Ahead of it’s May 30th launch, FROMSOFTWARE and Bandai Namco Entertainment have treated us to a lengthy overview trailer for Elden Ring Nightreign. Aside from being able to go hands-on with the game during it’s Network Test, this is the most expansive look we’ve gotten at the Elden Ring spin-off thus far. It’s shaping up to be a wildly different experience from that of Elden Ring or Shadow of the Erdtree, but one that looks worth experiencing in it’s own right.
A New Land
Limveld, like The Lands Between, is a land that has long since fallen from it’s time of grace. The Night Lords are whittling down the natural landscape, consuming all in darkness. You and a group of others are deployed to Limveld to hunt the Night Lords and free it of its curse. As a level one character, you’ll have to swiftly move across the lands to power up by collecting gear, levelling up, and challenging powerful foes to obtain powerful rewards.
Each time you visit Limveld, it’s layout will change. New enemy arrangements, sudden events like meteor strikes, changes in terrain and structures can and will present themselves as you move between runs. It’s these key elements that lend Nightreign its replay value, incentivising you to learn the ins and outs of the lands so you can best traverse them and make the most of each day in the cycle. As the darkness slowly creeps in throughout a day, you’ll eventually be forced into an unavoidable boss fight to prove you’re strong enough to move onto the next day.
A Cooperative Undertaking
Limveld is not to be explored alone. Group up with your friends or other Nightfarers to confront the terrors that threaten Limveld. When knocked down, you can attack each other to get back in the fight. Additionally, you can all choose from eight unique Nightfarers with their own skills and abilities. Each possesses different weapons, ultimate arts, and skills. Find one that best suits your play style or fills weaknesses in your team in order to succeed.
It’s yet another example of how Nightreign wants you to spend time getting to know its world and characters. Successful runs will only come with player mastery and communication between Nightfarers. There’s something here for everyone, from the magic based Recluse to the lethal Duchess, any playstyle you can think of from Elden Ring is present in Nightreign.
Returning To The Roundtable Hold
Between runs, you’ll reconvene at your base of operations in the Roundtable Hold. It serves as a base for Nightfarers readying for battle in Limveld. The Roundtable Hold is where you can manage Relics that increase stats and alter your skills. There’re plenty of them here to experiment and play around with to see how they fit into different builds and playstyles with each Nightfarer.
One neat touch in the Roundtable Hold is the ability to equip skins for your Nightfarer. These aren’t simple recolours or armour swaps – they’re references to characters of FROMSOFTWARE’s past games like Solaire, Faraam, and Leonhard. It’s also teased that the memories of Nightfarers may return as you complete runs, filling in the blanks of your Nightfarer’s blurred memories and recollections. These can reveal further goals and objectives to complete in the runs, further adding to the narrative depth of these characters and Limveld.
Confronting The Nightlords
All of this is in service of Elden Ring Nightreign’s final challenges – the Nightlords. At the end of the third day of each run, you’ll have to combat these deadly foes. Few of these have been revealed, but each promises to be a challenging and unique boss fight to face down at the end of each run. These are tense, multi-stage fights that are only surmountable if you spend your time in Limveld efficiently so you grow in power to stand against the fall of night.
Elden Ring Nightreign launches on May 30th for PS5, PS4, Xbox, and PC.
