Elden Ring launched in February 2022 to critical acclaim. Two years later, we saw a very extensive DLC entitled Shadow of the Erdtree release to even more success. Now fast-forward to May 2025 and fans of the iconic From Software game can get their hands on a brand-new spin-off title known as Elden Ring Nightreign.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with Elden Ring Nightreign, you may want to head over here and check out my preview of the game from February of this year. Essentially though, this is a co-operative roguelike Player versus Enemy action-fest that breaks tradition somewhat and changes up the “Soulslike” formula From Software have crafted to perfection.



Players in Elden Ring Nightreign will take on the role of a “Nightfarer”, a warrior who has been drawn into conflict in the world of the Lands Between. The Roundtable Hold serves as your base of operations and it’s from here that you’ll launch on “Expeditions” either solo or with two other Nightfarers into the region of Limveld to quell the encroaching darkness of the Night Tide. You’ll do this by defeating an all powerful Night Lord. Sounds simple enough, right? However, should you fail to do so, it’s well… Nighty night for you, so to speak. And trust me, you will fail. A lot. This is still a “Soulslike” game after all.



As with all “Soulslike” games, tough foes can munch away gigantic chunks of your health bar and they are everywhere in Elden Ring Nightreign. The main difference to the “Soulslike” formula being that this time around, gone is the slow calculated movement we’re used to seeing. In the original Elden Ring game, you would need to approach enemies with caution and plan your every move unless you were sure you could take them down with your skill level. And even then, it was quite a challenge. In Elden Ring Nightreign, most of that calculated gameplay has been thrown out the window somewhat. Since your characters move exponentially faster, the game plays out exponentially faster too. This is an action-packed adrenaline pumping game that channels massive “Boss-Rush” energy into a final package reminiscent of multiple other games out there.

In Elden Ring Nightreign, most of that calculated gameplay has been thrown out the window somewhat. Since your characters move exponentially faster, the game plays out exponentially faster too.

If you've played PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds or Fortnite, you will be familiar with the concept of an ever-encroaching circle of impending doom that will end you. Should you be caught outside of it, your health bar will get chipped away and eventually you’ll die. The same thing happens here in Elden Ring Nightreign. Once launching on an expedition into Limveld, you’ll be dropped off by your spectral hawk and it’s time to get cracking. Players will have to explore, defeat bosses, obtain upgrades and survive three days out in the open while the Night Tide circle closes in on them. This essentially means that you can’t sit still and you’ll be constantly moving in search of new weapons or perks that will augment your damage output. The more items you find and more perks you obtain, the higher your chances of survival.



Weapons are separated into different rarities and many of them will be familiar to people who've played the original Elden Ring game and its DLC. There’s a lot of variation with the weapon types and on top of the roster of characters you can play as, players have a lot of choice as to how they can play the game.

Upon launching Nightreign, you’ll be given a brief introduction sequence and get up to speed with what’s going on in typical Soulslike fashion. Good luck fighting the tutorial boss, you’re going to need it!

The current roster of characters includes an archer, a swordsman, a mage, a tanky axe wielder and more. The developers have also stated that there’s another character that will be added to the game at a later stage and I have a sneaking suspicion that this won’t be the only one in the future. In any case, regardless of which character you pick, players will have access to unique skills and basic attacks based on the weapons they equip. Each character has access to their own special skills and an “Ultimate Art” which gradually charges up over time in-game.



Expeditions are launched either solo or in groups of three with From Software having stated that they overlooked a two-player mode so it remains to be seen if one will surface in the future. The game is definitely best played in groups of three though due to the co-operative aspects. For example, should your health bar be depleted, you will enter a dying phase where one of your allies can attack you to heal you and revive you. If they don’t and it’s still an early phase of the Night Tide, you will die and respawn at the most recent Lost Grace site you interacted with but with a lower overall level. Dying during large boss fights when the Night Tide circle has almost closed will result in death and complete defeat if your entire party is wiped out.

Weapons are separated into different rarities and many of them will be familiar to people who've played the original Elden Ring game and its DLC.

Therefore the game encourages teamwork but at the same time, there’s a level of freedom in the earlier stages of the Night Tide where you can explore the Limveld region on your own and take on enemies by yourself should you choose to. Personally I don’t recommend doing this since everything is significantly more enjoyable as a party of three taking down enemies and reaping the rewards together.



Gameplay in Elden Ring Nightreign feels like a mixture of PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, Elden Ring, Fortnite, Apex Legends and Monster Hunter - an eclectic fusion of common gameplay concepts that blends seamlessly into one extremely enjoyable package.

The fact that you can choose a different character with different abilities makes a huge difference in how an Expedition may play out too. If for example you pick Wylder as your playable character, you will be sword-slashing and running around at high speed dealing damage while another character such as the Executor is slowly dealing damage using their Ultimate Art which let’s them transform into a large monster themselves. Playing as Iron Eye is a completely different experience since he’s an archer with long range bows and arrows at his disposal. He also has an attack that’s basically the Dragon Piercer from Monster Hunter! It’s so enjoyable using this in-game to vanquish foes.



And therein lies the enjoyment with Elden Ring Nightreign. By toning down the punishing difficulty curve and increasing the speed of the gameplay as well as opening it up with different characters with different abilities and less restrictions, From Software has created a game where players can dive right in, fight challenging foes, take on tough boss enemies, rinse and repeat and have a blast while doing so. Thankfully, most of the grievances I had with the network test from February were also addressed and the game is significantly better now than it was back then which is an immense plus point.

From Software has created a game where players can dive right in, fight challenging foes, take on tough boss enemies, rinse and repeat and have a blast while doing so.

The game also surprisingly features quite a lot of story content which is slowly unlocked as you progress throughout the game defeating foes. Without spoiling too much, felling Nightlords is the main objective here and things escalate slowly from there. There is quite a bit of lore given to you via in-game descriptions and conversations with characters back at the Roundtable Hold so players should definitely spend some time engaging with that content for maximum enjoyment. Lore fanatics are going to have a field day with this game and it’s content, that’s for sure.



Moving onto the graphics, Elden Ring Nightreign looks absolutely fantastic. Elden Ring itself looked great but this title definitely refined and spruced some things up quite a bit, especially when it comes to special effects. This game is a visual feast for the eyes and there’s plenty of areas of Limveld that just look so beautiful. The character models themselves are great too and even though there are some recurring enemies that we’ve seen in Elden Ring itself, the new enemies more than make up for these. Boss designs are incredible too and players are in for a treat. From Software have done an excellent job here once again and thankfully the game runs flawlessly too based on my experience with the review build on a mid-range PC (GTX 3070Ti, Intel i7-14700K, 32gb DDR5 RAM).

The soundtrack of Elden Ring Nightreign features a main theme that has already become iconic and got itself embedded into my memory. The music and sound effects used in-game are great too and really adds to the atmosphere. There’s also quite a bit of voice acting in the game with characters speaking back at the Roundtable Hold and this is well-done with accents that are fitting for its world.



If variation with the environment was a concern from the playable network test a few months back, rest assured that there is plenty here. Limveld is a living environment that will shift over time as you fight the Night Lords off. This alleviates repetition and ensures that each run does feel different in the game.

This brings me to one of the minor grievances I have with Elden Ring Nightreign. Given the fact that it’s a roguelike, players will have to play through numerous runs to make progress with the story and with their characters. There is an upgrade mechanic in the form of relics which can be equipped to augment your characters as well as a currency known as “Murk” which can be used to make purchases.

The soundtrack of Elden Ring Nightreign features a main theme that has already become iconic and got itself embedded into my memory.

However, if you fail a run repeatedly, some gamers who lack patience might start to get annoyed or “tilted”. It might be polarising to some but with that said, if you’re a fan of the Soulslike genre, this is par for the course since rising from defeat is something that’s central to the entire genre. My second grievance lies with the fact that disconnects happen in online games and with a game like this, it can ruin an entire run not only for yourself but for others too, especially if you disconnect while fighting a Night Lord. How this plays out on launch will remain to be seen but hopefully the servers can handle everything and players have problem-free Expeditions.



From Software has already opened up the title to a wider audience by allowing co-operative gameplay though so if you’re not too skilled at video games, maybe ask a friend to help carry you to victory. Chances are you will have a blast in doing so. The game is challenging but it’s not unbeatable. With some patience and strategic gameplay, even the toughest of boss enemies can be felled here. And the sheer enjoyment you’ll feel afterwards is truly unmatched.

Overall, Elden Ring Nightreign is a certified banger of a title. From Software saw the success of Elden Ring and the unofficial mod that brought co-op to their game and decided to do one better and create their own full-fledged game. Elden Ring Nightreign is a game that you can easily sink upwards of 50 hours into and possibly even more as you and your pals go forth on Expeditions to stop the Night Tide and the Night Lords in the Lands Between. The boss battles are every bit as enjoyable and challenging as in a traditional Soulslike game but with the added enjoyment factor of having friends with you along for the whole journey and not just a once-off detour.



A typical run comes in at around roughly 30 to 45 minutes and is extremely enjoyable in bursts of gameplay with a well-refined gameplay loop. From Software also seem to have a DLC roadmap planned for the game so there’s definitely going to be a lot of longevity here. It should also be noted that there is a day-one patch to address some last minute issues too. If you’re a fan of Elden Ring or Soulslike games, definitely given Elden Ring Nightreign a try and rope two pals into it too. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to dive right back in for another Expedition.

*PC Review code provided by Bandai Namco