Elden Ring Nightreign Channels the Spirit of a Forgotten God of War Game

This past weekend marked the first network tests for Elden Ring: Nightreign, the upcoming standalone multiplayer game branching from FromSoftware's acclaimed title. Unlike last year's Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, Nightreign shares only its name and aesthetic with Elden Ring, exchanging the open world for a streamlined survival format. Three-player teams descend onto shrinking maps, battling enemies and increasingly difficult bosses. This design evokes the immensely popular Fortnite—understandable, given Fortnite's 200 million players this month alone.

However, Nightreign bears a striking resemblance to a lesser-known, often maligned game: 2013's God of War: Ascension. And that's a positive comparison.

Released between 2010's God of War 3 and 2018's Norse reboot, Ascension, a prequel set before the original Greek trilogy, followed Kratos as he attempted to break his oath with Ares. Failing to match the epic finale of the original trilogy, and aiming for a formula shake-up, Ascension became the franchise's black sheep—a decent appetizer preceding an amazing main course. This reputation, while understandable, is unfair. While Kratos's confrontation with the Furies didn't reach the heights of his fight with Zeus, the prequel boasted impressive set pieces, such as the Prison of the Damned, a labyrinthine dungeon within a colossal, immobilized giant. More importantly, Ascension pioneered something the franchise hadn't done before: multiplayer.

In Ascension's story, while navigating the Prison of the Damned, players encounter a chained NPC who prematurely exclaims, "You saved me!" before being crushed by the level boss. Unlocking multiplayer after this point reveals this NPC as the player character. Teleported to Olympus moments before death, players pledge allegiance to one of four gods—Zeus, Poseidon, Hades, or Ares—each granting unique weapons, armor, and magic. These are used across five multiplayer modes, four being competitive PvP.

The fifth mode, Trial of the Gods, is cooperative PvE—and essentially Elden Ring: Nightreign.

Previews of Nightreign from prominent Soulsborne YouTubers like VaatiVidya and Iron Pineapple, and IGN, highlighted similarities between FromSoftware's latest and live service games like Fortnite. Like those games, Nightreign offers randomized loot, resource management, and environmental hazards that damage health and restrict movement, increasing challenge over time. Nightreign even mirrors Fortnite's iconic drop sequence, using spirit birds to transport players to chosen positions.

While God of War: Ascension lacks the "where are we dropping?" element, deeper comparisons reveal common ground. Both Nightreign and Ascension's Trial of the Gods feature co-op gameplay where teams face increasingly difficult foes. Both offer the unexpected opportunity to battle bosses from previous games (Hercules from God of War 3 or the Nameless King from Dark Souls 3). Both have timers (though Ascension's is pauseable), and both occur on small or shrinking maps. Both are multiplayer games from studios known for single-player experiences, created without oversight from their respective series creators; Hidetaka Miyazaki is working on an undisclosed project, while the original God of War trilogy directors—David Jaffe, Cory Barlog, and Stig Asmussen—had left Sony Santa Monica before Ascension's release.

Nightreign appears to evoke the same player response as Ascension's Trial of the Gods. Participants in FromSoftware's network test described frantic, exhilarating races against time. Unlike the base game's relaxed pace, where players can approach scenarios using various weapons and abilities, Nightreign demands instinctive action, limiting resources—constraints described by VaatiVidya as "made in the name of speed and efficiency." For example, players now possess enhanced running and jumping capabilities to compensate for Torrent's absence.

Ascension's multiplayer adapted its single-player blueprint for faster pacing, employing techniques similar to Nightreign: increased run speed, extended jumps, automated parkour, and a grapple attack (also present in Nightreign's Wylder character). These new moves are crucial because, while combat isn't overly difficult, Trial of the Gods overwhelms players with enemies, making every second count. This results in players sprinting and slashing through armies with relentless speed.

Nightreign's resemblance to Ascension is surprising, given the latter's obscurity and the contrasting nature of the Soulslike genre. Where God of War empowers players as god-slaying warriors, Soulslike games cast players as weak, cursed undead facing significant challenges. One rarely shows game over screens, the other frequently does. However, this challenge, initially rage-inducing in FromSoftware's games, has lessened as players improved and developers provided better tools, leading to numerous game-breaking builds in Elden Ring. Nightreign aims to reintroduce challenge while offering skilled players the chance to experience the vengeful Spartan rush of God of War: Ascension.