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Many might wonder if Elden Ring Nightreign is a Soulslike or not. This article will answer this question while exploring various perspectives.
FromSoftware’s latest title, Elden Ring Nightreign, was released only a few days ago on May 30, 2025. The developers decided to put a new spin on the classic Soulsborne formula and made the newest entry into an online co-op roguelike. This time, you won’t have to fight the enemies alone, because online play in FromSoftware games has never been this easy.
In the previous titles, playing with another player has always been a matter of inconvenience since those titles were designed as single-player adventures, and the developers did not put much thought into the multiplayer aspect of those games. However, since Elden Ring Nightreign’s primary focus was always on co-op gameplay, this time the mechanics in the game are tailor-made for multiple players playing together. This includes the level designs, the Nightfarers, and of course, the bosses.
Yet, the many changes in the game’s formula have raised a very important question. Is Elden Ring Nightreing a true Souls-like title or not? The answer is no, it is not. Instead, it is a hybrid between a Soulslike and a Roguelike.
Elden Ring Nightreign Is Not a Souls-Like
To understand how Elden Ring Nightreign differs from a traditional Soulslike title, we must understand what defines a Soulslike title. Since the origins of Demon Souls, which is considered to be the pioneer of the genre, every Soulsborne game has shared the same spine or formula. All of those games, including Demon Souls, The Dark Souls Trilogy, Bloodborne, Sekiro, and Elden Ring, were distinctly different from one another. However, they all had elements that define a Soulslike title today.
These include environmental storytelling, exploration, in-depth progression systems, punishing game design, and a rich lore. Instead of any direct form of storytelling, FromSoftware has always relied on the environment, item descriptions, cryptic dialogue, and enemy design to convey the core stories and themes of their games. This approach ties perfectly to our next point, which is exploration.
Unlike most RPGs, Soulslike games throw the player into their worlds and encourage them to figure things out on their own. These titles won’t hold your hand at all, but they will reward your exploration. This design choice is a great fit for environmental storytelling, since the more you explore, the more you learn about the game’s world and the story beneath. Which can be quite rewarding since most Soulslike games often have expansive and rich lore.
In addition to that, Soulslike titles also feature in-depth progression systems. At the beginning of your playthrough, you get to choose from different classes, but from that point onward, the protagonist will be a blank slate, and you will be able to build them in any way you wish. Of course, there are certain exceptions to this, such as titles like Sekiro.
Such a robust leveling system is then complemented by the punishing game design. Soulslikes are notorious for featuring larger-than-life bosses and being incredibly hard. This makes the progression system much more enjoyable, as you will have to focus on gradually leveling up your character to take on the brutal enemies you will encounter.
How Elden Ring Nightreign Deviates From a Soulslike Title
While Elden Ring Nightreign does share some of the aspects of a Soulslike, it lacks many others. Nightreign is a combination of a co-op roguelike and a soulslike. So, even though it features great world design, it doesn’t say a lot with it. First of all, the game has a set map on which randomized events take place. It features various expeditions over multiple days and showcases many bosses for you to fight.
However, due to the multiplayer nature of the title, it lacks environmental storytelling. The map mostly serves as an arena for you to fight in, and the enemies serve as an obstacle rather than a device to progress any story or add anything to the lore. Speaking of which, Nightreign is a spin-off of Elden Ring. So, it does not have any lore of its own and borrows mostly from the original title. Backstory about the world, the events, the enemies, and the Nightfarers themselves is vague at best. The game does not try to explain anything, and it does not need to since the focus is on the co-op gameplay.
Another aspect that Nightreign does not share with other Soulslikes is the progression system. During your playthrough, you will be choosing from a limited catalogue of characters named the Nightfarers. These preset warriors do not allow much room for progression, and you do not get the opportunity to build your protagonist from scratch. Also, because the Nightfarers have set builds and are good at different stats, there are not a lot of options to level up. Of course, you can find better weapons and gear during expeditions, but that’s about it. This is a far cry from the leveling system we usually see in Soulslike titles.
Conclusion
Once you take all of the differences into account, it is quite simple to say that Elden Ring Nightreign is not a Soulslike. That doesn’t mean that the game is bad in any way. Soulslike titles mostly focus on single-player, and Nightreign is multiplayer. The co-op title is its own game. It spins the usual equation to bring a different experience that might even appeal to players who do not like the Soulslike formula. So, even though it might not fit the category of its predecessors, it is indeed a breath of fresh air.
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