So uh... I appear to have a full, working copy of the English version of Dark Souls 3 running on my Xbox One right now, 18 days before the street date in the US, without any sort of piracy.

Basically, I happened across this reddit thread today: https://www.reddit.com/r/DarkSouls3JPN/comments/48ko5f/will_the_japanese_version_be_released_for_ps4

Inside it, I found step by step instructions for putting a bunch of yen in an existing Microsoft account using paypal and JP Xbox store cards, after which you switch your region over to Japan, buy Dark Souls 3, switch back to US, and then download it. What you end up with is a full version of the game in English. I've played up through about the first hour, and the only thing it seems to be missing is online play (which I assume will be available on the 4/12 Western release date, but I really don't know).

Honestly, I have no idea if this will get you banned or not. I'm pretty sure there's nothing illegal about it, but the whole process seems kind of shady, and I was extremely trepidatious about doing it myself, but against my better judgement I mucked around with it anyway, and I'll be damned if it didn't work extremely smoothly. So while I won't exactly vouch for doing this, it worked for me, and I felt you guys should know about it. They might also patch the loophole, so if you do intend to give this a try, I would advise trying it sooner than later.

Edit: and just as I post this, I decide to google and realize I've been scooped by Scoops! http://kotaku.com/dark-souls-3-can-be-played-right-now-on-xbox-one-using-1766717126

Looks like it won't get you banned - it's just kind of a pain in the ass to do (which I CAN vouch for)

Hows the framerate on that version? I've been staring at the checkout for these yen cards all evening and it seems like a bad idea but that's rarely stopped me.

I shouldn't... I really do want to play it on PC at a higher resolution and framerate... but then again, GBeast did experience some crashes...

@efesell: Seems a little choppy, but I haven't spent a ton of time with it yet, so I don't know if it's area-specific (game's actually still downloading at the moment). Hasn't been a big deal for me, but YMMV, as I'm not a huge stickler for framerate.

@efesell: Here's Digital Foundry's performance analysis of Dark Souls 3 on the Xbone: http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-2016-dark-souls-3-bloodborne-engine-on-xbox-one

Summary: 900p, usually 30 fps, but sometimes as low as 20 fps, and the same frame pacing issues as Bloodborne.

Eh why not. I can handle Bloodborne quality and it's not like I've ever had a history of amazing performance with the Souls series.

I'll probably end up with it on PC anyway eventually because I'm a fool.

@savage: Good to know nothing has changed.

Hope the framerate holds up a little bit better on PS4, I got that version pre-ordered.

I just did it on Xbox One, it worked perfectly doing it with a paypal account was pretty effortless. Fuck it I couldn't wait three weeks.

i wonder if the japanese steam has the english version...

(yes i'm being facetious)

Does this still work?

I managed to get it last thursday, I bought it on the xbox.jp store, I made a dummy account and then I put it onto my xbone. You don't have to change the region on it, as long as you set the dummy account to japan when you make it on the computer. I will say, the game feels a little empty without runes and bloodstains littering the ground (Its completely offline right now.) The framerate is manageable, it actually brings me back to memories of chugging on ds1 on my 360 as I run through blight town and undead burg. Also I will able to be that monster who invades people on day one with all kinds of fucked up weapons!

@supermonkey122: Yes this still works well

@nach0sanchez: You didn't need to create a dummy account. You just change the region on your primary account to Japan, do what you need to do to purchase, then switch back to your country to download the English version of the game. Microsoft accounts are multi-region, meaning they work everywhere.

@magusmaleficus: Ah well, at least they gave me the randomized name of dankcabbage. Only the dankest.