendo Switch and so fans are tracking the first game's remaster closely. If the game performs well, then Bandai Namco will have a greater incentive to remaster the other games in the trilogy, including Nintendo Switch versions of those remasters. Nothing has been announced yet, but post-October 19, things will (hopefully) be a lot clearer.

Dark Souls Remastered will be released on October 19, 2018 for Nintendo Switch. The game is currently available on PC, PS4, and Xbox One.