Darkest Dungeon II has received a major free update today, with Red Hook Studios rolling out Curse of the Court, the third and final module in the Kingdoms series. The update is available now on PC and Mac, with a console release planned for later.
The update reintroduces the Bloodsuckers—vampirically corrupted nobles who first appeared in the original game’s Crimson Court DLC. This time, they arrive in force, spreading a supernatural contagion across the Kingdom. The infection brings back the dreaded Crimson Curse status effect, forcing players into a new questline that centers on finding a cure before the infestation consumes everything.
Alongside the new faction, the update adds three Kingdoms maps, each featuring different layouts and challenges. These maps can be played across any of the three Kingdoms modules. New achievements are also included.
Curse of the Court closes out the free Kingdoms mode, which was introduced as a standalone alternative to the game’s original Confessions mode. Instead of running individual expeditions, Kingdoms tasks players with defending inns and territories against unique enemy factions. The three arcs include Hunger of the Beast Clan, Secrets of the Coven, and now the final vampiric chapter.
In a statement, Red Hook’s design director Tyler Sigman described Kingdoms as “a ludicrous experiment” that reimagined the structure of the game. “It was ambitious and risky,” he said, but one that gave the team “a lot of fun developing this new strategy game within a strategy game.”
To mark the release, Darkest Dungeon II is running its first free weekend on Steam from August 28 through September 1 at 10 a.m. PT. During the same period, the game is receiving its deepest discount to date: 63% off, with further reductions on DLC bundles. Both Confessions and Kingdoms modes are available to try during the free weekend.
