Elden Ring Nightreign: The Forsaken Hollows Review – The Dreg Heap

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The initial reaction to Nightreign’s first paid downloadable content has been quite divisive. While FromSoftware games often receive mixed reviews on Steam – as seen with Shadow of the Erdtree – it’s harder to defend the value of The Forsaken Hollows. Players who found Nightreign a focused and concise experience may question whether this DLC offers enough new content. However, if you enjoyed the core gameplay of Nightreign, this DLC is likely worth checking out.

The plot is simple: after finding a hidden door past the Jar Merchant, you’ll be sent to a new area to battle the Dreglord. He understandably despises you and wants to destroy the Night. When you inevitably fall in battle, you’ll return to the Roundtable Hold to regroup with your Nightfarer companions and try again to defeat him.

Like many FromSoftware games, Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree features rich backstory explaining the Dreglord, the origins of the Roundtable Hold, and other details. It introduces a massive underground area called the Great Hollow, featuring a huge crystal and a mysterious tower. While all of this is interesting, it doesn’t significantly impact your main goal. There’s less emphasis on elaborate storytelling, which is a change for better or worse, but it does allow us to focus on the core new content.

If you were looking forward to fighting Mohg and experiencing his Nihil countdown, you’re in luck – he’s included here! The battle has even been adjusted to work well with three players. The Demon Prince is very similar to how he appeared in Dark Souls 3: The Ringed City, but Artorias, originally from the Dark Souls 1 DLC, has been completely redesigned and is now a major challenge.

Keep in mind that some rules and conditions might apply to the new content. You’ll find familiar bosses from Days 1 and 2, like the Dancing Lion, Death Knights, and the Great Red Bear (which still has a surprisingly long reach!). If you enjoyed fighting Mohg and timing his Nihil countdown, he’s back with extra mechanics for three players. The Demon Prince is largely unchanged from Dark Souls 3: The Ringed City, but Artorias, originally from the Dark Souls 1 DLC, has been completely reworked and is now an even tougher opponent.

Three new Invasion events have been added, though they can be a little unpredictable. Gladius attacks with fire, gradually reducing your health until you destroy all of its forms. Caligo creates a freezing fog and then falls asleep. The Balancers might even kidnap you, sending you to random places – including the new swamp area – to defeat enemies in order to regain flask charges. There’s also a really funny event – I won’t give away the details – that brings back a boss you already defeated on Day 1.

Look, most of the bosses are cool, but Gladius and Caligo can be seriously frustrating. Like, if you only manage to take down one of the three Gladius bodies – yeah, they’re split up in different spots, so good luck with that – you’ll be swarmed by these fire dogs forever until you find and kill all three. And if you decide to just…leave the others alive for some reason? Those dogs will just keep coming after you, and they hit HARD. Honestly, I feel really bad for anyone trying to do this solo, because hunting down all three can take ages for a reward that isn’t even that great.

Ugh, Caligo is seriously frustrating, but in a funny way. If he shows up in the Great Hollow, visibility gets terrible. Trying to hit that spiritspring jump from the big crystal becomes a total gamble – you have no idea where you’re even going to land! And to make things even better, the game starts chugging with frame drops. It’s a mess, honestly, but kinda hilarious.

The new Shifting Earth map is stunning. Initially, it felt similar to the Siofra River area in Elden Ring, but with more varied heights, like the Land of Shadow. The core gameplay remains true to Shifting Earth – you’ll need to activate four large crystals to reach the central tower without being affected by the Crystal Curse. The tower is a highlight, offering tough boss fights and a rewarding prize for those who conquer it.

It’s no surprise the bosses on Day 2 are also really well-designed. Without giving too much away, the Balancers aren’t as brutally difficult as I expected, but the fight still feels epic and grand, and the music is fantastic.

At first, getting around can be tricky. The area is built around a large central crystal, with limited routes and plenty of ways to fall. While it’s amusing to watch a friend tumble into the void because they mistook a broken crystal for a path, it’s less fun to roll off an edge during a fight with a Runebear or get swept away by the Night’s Tide while trying to climb. You might expect a place with this much verticality to be easy to navigate with Nightreign’s abilities, but the Great Hollow has been carefully designed to keep you on the correct routes – meaning you really need to pay attention to where you’re going.

At first, the map was a bit annoying, but I started to like it more as I played. While finding the best path definitely helped, the same is true for Limveld. The main goal in Limveld feels much clearer and more focused. I still think Limveld is better, mainly because it can include random events that make each playthrough more interesting. The Great Hollow, on the other hand, can become repetitive because the same task often takes two full nights to complete.

I’ve been checking out the new Nightfarers, and honestly, they’re a bit rough around the edges, but super fun to play! I’ve mostly been focusing on the Undertaker – she’s a tank! Her ability lets her get really tough, and she can just keep attacking without flinching. But the best part? Her Ultimate is so satisfying to use. It’s even better when other players pop theirs, because you get a free one of your own for a little while! If you’ve got two Undertakers on your team, chaining their Ultimates together is just incredible – it’s a total power move.

Even though I haven’t spent a lot of time with the Scholar, I can say he’s incredibly valuable, perhaps even more so than other characters. He can both weaken enemies and strengthen allies, and his ability to spread damage is a huge benefit. What really makes him stand out, though, is how he interacts with items. For example, you can boost the Boiled Prawn to give your team extra defense and health. Or, use his magical abilities to inflict powerful status effects. He’s a bit complex to master, and if you prefer a close-combat style, you’ll definitely want the Relic that lets you re-spec into Endurance and Dexterity.

It’s no surprise the Day 2 bosses are impressive. The Balancers aren’t as relentlessly difficult as I expected, but the fight quickly becomes epic, and the music is fantastic. The Dreglord is a different beast – less graceful, much more aggressive, but still a thrilling encounter, particularly in its second phase. While you might notice similarities to bosses from other Dark Souls games (and perhaps a Bloodborne expansion), it’s a very fun and challenging fight overall.

It’s frustrating that Nightreign, as a roguelike, relies on finding new weapons to keep each playthrough interesting. It feels disappointing when runs don’t offer any fresh options. Given that FromSoftware often includes content from older games, it would be great to see at least 10-20 weapons added that aren’t already in the game.

This DLC has some significant problems, primarily because it’s paid content that divides the player base. The new missions to fight the Balancers and Dreglord are only available to DLC owners, meaning players without the DLC can’t team up with those who have it. This could make it harder for new players or those wanting to replay the original Nightlords content to find matches. While the number of players returning to the base game after completing the DLC might lessen this issue over time, it still creates a split within the community.

Another problem is the complete absence of new weapons. I appreciate the new Relics and that each original class now has a new Vessel, even though you have to play through Deep of Night to get it. However, it’s really strange that no new weapons were added. Beyond the new hammers and straight swords for the Nightfarers, it would have been great to see some new options for the older classes – something to encourage players to try them out again beyond just experimenting with Relic builds.

While experiences with the new map will likely differ, the two new Nightfarers and Day 3 bosses are a welcome addition. However, considering the DLC costs over a third of the original game’s price, the amount of new content feels a bit lacking. In a game like this, where variety is key, the absence of new weapons is disappointing. It’s surprising, especially since FromSoftware often includes content from past games, that they didn’t prioritize adding at least 10 or 20 weapons not already found in the main Nightreign game. I’m not asking for a simple copy-paste job, but it’s genuinely puzzling why this wasn’t addressed earlier, particularly since we’ve known about the DLC for some time.

So, is The Forsaken Hollows worth the $15 price tag? Honestly, if you loved Nightreign, then yeah, I think it’s worth picking up, even if it’s just for a little while. But it really depends on what you’re looking for. The Great Hollow isn’t going to appeal to everyone, and I’m not sure how much replay value there is unless you’re really into tackling all the Nightfarer challenges by yourself. It feels like a solid addition overall, but FromSoftware is going to need to keep supporting it with updates to make it truly shine.

This game was reviewed on PC.

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2025-12-08 20:13