Summer is always a big time for video games. Game merchants hold blockbuster sales, developers and studios come together for major game conferences, and of course, it's a strong season for video game releases. There's already tons of big titles lined up for release in the summer of 2021, in spite of the lingering effects of the COVID pandemic. To name only a few, this summer will see the release of The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD, No More Heroes 3, Ratchet and Clank: Rifts Apart, and Back 4 Blood. That's far from all though. In late June of 2021, Wizards of the Coast and Tuque Games will finally release the highly anticipated Dungeons and Dragons: Dark Alliance.
Although Dungeons and Dragons: Dark Alliance went a long time without delivering updates to fans, it's finally resurfaced, and it's coming out pretty soon. Dungeons and Dragons veterans only have to wait a few more months before they can embody some of the TTRPG's most recognizable canonical characters and leap into battle. A summer release specifically will go a long way towards ensuring that Dark Alliance is a success. That's just the right time for it to get a major player base, and conversely, it's the perfect time for fans to get into the game.
Spending Summer in Icewind Dale
Tuque Games has indicated that Dark Alliance has been designed in the multiplayer spirit of Dungeons and Dragons. While it's possible to play the game alone, Dark Alliance's challenges will be much less daunting and more manageable if players party up and leap into the action together. That means the online multiplayer is the heart of the game. Players have the option of joining up with their friends or strangers online before leaping into battle. Either one requires there to be a significant online player base, and there's no better time for Dark Alliance to get lots of players online than over summer.
Everyone associates summer with vacation. Many of Dungeons and Dragons' younger fans are about to be on summer vacation and they'll be raring to play the game. While pandemic restrictions mean meeting up in person for tabletop Dungeons and Dragons games won't always be easy, Dark Alliance offers the next best thing. Summer will still be a convenient time for the game's release for the franchise's fans who don't get summer vacations. It'll be something fun to do indoors during the dog days of summer, and the game servers should be full of other new players getting into it just post-release. Summer is supposed to be the time of year when people group up with friends to enjoy the warm weather. When 2021's summer is still uncertain, Dark Alliance offers a good alternative to the usual summer activities.
A Summer Standout
There's another important quality of Dungeons and Dragons: Dark Alliance that makes it a worthy title of the summer. That's the notoriety of Dungeons and Dragons overall. Dark Alliance is going to have tons of competitors on the summer release schedule, and wants to keep drawing attention over the summer in spite of the season of game conferences, like the impending online version of E3. Tuque Games has cause for optimism here. After all, there might be plenty of other action RPGs out there, but nobody else is attached to Drizzt Do'urden and the Dungeons and Dragons name.
It's great that fans have finally gotten a taste of Dungeons and Dragons: Dark Alliance gameplay and know more of what to expect in the game. Fans have spent a long time waiting to see when they'll get a chance to play it, but now there's only a couple months of waiting left to do. Dark Alliance may be only one of many stars of summer 2021, but it has the right tools to really stand out. Hopefully it proves to be more than worth the wait.
Dungeons and Dragons: Dark Alliance releases in June 22, 2021 for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
