Elden Ring Nightreign, the co-op, roguelike spin-off of the critically acclaimed action RPG Elden Ring, is finally out in the world and, for as much as it is more Elden Ring, in so many ways, it's nothing like the original Elden Ring. Many of these differences come from the changes to the gameplay flow, but it's fascinating to have a game that is vastly different in some of its core elements than the game it's based on. While some differences, like the focus on multiplayer, are a little too obvious for this list, they are important to point out, since some fans are skipping out on Elden Ring Nightreign. Instead we've focused on more key elements of the gameplay, which is where some of the more drastic differences are.

4 It's so much faster than Elden Ring

Torrent can move, but not like this

Torrent, the horse in Elden Ring, can get you across the Lands Between pretty fast in Elden Ring, but that speed feels slow compared to the sprinting and jumping of Elden Ring Nightreign. When it comes to the differences in speed between the two games, it goes far beyond just the actual movement speed. Elden Ring is a methodical game. There are secrets, bosses, and dungeons, tucked away all over the map, making it really important that you go slowly and explore. There are also often traps or enemies hiding in corners, making sprinting through areas an easy way to find yourself back at a Site of Grace without your Runes.

Since Elden Ring Nightreign features a built-in timer, the storm, forcing you into boss fights each night, you don't have time to be methodical and find secrets. In fact, locations are marked on your map at the start of a run, encouraging you to sprint from one to the next without much thought. Despite sharing a combat system, Elden Ring Nightreign is a significantly faster-paced game.

3 Exploration is less emphasized in Nightreign

It's not really exploration if you know where every important location is

Similar to the discussion of speed, exploration is one of the key components of what made Elden Ring so special. A gigantic map without quest markers or obvious locations to go explore, just whatever you can see on the map. You would need to go to these areas and explore them for yourself, finding new places and boss fights. This sense of exploration and discovery is so key to Elden Ring that, while I understand that it doesn't make sense to have in a co-op game like Elden Ring Nightreign, it does feel like a massive part of Elden Ring was removed from the experience.

In Elden Ring Nightreign, all the important locations are marked on the map, along with some of the other bosses you will fight. There are still some random bosses exploring the world unmarked, but the level of exploration here is non-existent compared to Elden Ring.

2 It's harder to learn certain bosses in Nightreign

No longer a short walk from the Site of Grace

This applies specifically to the end-of-night bosses, including the Night Lord on night 3 in Elden Ring Nightreign, but it's harder to learn bosses compared to Elden Ring. The reason for this is pretty simple. In Elden Ring, like most FromSoftware games, you typically have to take a few attempts to beat a boss. Part of this process is learning attack patterns, so you can avoid damage long enough to win the fight. If you die, you get sent back to your Site of Grace, or a checkpoint just outside the fight in some cases. This means you can try a boss fight again after failing the fight, allowing you to quickly learn the boss with repeated attempts.

While many of the bosses don't end your run in Elden Ring Nightreign, the toughest bosses, which are the bosses at the end of each of three nights during a run, do end your run if you fail. Considering that reaching the final boss takes somewhere over 30 minutes to reach, in addition to winning several boss fights prior, it makes it difficult to get another attempt at it. It does take fewer attempts, since having three people makes the fight last longer, giving you more time to learn, but that massive break between fights is tough, and not how base Elden Ring handles it.

1 No time to theory crafting or make true builds

I feel like Tony Stark, in a cave with a box of scraps

Elden Ring is all about how you build your character, from the skill points you pick when leveling up, to the weapons, armor, and Talismans, letting you tailor your fighting style and equipment perfectly to your play style. While I usually don't go too wild with redoing my skill points in most games, I so often found cool weapons in Elden Ring that I changed my build several times, so I could use whatever new loot I've found.

Elden Ring Nightreign does some interesting things with passive abilities, but the limited amount of time you have in each round means you can't think too hard about what you are using. There are no longer armor slots, instead having you focus on three weapons and off-hand slots. You also don't get to choose skill points when you level up, with those instead dictated by your class of choice. One interesting addition is that all-equipped weapons, even if you aren't actively using them, still provide their passive buffs, which is nice.

Elden Ring Nightreign is a unique experience

Most of these comparisons between Elden Ring and Elden Ring Nightreign aren't meant to be critiques of Nightreign. Instead, it's more of an observation of how unique Elden Ring Nightreign is compared to the game it's a spin-off of. While Nightreign might not reach the bar set by Elden Ring, it also shouldn't be defined by a game it isn't trying to be.