"Elden Ring's Nightreign Echoes Forgotten God of War"

This past weekend marked the first round of network tests for Elden Ring Nightreign, an eagerly anticipated standalone multiplayer game branching out from FromSoftware's masterpiece, Elden Ring. Unlike last year's Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, Nightreign departs significantly from its parent game's open-world structure, embracing a more focused survival format. In this game, three-player teams parachute into progressively shrinking maps to battle waves of enemies and increasingly formidable bosses. This design clearly draws inspiration from the incredibly popular Fortnite, which boasts a staggering 200 million players this month alone.

However, Nightreign's similarities extend beyond Fortnite to another, less celebrated game: 2013's God of War: Ascension. This connection, while surprising, is a positive one.

God of War: Ascension, released between 2010's God of War 3 and the 2018 Norse-themed reboot, serves as a prequel set in the Greek mythology era, chronicling Kratos's struggle to break his oath to Aries. Often dubbed the black sheep of the franchise due to its inability to match the epic finale of the original trilogy, Ascension is nonetheless an underrated gem. While its boss fight against the Furies didn't reach the iconic status of the battle with Zeus, Ascension featured memorable set-pieces like the Prison of the Damned, a dungeon carved into the flesh and bones of a 100-armed giant.

More crucially, Ascension broke new ground with its multiplayer mode, Trial of the Gods, which shares striking similarities with Elden Ring Nightreign. In Ascension's story, players encounter an NPC in the Prison of the Damned who prematurely celebrates being saved, only to be crushed by the level's boss. In multiplayer mode, this same NPC becomes the player character, teleported to Olympus to pledge allegiance to one of four gods—Zeus, Poseidon, Hades, or Aries—each granting unique weapons, armor, and magical abilities for various PvP and PvE modes, including the cooperative Trial of the Gods.

Gameplay previews of Nightreign from notable "Soulsborne" YouTubers like VaatiVidya and Iron Pineapple, as well as IGN's coverage, have highlighted its similarities to live service games like Fortnite. Nightreign features randomized loot, resource management, and environmental hazards that challenge players as maps shrink. It even nods to Fortnite's iconic skydiving entry, with players descending via spirit birds.

While God of War: Ascension doesn't feature skydiving, its Trial of the Gods mode shares much with Nightreign. Both are cooperative experiences with teams facing escalating challenges, including bosses from previous games like Hercules from God of War 3 or the Nameless King from Dark Souls 3. Both operate on a timed mechanic, with Ascension's timer pausing upon enemy defeats, and both utilize small or shrinking maps. Additionally, both are multiplayer ventures from studios renowned for single-player titles, created without direct oversight from their original series directors.

Nightreign elicits similar reactions from players as Ascension's Trial of the Gods, described as a frantic, exhilarating race against time. Contrasting the more relaxed pace of the base Elden Ring game, Nightreign demands quick decisions and efficient resource use. VaatiVidya noted these constraints were "made in the name of speed and efficiency." Without the trusty steed Torrent, players can channel a spirit horse to run faster and jump higher.

Ascension's multiplayer mode also enhanced its single-player blueprint for tighter pacing, employing techniques similar to Nightreign: increased run speed, extended jumps, automated parkour, and a grapple attack akin to Nightreign's Wylder character. These new mechanics are vital, as the combat, though not overly challenging, pits players against swarms of enemies, necessitating swift and decisive action.

Nightreign's resemblance to Ascension is unexpected, given the latter's obscurity and the contrasting origins of the Soulslike genre versus God of War. Where God of War portrays players as god-killing warriors, Soulslike games like Elden Ring cast players as nameless, cursed undead facing constant challenges. Yet, as players have mastered these games and developers have provided more powerful tools, the challenge has lessened. Nightreign reintroduces this challenge without overpowered builds, while still offering the thrill of a time-pressured, Spartan-like experience reminiscent of Ascension.