Ever since Demon’s Souls first released, people have been obsessed with the idea of playing Souls games. The Dark Souls trilogy got even more people on board with their status as being multiplatform games, and all of a sudden, everyone wanted to play these gruelingly difficult and insane games that were just so addictive. With so many fans, many other studios and developers began to look at the formula and identify pieces to use themselves, thus giving way to the term “soulslike.”
A soulslike is a game that utilizes similar mechanics and gameplay loop styles to FromSoftware. Basically, these things include smaller enemies, big and punishing boss fights, hard and addictive gameplay, reset points like a bonfire, and a disconnected narrative.
There’s also elements of role-playing and for the most part, the game details a very dark world and story at the center of the entire thing. Of course, there’s more to souls games than that, but these seem to be the most common and identifiable features.
FromSoftware has released many soulslike games as well including Bloodborne and Elden Ring, but today’s list isn’t about those games. We all know those games by now. Today’s list is about the games FromSoftware didn’t make that embody the FromSoftware formula.
1. Lies of P
Probably the best example of a soulslike is Lies of P, a game that basically encapsulates the FromSoftware formula the best of any game I’ve played recently that can call itself a soulslike.
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Its combat resembles Sekiro in a way with its constant block and parrying system, its vibes feel very in-line with Bloodborne, and it generally has the consistent feel that a souls game usually has.
Lies of P is an alternative telling of the story of Pinocchio who must uncover what happened to the city of Krat after the puppets made by Geppetto start turning on everyone and going on murderous rampages. Along the way, Pinocchio finds many new enemies and bosses to contend with.
As far as Soulslikes come, Lies of P understands what it means to be a soulslike. I personally enjoyed this game a lot and I think it really has that challenge-accomplishment factor that I look for in this genre of video games. Whenever I beat a hard or challenging boss, I found it very exciting because when I won, it felt significantly more accomplishing than other easier games.
If you’re looking for a game that feels like FromSoftware without being FromSoftware, then Lies of P is a perfect game for you. If you’re looking for a cool dark fantasy title to play that has a lot of challenge and unique visuals to it, go for Lies of P. It’s an absolutely fantastic game.
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2. Remnant: From the Ashes and Remnant II
These two may be separate games, but Remnant: From the Ashes and Remnant II are still in the same series and their gameplay is not really that different from each other, so it makes the most sense to place them in the same number.
Remnant: From the Ashes is a game that is inspired by soulslikes but involves weapons like guns, not just melee components like many other soulslikes out there. That makes it a very unique addition, as the only other souls game I can think of that includes guns is Bloodborne.
The Remnant series is about your player-character as you try to survive a post-apocalyptic world that has been overtaken by an enemy force called the Root. There’s also co-op in this title, so you can play with other people if the game gets a bit tough at some points.
Remnant From the Ashes includes lots of unique and interesting enemies to fight, and it also has some very similar mechanics to the Dark Souls games. You can dodge and roll the way you would in Dark Souls, which is something I used a lot. The game is also in third-person, but it has some cool things like weapons mods that act almost like a magic system in the game. These come in handy a lot during boss fights.
Remnant II is relatively similar to Remnant: From the Ashes in that you need to fight against the Root and includes much of the same game elements and mechanics.
For the most part, I found that both Remnant games were a lot of fun and a very unique take on the soulslike definition. In fact, I had heard that it was inspired by soulslikes, but I didn’t know how much until I got to the mist in the first boss bottle and audibly said: “Oh, this is one of THOSE games.”
And I proceeded to get very excited about it.
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3. Hollow Knight
Hollow Knight is a metroidvania game that puts you in the place of a small Knight bug who must figure out what happened to Hallownest after it was plagued by a mysterious disease.
Much of the game feels very in-line with soulslikes in that it has benches that act as rest and respawn points, challenging combat, boss fights, and unique spells that allow for more variety in the gameplay.
For the most part, Hollow Knight really showcases how a soulslike can take on a very different form. The previous games I talked about were very close in look and gameplay design to souls games, but Hollow Knight is totally different. As a 2D side-scrolling metroidvania, it has a different vibe and a different feel to it in comparison to that of games like Lies of P and Remnant. However, that does Hollow Knight a service in that it shows how the soulslike term can be applied to many different forms of games.
For me, Hollow Knight is one of those games that you can’t forget about after playing. It has a very unique feel and a very unique vibe to it that other games just don’t have. I also find that it’s a really good platformer as well, and I’ve played quite a few platformers before but there’s just something about Hollow Knight that sticks out to me the most. I can’t really put it into words, but if you play the game, I think you’ll automatically know what I mean.
I think that Hollow Knight is one of the most well-made indie games you can play as well, and it clearly shows that the devs over at Team Cherry care a lot about their game and the fans who enjoy the game as well. So, I 100% recommend and encourage everyone to give Hollow Knight a shot because it’s a fantastic title.
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4. Mortal Shell
Mortal Shell was one of the first soulslike games I had tried after Dark Souls and it is likely one of them most recognizably soulslike titles on this list. However, there are a few interesting distinctions between Mortal Shell and FromSoftware titles from a general perspective.
In Mortal Shell, you play as a sort of weird creature that takes on armor and skins called shells. These shells grant you protection and abilities as you go throughout the map and fight the various enemies and bosses provided to you in the game. You can go through the entire game without picking up a shell once, and if you beat the game you’ll actually get a special achievement for that. But, the game is overall built in a bit of a similar yet different way to most soulslike games.
The team that developed Mortal Shell explained that they designed four shells with their own playstyles and backstories in order to make up for their limited team’s ability to develop and design various pieces of armor like the Dark Souls and other FromSoftware games typically provide. They also wanted to create a more deep and emotional experience in a video game by designing a bleak and damaged world.
In my opinion, I think that Mortal Shell is a challenging game that really encompasses the challenging aspect that makes most soulslike games the way that they are. However, it also has an interesting style and take on the idea of being a soulslike with its combat, playstyles, and look.
I know that some games aren’t for everyone, but if you’re looking for an experience similar to FromSoftware but a little less like FromSoftware than say, Lies of P, then Mortal Shell is certainly a good pick for you.
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5. Blasphemous
Blasphemous is another game I mentioned in my soulslike analysis video and I think that it’s also one of the best on this list as well. Well, I think all of these games on this list are great, but you get what I mean.
Blasphemous includes some of the most interesting imagery from a game I’ve seen in a while. It’s take on a Catholic-style Spain is very different from other video games that use religious iconography and imagery. In Blasphemous, the religious symbolism, art and iconography are very integrated and well-baked into the world of the game and the lore. Additionally, there is a very sinister yet deep feel to this world of Cvstodia that the Penitent One has to go through as he undertakes a pilgrimage.
Blasphemous has a similar gameplay style to Hollow Knight seeing as it is also a metroidvania. It is also likened to being a soulslike because of its dark and bleak world, boss fights and difficult combat, and just all around being like a soulslike with its respawn points, magic system, healing system, and more.
In my honest opinion, Blasphemous has a lot going for it beyond just being a soulslike. Being a metroidvania, it’s similar to Hollow Knight in being a more unique style of the soulslike genre. However, it does hold up as a different experience than Hollow Knight and other souls likes because it has a pixelated art style and its own imagery that works well for it.
I like Blasphemous for those reasons, but the thing that really drew me into it was it’s unique art and religious-style iconography. I always appreciate when a game can integrate such things well.
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6. Nioh I and II
Nioh is a very clear example of a Soulslike game inspired by the formula of FromSoftware’s game lineup. Set in Japan in the year 1600, Nioh is about an Irish sailor named William Adams who became a samurai. The game features fighting against Yokai, or demons, who are beginning to encroach and invade the sanctity of the nation.
The developers at Team Ninja were major fans of Dark Souls and were very much inspired by the souls formula to create Nioh. Having previously worked on Ninja Gaiden as well, Team Ninja wanted to make a difficult yet also fair and rewarding for players, something that is often seen in many soulslikes out there.
The combat was influenced heavily by Dark Souls and the loot system was influenced by Diablo, but overall, Nioh is very much a soulslike that fans of Dark Souls and other FromSoftware games would definitely enjoy.
Another cool and interesting element about Nioh is sticking to historical accuracy with weapons and armor, which I’m sure is something that some people really value. I personally am not a stickler to historical accuracy in everything when it comes to video games, because they’re games, but I do appreciate when developers do the proper research to create a good game.
Nioh 2 is relatively similar to Nioh 1 except that it features a character who was a yokai that you get to design. However, both games understood the influence of Dark Souls well and created a very unique and fun gameplay system that was rewarding to play through.
The bosses are considered very difficult but in the true soulslike fashion, that’s just part of the learning process in playing these sorts of games.
7. Dead Cells
One of my favorite metroidvania games ever made, Dead Cells is a game that I would consider to be an 11/10 on any scale in any aspect. The game has been my obsession since I first tried it and I play it whenever I’m bored, want to have fun, or really in any circumstances. I just really enjoy Dead Cells.
In a way, Dead Cells is less soulslike than Hollow Knight or Blasphemous, but it still borrows heavily on those soulslike elements and even references those other games through cool easter eggs like the Hollow Knight bench and the Penitent One outfit you can unlock in the game.
Dead Cells is more rougelike than soulslike, but to me, it has a lot of soulslike feel to it as well. The combat isn’t particularly challenging all the time, but it’s the variety of the combat that can get challenging. Different enemies require different tactics. There are challenging and interesting boss fights. There are cool weapons that you can choose from and a bit of magic sprinkled in there. The chance of death is very high and when you do die, you lose all of the cells you acquire from killing enemies.
The one thing that I would say truly differentiates Dead Cells from other soulslike metroidvanias is the fact that when you die, you go back to the beginning of the levels. You don’t spawn at a nearby point, which is why this game is very rougelike. However, I do think that there are similarities to the soulslike genre so I’ll consider it one.
Dead Cells has a very interesting lore to it as well, and it’s something that you uncover as you go throughout the game. In any case, to even understand the idea of the game, you need to die at least once to unlock certain dialogue. When you’re first starting out, there’s less information given to you, and as you go, you learn more about the island you’re on and the mission you need to undertake.
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8. Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order
Star Wars games being considered soulslikes is not something I would’ve thought possible until Jedi Fallen Order came out. Even before I was super familiar with the idea of a soulslike game, I had already likened the game in a way to the soulslike formula that I had seen in Dark Souls. Challenging combat, respawn points that reset all smaller enemies, tough boss fights, magic–these things all heavily reminded me of my experience with Dark Souls.
A lot of the boss fights pose an actual challenge, especially if you turn up the difficulty. This is a difference between this game and other soulslike games because changing the difficulty does defeat the purpose of a soulslike being challenging, but if you do want it to feel like a real soulslike experience, then making the game’s difficulty high does allow for that to happen.
Another element that does differentiate Jedi Fallen Order from being a soulslike is the fact that it has a very clear and deep-rooted story that matters to the game a lot more than you see in games like Dark Souls. I mean, it is a Star Wars game, but you can see that there was a very heavy Dark Souls influence on the combat loop of the game.
That might be one of the reasons why I immediately decided that I liked the game.
In terms of the sequel, Survivor, it’s relatively the same in the combat scheme but with even more improvements.
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9. Death’s Door
Death’s Door is a game that I found to be really cool and unique and I actually had a lot of fun with it. Death’s Door is a game about a crow soul reaper that must go through certain doors that put you into new maps.
Death’s Door works a lot with the aspect of puzzles, forcing you to explore the different routes to find keys and unlock doors in order to fight against enemies and bosses.
The game is very much in-line with the style of Soulslikes, offering a heavy emphasis on dodging and rolling, melee combat, a slight magic system, respawn points, intense boss fights and more.
The boss fights also don’t have health bars if that gives you any indication on what this game is going to be like.
For me, Death’s Door was a pleasant surprise. I wasn’t sure what to expect going into it, but I found myself really liking it. As far as an indie soulslike, it’s a great one that has a lot of very familiar combat mechanics.
As a fan of indie games, I definitely recommend Death’s Door, especially if you’re always on the hunt for a new soulslike game.
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10. Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty
Wo Long is a game that released not too long ago and feels very similar in look and style to FromSoftware’s games. Wo Long allows you to design your own character and utilizes very similar mechanics to most Soulslikes such as hard melee combat, a dark dystopian-ish world and a magic system.
Wo Long isn’t my personal favorite game, but as far as Soulslikes come, it’s not too bad. It was made by the same team behind Nioh, so they already have a knowledge of what it means to create a soulslike before even going into Wo Long.
Wo Long is about your player character who is unnamed as they live throughout the fictional fall of the Han Dynasty and battle against historical figures and demons known as Qi who have corrupted mythological Chinese figures.
The combat system is pretty good in this game and the game even includes something unique for the soulslike genre, which is the morale system. This system allows for you to enter battles with high morale, making fighting against tough bosses easier than it would normally be without such a system. This is different from other soulslikes for sure, as it does take away a bit of that grueling punishing feeling that most soulslikes tend to have.
Critics really liked Wo Long and found that it fixed a lot of stuff from Nioh, however it does seem to be a bit lacking in performance on the PC version but not in the console versions.
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Zainah Yousef
Zainah Yousef is the author of The Fallen Age Saga and specializes in gaming, social media advice, and reviews. She's been writing all her life and she probably won't stop anytime soon.
