What you need to know
- One of 2023's biggest games was Remnant 2, a sequel to the popular Remnant: For The Ashes that blends Soulslike gameplay systems with third-person shooting and some hack-and-slash melee mechanics.
- The action RPG released one year ago today on July 25, and has had two DLCs since: The Awakened King and The Forgotten Kingdom. A third and final one is coming, too, and has now been revealed as "The Dark Horizon."
- The Dark Horizon is coming in September 2024 to Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, and PS5, and in it, "players will return to the necropolis world of N’Erud only to discover that a bizarre phenomenon has taken hold."
- Developer Gunfire Games is also creating a new game mode and progression system that will be available to all Remnant 2 players for free, regardless of whether or not they own the game's DLCs. Currently, it's unclear if this mode will release with The Dark Horizon or at another time.
One of the most popular games released in 2023 was Remnant 2 — a third-person action RPG that fuses Soulslike mechanics with over-the-shoulder shooting and hack-and-slash melee fighting. It launched exactly one year ago today on Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, and PS5 on July 25, and since then, it's gotten two expansions: The Awakened King and The Forgotten Kingdom. A third DLC is on the way, too, and thanks to a new announcement, we finally know what it's called and when it's coming.
That DLC is The Dark Horizon, which was revealed to fans on Thursday morning in a Steam blog post. The expansion is scheduled to release in September 2024, and will be the last major DLC release for Remnant 2. In it, "players will return to the necropolis world of N’Erud only to discover that a bizarre phenomenon has taken hold." Based on the cost of previous add-ons, it's likely The Dark Horizon will have a $9.99 MSRP, though this hasn't been confirmed.
Developer Gunfire Games is also making a new game mode and progression system that will be available to all Remnant 2 players for free, regardless of whether or not they own any of the game's DLCs. Both of these will be shown in more detail soon; currently, it's unclear if they'll launch concurrently with The Dark Horizon or at a different time.
"Our goal is for The Dark Horizon to be the most expansive DLC for Remnant II," the studio wrote. "Not only have we packed this DLC full of even more of the Remnant greatness you’ve come to expect, we’re also hard at work on a brand-new game mode that will be free for everyone that we’ll reveal soon along with a new progression system."
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This third and final expansion isn't far off at all — September is only a little over a month away — but it's worth noting that Gunfire Games actually planned to have all three of Remnant 2's DLCs out before the game's first anniversary. That means The Dark Horizon was technically delayed, with Gunfire making "the difficult decision to move back the release of our third DLC, so that we have more time to deliver you the best possible experience that you deserve."
"While we’re not happy about delaying this DLC release — one you’ve been itching to jump into already — we feel very lucky to see your ongoing support and loyalty to the Remnant franchise," the developers said. "The past year has been nothing short of amazing, and we’re glad that Remnant II and its DLCs have brought you as much joy as it has brought us creating this world for you."
Gunfire says more news and details about The Dark Horizon are coming soon, so we'll hopefully know more about its story, worldspaces, new enemies and gameplay features, and more before long. Until that information comes, fans have a close release date to look forward to.
Remnant 2's previous expansions have had generally favorable reviews from critics — we gave The Forgotten Kingdom a 4/5 — but their scores on Steam currently rest at "Mixed." The first DLC, The Awakened King, seems to have been primarily criticized for performance issues, while some found The Forgotten Kingdom to be too short and poorly balanced.
Ultimately, the hope is that with more time in the oven, The Dark Horizon will be the exciting, satisfying experience Gunfire Games wants it to be, and a strong swansong for what was undoubtedly one of 2023's best Xbox games and best PC games. If you've never played Remnant 2, note that its Ultimate Edition that includes access to all of its DLCs is currently on sale for just $24.69 at CDKeys right now. It's also playable through Xbox Game Pass, though you'll need to buy the expansions separately if you access it that way.
