Summary
- Elden Ring: Nightreign will feature eight playable characters and eight boss types, teasing challenging, multiplayer gameplay.
- Nightreign enemies will gradually be unlocked and available to battle as players progress through the game.
- The spin-off won't have George R.R. Martin's involvement, but will include new game mechanics like a "spiritual buddy."
The Game Awards 2024 yielded many surprises for gamers during the Geoff Keighley-presented event, and the Elden Ring: Nightreign reveal was one of the best. The spin-off Elden Ring title is confirmed to be a multiplayer endeavor and a recent interview with game director Junya Ishizaki confirmed there will be eight playable characters for fans to become acquainted with, opposing eight different boss types.
Elden Ring’s base game was released in 2022, followed by the Shadow of the Erdtree expansion in 2024. The FromSoftware team recently confirmed Elden Ring 2, a direct sequel, was not being developed, but spin-off titles were teased. Despite the Game of Thrones writer being heavily involved in Elden Ring’s world-building, George R.R. Martin wasn’t a part of Nightreign’s development, and he was also absent from Shadow of the Erdtree’s creation as well.
Bed Of Chaos Should Be A Boss In Elden Ring: Nightreign – Which Other FromSoftware Bosses Should Come Back?
I cannot overstate how excited I am for Elden Ring: Nightreign, and a lot of that hype comes from what appears to be bosses and characters from previous FromSoftware games in the trailer for the new co-op multiplayer action game coming from FromSoftware. For example, you can see the Nameless King and the Fire Keeper from Dark Souls 3 in a few shots, which opens up the idea of which other bosses could be included in Elden Ring: Nightreign. If I could bring back any boss from FromSoftware's history for Elden Ring: Nightreign, as bad of an idea as it might be, I would bring back the Bed of Chaos The original boss fight is one of the most frustrating bosses in Dark Souls, but the lore behind this abomination and its design are worth re-visiting. But even if FromSoftware includes this infamous boss in Elden Ring: Nightreign, and doesn't rework its infamously awful mechanics, it would still be hilariously fun to experience it with a group of players in a co-op frenzy.
In an interview with IGN, Ishizaki touched on several details about Nightreign’s gameplay, including the narrative’s parallel existence to the base story and the playable characters involved. Elden Ring’s Tarnished protagonist shares similarities with Bloodborne’s Hunter and embarks on a similar journey to other Soulslike leads to discover their true purpose. However, Nightreign will have multiple playable characters. "So there are eight playable characters in the final game,” Ishizaki revealed, and touching on Spirit Ashes, the director also confirmed one of the characters uses a “spiritual buddy” included as a new game mechanic.
Elden Ring: Nightreign Director Confirms Eight Playable Characters and Eight Boss Types
Akin to most Soulslike games, Elden Ring contained several frustrating bosses to contest, and Nightreign will likely live up to that punishing standard. In the same interview, Ishizaki revealed there will be “eight boss types of final bosses in the final game,” and these enemies will gradually be unlocked and available to face as players progress through the game. Additionally, the director said the team was still contemplating the bosses’ difficulty when players want to redo the same fight, suggesting they were looking at new game plus elements in combat.
If Shadow of the Erdtree’s hardest bosses are anything to go by, including Promised Consort Radahn and Messmer the Impaler, Nightreign promises to be a nailbiting experience for players, even though others will be there to assist this time around in the multiplayer format. Due to Concord and Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League’s recent failure, which were both multiplayer titles, Ishizaki was asked if it was risky taking Elden Ring down the same route. The director noted FromSoftware doesn’t base their game design around industry concerns, but instead believes in the content they're passionate about.
Elden Ring
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 95 /100 Critics Rec: 98%
- Released
- February 25, 2022
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Language, Suggestive Themes, Violence
- Developer(s)
- From Software
- Publisher(s)
- Bandai Namco Entertainment, From Software
WHERE TO PLAY
ELDEN RING, developed by FromSoftware, Inc. And BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment Inc., is a fantasy action-RPG adventure set within a world created by Hidetaka Miyazaki and George R.R. Martin. Danger and discovery lurk around every corner in FromSoftware’s largest game to date. Hidetaka Miyazaki - President and Game Director of FromSoftware Inc. Known for directing critically-acclaimed games in beloved franchises including Armored Core and Dark Souls.
George R.R. Martin is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of many novels, including the acclaimed series A Song of Ice and Fire - A Game of Thrones, A Clash of Kings, A Storm of Swords, A Feast For Crows, and A Dance with Dragons. As a writer-producer, he has worked on The Twilight Zone, Beauty and the Beast, and various feature films and pilots that were never made. He lives with the lovely Parris in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
- Engine
- Proprietary
- Multiplayer
- Online Co-Op, Online Multiplayer
- Cross-Platform Play
- PS4 & PS5 and Xbox One & Xbox Series X|S
- Cross Save
- no
- Steam Deck Compatibility
- yes
- Platform(s)
- PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X
- How Long To Beat
- 58 Hours
- X|S Optimized
- yes
- PS Plus Availability
- N/A
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty
