Elden Ring: Nightreign Sells 2 Million Copies on Day One

FromSoftware and Bandai Namco’s highly anticipated co-op spin-off, Elden Ring: Nightreign, has officially launched with a bang. The game crossed 2 million players in less than 24 hours, according to an announcement on the official Elden Ring X account.

This milestone marks a massive debut for the studio’s latest release, especially considering that Nightreign is not part of any gaming subscription service like Xbox Game Pass or PlayStation Plus. That means the player count essentially reflects 2 million copies sold in just one day—a staggering figure by any standard.

A Huge Launch, But a Divided Audience

Elden Ring: Nightreign also surged to over 313,000 concurrent players on Steam, making it one of the biggest PC launches of 2025. It now trails only behind Schedule 1 and Monster Hunter Wilds in terms of peak PC player count for the year.

Moreover, on Steam, Nightreign has already outperformed the combined peak player numbers of Dark Souls II, Dark Souls III, and Dark Souls Remastered as per SteamDB.

Yet despite the huge numbers, not everyone is singing praises.

The game currently holds a “mixed” user rating on Steam, with many fans voicing concerns about several core gameplay mechanics. Chief among them is the lack of Duo mode and meaningful solo balancing, as the game is clearly designed around a three-player co-op system.

Players have also expressed frustration over the absence of crossplay as well as the lack of basic communication tools like voice or text chat. Many say it's extremely difficult to coordinate with random teammates, especially for players not already part of an organized party.

A patch aimed at improving solo gameplay is reportedly coming next week, but until then, many solo adventurers may find the experience overwhelming.

Beyond gameplay structure, Nightreign has also drawn criticism for technical shortcomings, including:

• A 60 FPS cap (with no option for higher frame rates)

• Lack of ultrawide monitor support

• Occasional performance drops and bugs

Additionally, players have called out the game’s resurrection mechanic and fast-paced “ring system” for removing the deliberate pacing that typically defines Soulslike titles.

Despite all this, there are still plenty of fans enjoying Nightreign. The game’s roguelite elements, larger-scale multiplayer boss battles, and creative class designs have earned praise. Streamers and co-op fans seem particularly drawn to the title, calling it a bold and exciting new direction for FromSoftware.

It’s important to note that Nightreign isn’t trying to be Elden Ring 2. It abandons the slow-burn, open-world exploration of the original in favor of fast-paced, team-based gameplay. And while that’s an exciting pivot for some, it clearly isn’t for everyone.

Elden Ring: Nightreign is now available on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and Windows PC (via Steam).