FromSoftware had to adjust the difficulty in Elden Ring Nightreign after the beta to make sure it's "challenging as you progress, but still manageable," and yes, some things are harder now

Elden Ring Nightreign screenshot
(Image credit: FromSoftware)

Don't expect Elden Ring Nightreign to feel exactly the same as it did during its beta test when it launches for real this month, as game director Junya Ishizaki says that adjustments have been made surrounding the co-op action RPG's difficulty.

In an interview published on the official PlayStation blog today, Ishizaki responds to whether any changes have been made to Nightreign following the results of February's network test, and the short answer is yes.

The first change is more to do with how certain bits of information are conveyed, as the director notes that "some players found it difficult to understand what elements were visible on the map and said it was hard to identify next steps, or how to use some of the character movesets." Going forward, this should now be "conveyed more clearly to players during gameplay."

In addition, Ishizaki says, FromSoftware "received a lot of helpful feedback regarding the difficulty."

He explains: "We made some adjustments to strike a balance that makes the game challenging as you progress, but still manageable. Gladius, one of the Nightlords, will also receive some updates, so players have that to look forward to in the final game."

To be clear, Gladius is getting tougher, not weaker, as the blog post notes that buffs are coming to the three-headed wolf boss. So, if you already struggled with him during the network test (he was beaten over 58,000 times, which was a lot less than all of the other bosses), then, uh, good luck.

Thankfully, there's not long at all to wait now before we can embark on Nightreign, with it set to release across PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S on May 30. FromSoftware is working on plenty of things worth getting excited about, with The Duskbloods – a PvPvE action RPG – on the way as a Switch 2 exclusive next year, too.

Elden Ring Nightreign outfits resurrect our favorite sun knight with their bucket load of Dark Souls references: "SOLAIRE IS BACK."

Catherine Lewis
News Writer

I'm one of GamesRadar+'s news writers, who works alongside the rest of the news team to deliver cool gaming stories that we love. After spending more hours than I can count filling The University of Sheffield's student newspaper with Pokemon and indie game content, and picking up a degree in Journalism Studies, I started my career at GAMINGbible where I worked as a journalist for over a year and a half. I then became TechRadar Gaming's news writer, where I sourced stories and wrote about all sorts of intriguing topics. In my spare time, you're sure to find me on my Nintendo Switch or PS5 playing through story-driven RPGs like Xenoblade Chronicles and Persona 5 Royal, nuzlocking old Pokemon games, or going for a Victory Royale in Fortnite.

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.