Now that emphasis on cooperative multiplayer gameplay. After choosing from a handful of different playable characters, the game tosses players in the deep end to begin taking on enemies, exploring, and outrunning the encroaching rain.

While playing solo wasn't technically an option during the network test, having two players drop from a party (which happened more than a few times) equated to the same thing, and making it through even the first day on your own is not for the faint of heart. If a character is downed without anyone else in the party, they're out of luck, and the game clearly incentivizes multiplayer strategy much more than single player. However, even with a full party, if one player can't keep up or simply isn't as skilled, it makes everyone else's job that much harder.

Each Character Matters & Has A Unique Role To Play

Characters Are More Effective With Strong Teamwork

Character selection and party balance are important. Each playable character provides unique benefits to the party as a whole - assuming they can all get on the same page about where to go and which enemies to fight. Dividing and conquering is dangerous, and if a given character is downed while the other two are preoccupied, they're truly on their own.

And though Death is not the end, losing a level to revive is exponentially more noticeable when players have reached the end-day bosses and Nightlord. Leaning into each character's strengths is important in Nightreign, as well as knowing their unique Skills and Ultimate Arts. If one or more characters has a weaker build or lower level, it puts more pressure on the other party to compensate for that.

Teamwork and timing during boss and great enemy fights are essential, and lack of can become frustrating. Communication is paramount, and it's somewhat easy to get lost without proper bearings. Players are able to place pins as waypoints that can be either acknowledged or ignored, and whether each player decides to go that direction is completely up to them, though they'll all end up in the same place eventually - or face certain death.

Failing To Work As A Team Will Get You Killed

You Take The High Road, I'll Take The Low

While Elden Ring places a larger emphasis on lore, RPG elements, and character development, as well as single-player gameplay, Nightreign's focus is heavily skewed toward teamwork and multiplayer features. The game requires quick decisions made on the fly about where to go, which enemies to fight, when to bail and head to a new area, and more.

Party balance is important to the multiplayer experience no matter the game, but advancing through Nightreign hinges on a properly balanced party that can actually work together.

Playing with random people at varying degrees of skill can make communication difficult. While there are random features during each new cycle, the general layout of Limveld remains the same, but only experienced players will know what to expect.

Party balance is important to the multiplayer experience no matter the game, but advancing through Nightreign hinges on a properly balanced party that can actually work together to clear areas and take down bosses. Even agreeing on a particular location won't guarantee players end up in the same place.

For example, one player may end up going down into a tunnel while another ends up swarmed by enemies in the ruins directly above them. Verbal communication will ensure everyone's on the same page, but not all players are interested in voice chatting with random strangers - and there will often be language barriers.

Why One Player Can Make Or Break A Session

There's A Penalty For Bailing On Your Team

One concerning aspect is skill level difference among the player base. Currently, it's unclear if Nightreign will incorporate a meta-progression system to ensure players in a given party are at a similar skill level. If not, it's going to be frustrating across the board, with more-skilled players outpacing less-skilled ones, and less-skilled players feeling like they can't keep up. Perhaps this will end up being part of the larger challenge for many players, but it's just as likely players will get frustrated and bail - even if there is a penalty for doing so.

Having a weak, under-leveled, or inexperienced player in the party requires patience, while having an OP player doesn't necessarily help newer players learn the ropes or improve. For this reason, party balance is going to matter more than anything else, and people who have a set group of friends and an agreed-upon strategy are much more likely to succeed than those relying solely on matchmaking in Nightreign.

One player can make or break an Elden Ring Nightreign session, which might mean that party balance matters more than it should. If they're constantly being paired up with bad players, a large portion of veterans are going to simply try to pursue a solo approach to avoid multiplayer altogether.