Elden Ring: Nightreign Set to Include Iconic Enemies from Dark Souls, Reveals Director

Elden Ring action game Nightreign will include foes from Dark Souls, as stated by its director.

Fans of the Souls series surely recognized several familiar enemies in Nightreign’s promotional trailer presented during last week’s The Game Awards, particularly The Nameless King from Dark Souls 3 who rides a dragon unleashing lightning strikes.

In a conversation with Famitsu, director Junya Ishizaki confirmed that a “limited number” of adversaries from the Dark Souls franchise will feature in Nightreign due to the “influence of the Night King”.

He added that this is intended to enhance the sense of “chaos” associated with the night. It is all part of the alternative reality of Nightreign, which evidently allows FromSoftware to acknowledge its heritage.

As hinted by the Dark Souls social media account: “In the Night, ancient foes await – remnants of a fire that once shone brightly.”

While Ishizaki specifically mentioned only the Dark Souls series, it’s possible enemies from Bloodborne and Sekiro might also appear.

Indeed, as IGN noted, the trailer showcases player characters battling a three-headed beast with an exposed ribcage that resembles the Centipede Demon from Dark Souls. Additionally, an official screenshot released by the developer features a large spider that could potentially be The Duke’s Dear Freja from Dark Souls 2.

Additionally, fans have compared the playable character the Duchess to Bloodborne’s Lady Maria due to her quickstep ability, while Wylder’s claw shot is reminiscent of Sekiro’s grappling hook. This is certainly speculative, but based on the enhanced agility of the characters in Nightreign, there appears to be some influence from FromSoftware’s earlier titles.

Ishizaki also described Nightreign to Famitsu as a rich but brief title that distills RPG elements into a single quest.

Interaction with other players, on the other hand, will likely occur through gestures and pins to maintain the “loose connection” established in previous Souls games. There may not be PvP in this installment, however, and invasion mechanics will be absent.

Finally, during the roguelite gameplay, if players successfully complete all three days of the game’s day and night cycle, they will create relics for various enhancement effects.

A public test for Elden Ring: Nightreign is scheduled for February, with registration beginning soon!