Elden Ring Nightreign's Traversal Can't Fill the Torrent…

Summary

Elden Ring Nightreign ramps up the pace with a roguelike structure and a race against the clock.
New traversal mechanics include wall jumps, but players miss the faithful mount, Torrent.
Torrent's absence in Elden Ring Nightreign highlights the loss of companionship and strategic advantages.

In a substantial departure from FromSoftware's signature formula, Elden Ring Nightreign ramps up the pace with its unorthodox roguelike gameplay structure designed around a cooperative framework. Each session in Elden Ring Nightreign is essentially a race against the clock, as players progress through three in-game days and defeat bosses along the way until they eventually reach various Nightlords. The pace of this race is maintained by a shrinking ring of death similar to those found in Fortnite and Apex Legends, meaning players are almost always moving.

With that new design philosophy also comes new traversal mechanics in Elden Ring Nightreign, including the ability that players now have to wall jump in order to reach greater heights, as well as the absence of fall damage. However, even though these new traversal mechanics are fun to play with and even complement Elden Ring Nightreign's design, the absence of Torrent, the faithful mount players were accompanied by in Elden Ring and its Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, is sorely felt, leaving a void in his wake.

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By Josh Cotts

Torrent's Absence in Elden Ring Nightreign Is Sorely Felt

Torrent Was More Than a Mount

One of the main things that made Torrent so special in Elden Ring and its subsequent DLC is that he was always more than just a mount. Sure, summoning him could get players from one area to another with relative ease, but anytime a companion like this is included in a game, there's substantial potential for players to bond with it in a way they might not with any other NPC. This is certainly the case with Elden Ring's Torrent, whose quiet, humble nature is very easy to become fond of.

Even though these new traversal mechanics are fun to play with and even complement Elden Ring Nightreign's design, the absence of Torrent, the faithful mount players were accompanied by in Elden Ring and its Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, is sorely felt, leaving a void in his wake.

Elden Ring might be recognized as one of the most accessible FromSoftware titles yet, but it still has plenty of moments that are grim, demanding, dark, and difficult. That's also what made Torrent such a special inclusion after years of players traversing FromSoftware's atmospheric worlds on their own. There was a certain comfort that came with knowing Torrent was always right there, as he could be summoned at a moment's notice to get players out of danger. This was especially noticeable in large boss arenas, where Torrent's movement capabilities gave players a significant edge.

Elden Ring Nightreign's Movement Could Benefit From Torrent's Inclusion

By contrast, Elden Ring Nightreign drops players into large arenas where mounted combat would feel right at home, but instead leaves them dismounted and exposed, with very little room to breathe. This isn't the only aspect of the game that could benefit from a mount like Torrent either, as Elden Ring Nightreign's fast pace means it is essentially built for Torrent's speed. Of course, some might say that this would ruin the point the ring of death, but anything can be balanced. At the very least, a mount like Torrent would help players reach greater heights more efficiently, as the wall jump can be a bit janky at times.

Players can still Surge Sprint in Elden Ring Nightreign, which allows them to move faster than they could on foot in Elden Ring, but even then, it doesn't compare to the speed offered by Torrent.

Elden Ring Nightreign may offer new traversal mechanics to match its high-octane structure, but in doing so, it lost something more meaningful than mobility. Torrent wasn't more than just a tool for speed and verticality. Rather, he was a trusted presence, a quiet anchor in a world that constantly threatened to overwhelm those journeying through it. Elden Ring Nightreign's traversal mechanics serve their purpose, but they still lack that personal touch, that subtle companionship that made exploring Elden Ring's open world feel less lonely.

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