The long-awaited release of Dark and Darker on Steam and Epic Games Store is off to an encouraging start, with the extraction-based dungeon crawler maintaining a solid player base in the wake of a mixed critical reception and ongoing tweaks to its free-to-play model.

Developer Ironmace’s ambitious fantasy RPG, which blends the hardcore loot grind of games like Escape from Tarkov with Dungeons & Dragons-inspired co-op gameplay, has sustained peak concurrent player counts around 30,000 since relaunching as a free title earlier this month. This follows a protracted legal dispute with publisher Nexon that had previously derailed the game’s anticipated early access debut last year.

While not quite reaching the stratospheric 100,000 player mark set during its wildly popular demo in early 2023, Dark and Darker’s steady numbers in a crowded multiplayer market represent a positive outcome given the surrounding controversies. User reviews on Steam currently sit at a “Mixed” state, with much of the criticism aimed at perceived imbalances between the free-to-play and paid premium experiences.

Ironmace has moved swiftly to address these issues, already implementing a divide in normal matchmaking pools to separate upgraded characters from newcomers. The developer also recently lifted item restrictions for high-level players in normal mode to avoid potential “pub-stomping.”

“It was never our intention to mislead our players and we are learning from your feedback,” stated Ironmace regarding the evolving free-to-play structure, which aims to honor prior promises made to early adopters.

Despite the ongoing refinements, Dark and Darker’s gritty, challenging premise continues luring in droves of dungeon delvers daily, all vying for coveted loot amid a deadly underground labyrinth teeming with monsters and murderous competitors.

With an engaging core gameplay loop backed by Ironmace’s active iteration, the promising early numbers suggest Dark and Darker may withstand its bumpy road to release by carving out a devoted cult audience – provided the developer can iron out any persisting pay-to-win grievances tainting an otherwise unique and thrilling extraction RPG experience.

Tags: Dark and Darker Dungeon crawl IRONMACE Shooter Video Game Unreal Engine 4