Growing up in forum-space, you hear a lot of ideas that sound cool at first but end up being stupid in hindsight. How many times have you heard “They should just make a Pokemon game with all the regions together and also all the gimmicks”? Exactly.
And yet, Elden Ring Nightreign persists. I got to try out what is easily the best celebration of From Software’s decade-plus-long winning streak, a game that really feels like its built on all the Souls games before it.
On paper, Elden Ring Nightreign sounds like something I’d have raised my eyebrows at. It’s taking the Elden Ring formula and distilling it into a roguelite package- pick a character, do encounters then face off against a boss. Let’s face it, the industry has made me a little jaded at the word that often just means “content is repeated at random to increase engagement time”.
How To Crib A Decade’s Worth Of Trends And Get Away With It
Actually playing Elden Ring Nightreign, it really feels like From Software have iterated on enough of the past decade’s trends to make something truly wonderful here. It feels like nothing couldn’t be used as an inspiration- it’s got nodes of Battle Royale, hints of Roguelikes and even a gameplay loop that’s extremely reminiscent of Dark Souls The Boardgame.
That’s not to say that just anyone could get away with making a game like this. While it’s got framework built around popular trends, it’s the juicy, gooey From Software insides that make it so special. The Souls games are intricate in a way not many action-RPGs are, and Elden Ring Nightreign feels like it’s especially capitalized on this. The game doesn’t waste your time with telling you to use blunt weapons on armored enemies- chances are you know this.
By removing things like equip load and stat requirements, the game really streamlines your ability to plan your build. Yes, it’s mainly perk-based and my most-reviled colored loot system is here. But the ability to have a greatsword and a greataxe equipped for different scenarios makes me feel rewarded for remembering which situations favor these specific weapon classes.
The game doesn’t really try to explain things to you- I only recognized the little Scarlet Rot icon next to my new weapon because that’s how I dealt with Base Elden Ring’s HP-inflated bosses. Similarly, the randomized Ashes of War on every piece of gear make a lot more sense if you already know, fundamentally, what each one does.
Yet, combining it with all those aforementioned other experiences makes something that feels less like a pop quiz on how many Elden Ring items you remember and more like something new. Recognizing the tilesets that make up Elden Ring Nightreign’s map means knowing that the Agheel Lake has a church in it, which means a guaranteed Flask upgrade.
The huge step up to mobility, however means that the weak point at the top of the Flame Chariots is actually reachable, and a bossfight consisting of three of them is now more doable, especially if your squad are in sync. It’s all familiar, yes, but you’re given new and novel ways to interact with them to the point that base Elden Ring is starting to feel very slow in comparison.
Those Dang Elden Ring Nightreign Bosses
Like any Souls game, though, Elden Ring Nightreign lives and dies by its bossfights. During the daytime portions, it feels like every landmark has some kind of boss mob associated with it. Some can be normal enemies elevated to boss status, groups of a specific mob, or even downright actual minibosses. They’re not big on surprises nor should they be- taking them down feels more like laning in a MOBA than some kind of peak moment.
Or at least I thought, until my second day of playing the Elden Ring Nightreign Network Test. Suddenly, during the second in-game day, you hear dialogue calling you a usurper: and who should appear but Margit The Fell Omen himself, in the middle of broad daylight here to throw hands.
It’s such a cool moment that shakes up the formula drastically- lose and he brands your team with a debuff to take more damage. He does also target specific players, so I’m sure come launch people will weaponize his single-minded hate to deal with him.
For those of you who think he’s just an imported Margit fight from Elden Ring, that’s not true either- he sports a shiny new moveset, even having Mohg’s blood attacks. That’s because he’s not Margit per se- the game just calls him The Fell Omen. But I’d recognize that spite anywhere.
He’s not the only cool boss, either- the Centipede demon has a tail-cutting mechanic very evocative of Dark Souls 1- though rather than getting a new weapon for your troubles you’re instead rewarded with a new enemy running around.
And that’s why I think Elden Ring Nightreign feels like a From Software Festival game. Somewhere, deep in the game, I feel lies some kind of nod to anything from another From Software game. I’ve seen the Bloodborne rally system, Sekiro-level mobility to even a sprint that feels like Armored Core’s Assault Boost.
My only concern with Elden Ring Nightreign is I have no idea what the game is going to look like to someone not deathly obsessed with these games. I don’t think you need to play the whole library to appreciate it, but Elden Ring itself almost feels like required playing to understand the fundamentals of its combat system.
Still, as someone nowhere near that category, the game is rapidly shooting up my most anticipated titles. I’d love to see what the remaining roster of its playable characters looks like- as much as I enjoy the pilebunking adventures of the Knight-class Wylder it’d be really interesting what playstyles they’re looking to promote with the remaining half of the roster.
