I didn’t realize how much Elden Ring Nightreign upgraded its Dark Souls skins until I saw them side-by-side with the originals

FromSoft dataminer and YouTuber BonfireVN has uploaded a new video comparing Elden Ring Nightreign’s Dark Souls throwback skins to their original models, and I was surprised at how much they’ve actually been touched up since their original appearances.

I like to think I’m a tough, serious guy who’s not easily manipulated when a piece of intellectual property goes “Hey, remember this other intellectual property?” But I’d be lying if I said I didn’t squeal like a school girl when I saw the reprised Dark Souls bosses in Nightreign, or the Dark Souls skins you unlock by beating the game’s final boss.

I think I just assumed that all of these models were just straight ports of their original or Dark Souls iterations, but BonfireVN’s side-by-side shows that a lot of texture and fine modeling detail has been tweaked to make them better fit Elden Ring’s more advanced visuals.

My personal favorite reprise skin, the Llewellyn/Drang armor for Ironeye from Dark Souls 2 and 3, is a great example: Its fur collar has gotten a big structural rework, while its texture detail is a generational improvement on the Dark Souls 3 iteration.

The Llewellyn set also benefits from perhaps the biggest and most noticeable upgrade to any of the Dark Souls skins: An actual matching helmet. The OG versions left Fashion Souls-conscious players scrambling to find a matching hat, while Ironeye gets a sick helmet/hood combo I seriously wish had been in the original games.

The rest of the skins have similarly subtle, tasteful modernizations, and this all just has me thinking about what’s next. First, the inevitable future BonfireVN video(s) comparing the returning Dark Souls bosses to their originals, and second, new skins that will hopefully come with Nightreign’s unconfirmed DLC. My big wishlist item? A Sir Alonne outfit for Executor⁠—Dark Souls 2’s DLC samurai boss is a series favorite for me, and he perfectly fits the character.