There has never been a time as good as now to be a Souls fan: what was a niche and below the radar genre has now become the mainstay; with AAA and indie studios alike battling it out to come up with that one perfect ‘Souls-like’ experience and adding some unique element of their own at the same time. In this list, we go through the best Souls-like games – just to keep the definition consistent: a Souls game being a game of this genre developed by From Software; and a Souls-like game being developed by studios other than From Software who try and replicate / improve upon the original framework of From Software Souls games.
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Lord Of The Fallen
Release Year: 2023
Platforms: PC, PS5, Xbox Series S/X
The most recent addition to this list; and a reboot of 2014 game (around the time Dark Souls II released); the key different element is two worlds that co-exist and how a magical lantern can be used to access the realm of the dead. Inaccessible areas in one open up in the other, to reveal hidden areas and paths. All the trappings of a Souls-like are there – starting character classes (including a Deprived equivalent as well); intricate level design, and boss fights against intimidating and fearsome looking monsters.
Lies Of P
Release Year: 2023
Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X
The game draws heavily from the rally mechanic in Bloodborne and the parry system in Sekiro; and generally favours fast paced combat to the more measured style associated with the Dark Souls games. In the game, you play as Pinocchio; and fight through puppets who have apparently taken over as you try and unlock the mystery behind what caused this. The game has multiple endings depending upon your decisions during the course of the game (whether you lie or speak the truth); and has some of the most challenging boss fights, which, even after being nerfed in subsequent patches still would easily rank among the hardest around.
Wo Long Fallen Dynasty
Release Year: 2023
Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X
The game was developed by Team Ninja, the makers behind the Nioh series; and while the inspiration and familiar styles are easily observed; Wo Long also takes heavily especially from Sekiro – parrying, posture meter being the key to success. At the same time, a variety of weapons and spells based on Water / Earth / Metal / Fire, and armour set-pieces that give different benefits (which again, can be customized) bring alive the possibility of various build combinations. The boss fights in this case are also challenging right from the first boss; to a total of 30 bosses, the player skills and build is constantly put on the test in Wo Long.
Thymesia
Release Year: 2023
Platforms: PC, PS5, Xbox Series S/X
The game wears the Bloodborne inspiration on it’s sleeve (literally and figuratively); with the protagonist on the cover looking quite like Eileen The Crow Hunter of Bloodborne. Even the kingdom of Hermes which is afflicted by the plague in Thymesia resembles Yharnam in Bloodborne. The game also benefits perfect parrying that can open up the enemy for a big attack, and quick dodges as an option instead of parrying – again a combination of Bloodborne gameplay mechanics. The boss battles are a mixed bag – with a couple of fairly challenging ones early on; but as your character becomes stronger and you progress, the second half does not dial up the challenge.
Mortal Shell
Release Year: 2023
Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X
Clearly heavily inspired from the Dark Souls set of games – slow, measured combat; lore that needs to be pieced together, notoriously difficult enemy placements further complicated by environment as a legit hazard – all these trappings are very much there. It introduces a couple of interesting variations – the player can put on a ‘Shell’; with each Shell essentially acting like a prototype build – either the tank with a high health pool; or a nimble dexterity focused build etc. There are 4 such shells to inhabit – and as such these many builds that the player can start with and is thus a bit limiting. The game does later on allow you to add a few skills of another shell, which adds to the build possibilities. While a relatively short game length, nevertheless it delivers a good Souls-like experience till it lasts.
Steel Rising
Release Year: 2022
Platforms: PC, PS5, Xbox Series S/X
The game combines French Revolution-era setting and characters and brings robots in the mix. In the game you play as Aegis; a robot who is brought to bring order to the robots that have (as is always the case in these games) rebelled against humans and are now running amok. The difficulty curve and boss fights don’t quite come close to the highs associated with games of this genre – but combined with all other checkboxes that it ticks; are still challenging enough to have this game make it to this list of top Souls-like games.
Kena Bridge Of Spirits
Release Year: 2021
Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5
Oh, one may think, looking at the overall bright, cute, inviting environments and the protagonist; that this is a game to be played to take a break from Souls-like games. But you would be mistaken – very much so. Anyone planning to take this game easy would be in for a rude shock – Souls like veterans included – especially as the game progresses into the second half and you come across challenge spikes on bosses. The combat is also quite sharp, and nicely combines melee, ranged and power attacks to be extremely engaging.
Nioh 2
Release Year: 2020
Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5
Yes, the gameplay mechanics don’t exactly mirror Souls-like…but it is an absolute fit in all other ways. Especially if you take the boss battles as the standard; Nioh 2 puts up a whopping 42 bosses, and specifically a few of those in the first quarter of this game will have you rage-quitting multiple times before a few skill upgrades make the bosses more manageable. The rich combination of different weapons and an intricate levelling system make a variety of builds possible – and several NG game cycles that really test out these builds to the max.
Hollow Knight
Release Year: 2017
Platforms: PC, Switch, WiiU, PS4, Xbox One
A 2D side-scrolling Metroidvania video game developed by an indie team; the game released in 2017 and soon became a hit – the challenging combat, overall environment and settings being the highlights. The game was successful enough to have a PS4 and Xbox One version launched a year down the line.
The Surge 2
Release Year: 2019
Platforms: PC, PS4, Xbox One
The setting is… yes, a dystopian future where resources have been exhausted and AI having become sentient. The game had a unique mechanic of targeting specific limbs to get that particular armor piece from the enemy; and the option to parry / dodge. This, along with a variety of melee weapons to suit slow but powerful / quick and nimble kind of playstyles; as well as fairly challenging boss battles made this game a well-known and well-received option for a Souls-like.
Remnant 2
Release Year: 2023
Platforms: PC, PS5, Xbox Series S/X
The sequel to an under-rated 1st iteration in this series Remnant From The Ashes that released in 2019, this is one of those games that is easiest to describe in 3 words : souls-like with guns. Remnant 2 build upon the solid foundations of the first game, brought a lot of improvement, addressed issues with some mechanics, refined combat, and added much more variety to guns and builds and skill trees to put up an excellent game that delivered exactly what it promised. Procedural generation of various worlds + bosses also meant that this game had tremendous replayability, as the sequence of worlds generated varied everytime one played this game.
The Ascent
Release Year: 2021
Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X
The game takes place in a dystopian, cyber punk-themed setting, and you play as a worker enslaved by the dominant mega-corporation “The Ascent Group”. Within this setting, using a combination of attributes, different skills within that attributes, armour for different body parts, and a variety of guns – it gave options for end-less builds. While the levels are more simplistic and linear without the roundabout interlinking typically associated with Souls-like games; enemy variety, boss fights, a nicely realized world and environment and the build possibilities are good enough for the game to earn an entry into this list of top Souls-likes.
Code Vein
Release Year: 2019
Platforms: PC, PS4 Xbox One
Developed by Bandai Namco; the game features…a post apocalyptic world, this time ravaged by monsters and vampires who yearn for human blood. While the difficulty in this game is made manageable by having a companion accompany you (who generally complements your fighting style); the game made things interesting by adding Blood Codes and Gifts – the equivalent of builds – with the benefit that you could swipe them easily, thus allowing and in fact encouraging various combinations that suit your playstyle the best.
Eldest Souls
Release Year: 2023
Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X, Nintendo Switch
Considered one of the best pixel souls games; and with a name clearly referencing where it draws its inspiration from, the game release in 2021 was praised for it’s extremely challenging boss fights, simple but effective combat system and flexibility on re-assigning skill points to try different combinations against different boss types.
Stranger Of Paradise : Final Fantasy Origin
Release Year: 2023
Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X
A different and darker realization of the Final Fantasy genre; the game was put out by Square Enix and developed by Team Ninja; and featured Jack, Ash and Jed as the protagonists who pursue Chaos. The availability of a variety of easily swappable jobs (weapon proficiencies) which could be further refined to unlock more and more specialized and super specialized jobs, or combinations of these meant a dizzying mix of build possibilities – add to it tight combat and engaging boss battles, with a parry mechanism thrown into the mix – all these are enough to make it to this list. The negatives in this case were graphics – which looked alarmingly old school, especially considering the same studio had come up with a much refined Nioh 2 before this.
Star Wars Jedi : Survivor
Release Year: 2023
Platforms: PC, PS5, Xbox Series S/X
The sequel to a very successful Star Wars Jedi : Fallen Order (which also earns its spot on this list – just that we are going with the most recent game in case of sequels); this game combines all the elements of Western RPG open world games – exploration, side quests, collectible hunting with that of Souls-like, and does almost all of these very very well to deliver an extremely polished and entertaining experience for the entire game length.
Ashen
Release Year: 2018
Platforms: PC, PS4, Xbox One Nintendo Switch
This indie gem from Annapurna Interactive has an intriguing plot of a character seeking his home, in a sunless world. The game with it’s different approach to visuals and graphics in use of cei-shading managed to deliver a challenging experience clearly drawn from Souls-likes, with stamina management a key factor to success in combat. The game was received very well on it’s release and has only built its fan following over the years.
Our Top 3 Recommendations:
Lies Of P – If you liked Bloodborne
Star Wars Jedi : Survivor – For combining the best of open world + Souls mechanics
Remnant 2 – Dark Souls with guns
And that concludes our list of the best Souls-like games, updated for 2023. Let us know if we missed any game; or which ones from the above do you plan to play next in your comments below.
