‘Elden Ring: Nightreign’ review: hardcore spin-off for the diehards

In Elden Ring, nothing happens very fast. Players get dropped into the exquisitely realised fantasy world of The Lands Between and slowly attempt to restore order after the shattering of the titular ring. Early on, you’ll spend a lot of time creeping around enemy camps, carefully taking out weaker soldiers while collecting enough runes to level up. When strong enough to take on the countless demi-god bosses that stand in your way, you’ll have to master the game’s intricate combat and skill systems, as well as memorise each terrifying creature’s unique pattern of attack.

The rewards for your dedication are plentiful, including a beautifully twisting lore that was partially created by Game Of Thrones author George R.R. Martin. But it’s a game that requires patience – and a lot of practice.

• READ MORE: ‘Elden Ring’ review: Miyazaki’s masterpiece exceeds every expectation

The same is true for Elden Ring: Nightreign – a new online multiplayer spin-off that’s set in a familiar but slightly different universe to the original and its recent expansion The Shadow Of The Erdtree. The core gameplay remains the same too – kill stuff, level up, kill more stuff – but everything happens quicker. While Elden Ring players are given total freedom to explore The Land Between’s different realms and plot their own path to victory, Nightreign is far more restricted.

Taking place in Limveld, a starker version of Elden Ring’s Limgrave map, you’re recruited to break the curse of a mysterious being known only as Night. As their name suggests, they want to make things darker. Standing in the big bad’s way are one of eight ferocious warriors known as Nightfarers, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. Ironeye is great with a bow, but not so good at close-quarters combat while the Guardian is a solid brawler that needs to avoid flying enemies.

Time is of the essence in Nightreign. Each expedition into the ravaged Limveld involves surviving two days within a rapidly shrinking map, due to the poisoned Night Rain that sweeps across the land, followed by a mandatory boss battle every evening. Make it through that and you’ll confront one of eight hulking Nightlords in an all-or-nothing skirmish. Each cycle lasts around 45 minutes and your character’s progress is reset at the end of each one. You must use your limited time wisely to level up enough to survive the encounter and discover the correct weapon to give you a much-needed edge. There’s very little room for error.

To make things slightly easier, the initial expedition always takes place on the same, static map. This means you can learn which abandoned churches hold health boosts and work out where the most useful rewards are hidden. The other seven missions take place on randomly-generated areas. Annoyingly, some are essentially impossible because the poisoned Night Rain cuts off your access to much-needed items such as more health-replenishing flasks.

Your base of operations is The Roundtable. As well as letting you change outfits, you’ll read a journal which slowly reveals the stories and motivations of the eight Nightfarers as you progress through the game. That’s about as in-depth as the narrative gets though.

This safe haven also contains a mammoth codex, which has all the information you could possibly want about perks, weapon types and ‘Ultimate Moves’, an arcade-style special attack your character can unleash whenever the custom-gauge is full. Trying to wrap your head around type advantage or passive abilities can feel overwhelming – and there’s little time in the actual expeditions for trial and error. Make a mistake and someone might thrust a claw through your chest before you realise what went wrong.

Nightreign was designed as a multiplayer co-op experience, to be played with mates online. The fact is, though, that many will only play the more fiddly and frustrating single-player format. Enemies aren’t any weaker if you’re facing them one-on-one, which makes an already punishing game virtually impenetrable for all but the most dedicated of players. Even multiplayer has its challenges, with three people needing to team-up before you can get started. There’s no two-player mode or cross-play, so finding a group may prove tricky.

Ultimately, Nightreign will live or die by the community that grows around it. Having a pair of experienced gamers help you defeat the first boss, the three-headed dog Gladius, should throw the door to Limveld wide open. When your trio hits a groove and successfully takes down later bosses, it’s pure magic. There’s something incredibly satisfying about finally slaying the colossal dragon Caligo and the victory cinematics are absolutely gorgeous. Unfortunately, those moments are few and far-between, due to how much the game relies on randomly-generated challenges and the abilities of your teammates.

There’s also not much to do after defeating the eight different Nightlords and beyond some slightly different outfits and the occasional plot point, there’s no real reward for your gallant victory. Japanese developer FromSoftware has promised at least one expansion and the limited gameplay is reflected in the price (£34.99 compared to the base game’s £49.99). Don’t be fooled into thinking this is an easy way into the franchise though. If you loved the original, Nightreign is a playful reimagining that offers another 40 hours of epic combat. But if you weren’t sold the first time around, there’s nothing here that will change your mind.