Nothing about Elden Ring Nightreign is normal for its developer FromSoftware. Not only is it the studio’s first spin-off, it’s the first game that isn’t a lonely adventure through a fallen kingdom. It’s a co-op experience with some battle royale elements mixed in — the kind of game you have to actually get your hands on to fully understand. It’s also going to have DLC, and thanks to the Steam page, we know how it will differ from the kind of things FromSoft normally adds to its games.
It’s not much to go on, but tucked inside the description of the deluxe edition on the Steam page is a line that says “Additional DLC – Additional playable characters and bosses.” Elden Ring Nightreign will launch with eight playable characters who function sort of like different classes. There’s a nimble assassin, a big knight, an archer, and a witch with a big hat. The DLC will apparently add more heroes to the roster, and they’ll each come with their own unique combat styles and ultimate abilities.
DLC bosses, however, are the biggest mystery. Elden Ring Nightreign ditches the original game’s canon to include monsters from the Dark Souls series. The big spider from Dark Souls 2 will show up as well as the centipede demon from the first game. So when the Steam page says more bosses are coming, it could be anything FromSoft has thrown at us in the last decade.
Personally, I think it would be funny if Sister Friede, the Dark Souls 3 boss who might be as difficult as Elden Ring’s Malenia, showed up. She has a big scythe and a big angry friend you have to fight alongside her. And if FromSoft knows its audience, dropping Gwyn, Lord of Cinder in there to activate Souls fans as soon as they hear the plin plin plon of his theme play would be glorious.
The price of the DLC is still unknown, although it’s included in the deluxe edition of the game which is about $15 more than the regular version. A $15 pack of characters and bosses might be what we get at the end of the year when the DLC is supposed to drop. As for how DLC will work in a multiplayer game where everyone might not own it? That will be for the team at FromSoft to explain, hopefully before the game launches on May 30.