Summary
Elden Ring Nightreignhas disabled multiplayer passwords for two days in a row. The restriction, which will seemingly be lifted on February 16, was possibly imposed in response toElden Ring Nightreign’s network test issues.
The firstElden Ring Nightreignnetwork test kicked off on February 14, at 6am ET / 12pm CET. While it technically ran for three hours, many players found themselves unable to establish a server connection after around 20 minutes, and ended up being unable to play until the end. The testing sessions that followed over the next 48 hours were more stable, but also came with some additional restrictions. For instance, the second February 14 test disabled multiplayer passwords.
A day later, FromSoftware opted to keep this restriction for its second February 15 session, which was held at 12:10pm CET for Europe and Asia, and 6am ET (on February 16) for North America. The company confirmed as much ahead of theElden Ring Nightreignnetwork testitself, all the while apologizing to fans for any inconvenience stemming from the inability to use password-based matchmaking during the session. FromSoftware did not elaborate on the details behind the decision to disable multiplayer passwords.
Why Did Elden Ring Nightreign Disable Multiplayer Passwords?
Even with nothing in the way of an official reason for this restriction, some explanations seem more plausible than others. For instance, early user reports on social media have previously suggested thatElden Ring Nightreign’s network test issueswere made worse for anyone who tried using multiplayer passwords. Game Rant’s limited testing performed during the first February 14 session is in line with these reports, as the Valentine’s Day test was seemingly completely unresponsive to password-based matchmaking. An alternative explanation for FromSoftware disabling multiplayer passwords is that the developer simply wanted to test how its servers behaved without them.
Elden Ring Nightreign Multiplayer Passwords Are Seemingly Returning on February 16
As of this writing, the nextElden Ring Nightreignnetwork test is scheduled to take place in Europe and Asia between 12pm and 3pm CET on Sunday, February 16. FromSoftware hasn’t said anything about this session not supporting multiplayer passwords, suggesting that the restriction won’t apply to it. It’s currently unclear whether the same will hold true for the final test, planned to kick off at 4am CET on February 17.
Elden Ring Nightreignreleases May 30. While its ongoing network test has been limited to the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, the roguelike soulslike will also be available on the PS4, Xbox One, and PC. FromSoftware recently said it’s consideringrebalancingElden Ring Nightreignto allow for two-player parties, based on early network test feedback.
