Elden Ring Nightreign, the latest iteration of FromSoftware's critically acclaimed franchise, is taking a bold step into the world of multiplayer battle royale. In a hands-on preview, Nightreign was revealed to combine the combat and visual aesthetics of Elden Ring with roguelike live, die, repeat mechanics, stripping out the traditional soulsborne experience and replacing it with a fresh, innovative approach.

Matches in Nightreign will take place over three days, with players assaulting a Limgrave-like map called Limveld, either solo or in teams of three, to collect powerful weapons, accessories, and runes to level up their characters. As daylight turns to night, a destructive storm called Night's Tide shrinks the map, forcing players to a tiny arena where they'll face a major boss. Defeating the boss will begin the next day, with the cycle repeating until the final boss is defeated on the third night.

Instead of building bespoke characters from scratch, Nightreign introduces a roster of new classes, each with unique abilities, including an extremely powerful ultimate ability. The classes are somewhat analogous to typical warrior, mage, rogue archetypes but aren't straight-up one-to-one recreations. Characters level up at Sites of Grace, but instead of choosing which stats to upgrade, the game does it for you, making each level up a straightforward increase in strength and hardiness.

Death mechanics have also undergone a revamp for Nightreign. When you die, you'll lose all your runes and a level, but you won't immediately die. If you fall in battle, your allies' attacks can fill a meter that, once full, restores you with a little bit of health. If all three party members fall, the game restarts the day. This mechanic adds a new layer of strategy and teamwork to the game, making combat a potentially life-threatening, run-ending situation.

The addition of new traversal mechanics, such as nightsprings that act like giant springboards and Spectral Hawks that can take you to different parts of the map, adds a fresh perspective to the game. The verticality of the map, reminiscent of Shadow of the Erdtree, is now navigable in new and exciting ways.

Nightreign is a bold risk for FromSoftware, taking a beloved game and adding multiplayer elements. While this might upset some Elden Ring diehards, the result is a new, ever-changing way to play an old game you love. With its release set for May 30th on Xbox, PlayStation, and PC, Nightreign is definitely worth checking out for fans of the franchise and battle royale enthusiasts alike.

In conclusion, Elden Ring Nightreign is a bold experiment that pays off, offering a fresh take on the soulsborne genre and battle royale mechanics. By combining the best of both worlds, FromSoftware has created a unique gaming experience that is sure to captivate players. As the gaming industry continues to evolve, it will be interesting to see how Nightreign is received by the gaming community and what implications it may have for the future of gaming.