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10 Games That Will Make You A Souls Fan

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Games That Will Make You A Souls Fan Another's Crab Treasure Bloodborne Salt and Sanctuary

It took me a while before I really started to enjoy challenging games. The idea of being defeated over and over again until you finally succeed was not equivalent to fun for me – until I finally understood the point of Souls games.

The key is to take all the frustration that emerges from the punishing mechanics to keep you motivated and on your toes, sharpening your skills at each try (and not make you simply rage about it).

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Once you have mastered that, your victory will eventually come, with an incredible, rewarding feeling of annihilating that damn monster that took you three hours and almost made you throw the controller at the wall.

Also, you should not force yourself if it is not clicking. Take your time. The game that you choose to play is also very important – that is why I am here to guide you with an infallible order of experiences that are going to make you fall in love with Souls and unlock a brand new world of gaming.

10 Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order

Force Is Strong With Souls

Games That Will Make You A Souls Fan Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order

I consider Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order as a good starter, since it borrows some of the core aspects of a Soulslike, but while doing it as its own thing with a high level of adventure.

You play as Cal Kestis, a Jedi Padawan who survived Order 66 and now needs to fight the Empire from the shadows – a quite simple story which highlights the exploration and gameplay that are similar to Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, but in a more accessible way.

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Its world structure is gorgeous and divided into interconnected levels, with backtracking, a lot of secret areas, and many enemies and bosses to defeat. And what makes the difference is the presence of an adjustable difficulty level.

So it ends up being a great, and most importantly, fun way to train your abilities and timing without the frustration factor, increasing its difficulty when you gain more confidence and get more comfortable with it.

9 Another Crab’s Treasure

Who Said You Can’t Laugh With Souls?

Games That Will Make You A Souls Fan Another Crabs Treasure

Another Crab’s Treasure

Released
April 25, 2024

ESRB
T For Teen Due To Blood, Crude Humor, Language, Use of Tobacco, Violence

Developer(s)
Aggro Crab

Publisher(s)
Aggro Crab

Engine
Unity

Platform(s)
PC, PS5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S

How Long To Beat
14 Hours

OpenCritic Rating
Strong

If you want a Soulslike that you can also laugh with, what you are looking for is definitely Another Crab’s Treasure. You play as a hermit crab who needs to recover his shell that was stolen by moneylenders.

It mixes elements of Souls, platforming, and RPGs, and it is just as wacky as it sounds, even including a fun shell-swapping mechanic that allows you to use weird items in combat and exploration, such as a soda can, a gacha capsule, and even a Nintendo 64 cartridge.

What I love about it is that, despite having a lighthearted tone and colorful visuals, it also has challenging combat that has just the right amount of difficulty – almost to the point of frustration, but not truly getting there.

It is pretty different from what we are used to in the genre, bringing a nice breath of fresh air to the table. Also, if you ever get frustrated, you can simply “shell-swap” a gun and shoot everyone. Sounds fun, right?

8 Remnant II

Shooting Souls

Games That Will Make You A Souls Fan Remnant II

Released
July 25, 2023

ESRB
M for Mature 17+ due to Blood and Gore, Partial Nudity, Strong Language, Violence

Developer(s)
Gunfire Games

Publisher(s)
Gearbox Publishing

Engine
Unreal Engine 4

Multiplayer
Online Multiplayer

Number of Players
1-3

Steam Deck Compatibility
Unsupported

Platform(s)
PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S

How Long To Beat
20 Hours

X|S Optimized
Yes

File Size Xbox Series
65 GB (January 2024)

Metascore
85

PS Plus Availability
Extra & Premium

OpenCritic Rating
Strong

Remnant II is basically what I like to call “Dark Souls with guns”, because it is a dark, gritty shooter for players who are into challenging and cooperative experiences.

It is set in a post-apocalyptic world that was corrupted by a plant-like entity and taken over by enormous, creepy creatures. So, basically, fighting them is a regular breakfast for the remaining humans who are still alive.

That said, you and two more friends need to explore interconnected worlds to fight against all dangers that threaten humanity with extinction.

With that setting, its Souls aspects can be felt in the gameplay, with movement and dodging being similar, as well as huge bosses with different stages. But there is no penalty for dying, and there is also difficulty selection, so it is a very forgiving Soulslike game to start with.

7 Death’s Door

Little Crow’s Souls

Games That Will Make You A Souls Fan Deaths Door

Released
July 20, 2021

ESRB
T For Teen Due To Blood, Fantasy Violence, Language, Use of Alcohol and Tobacco

Developer(s)
Acid Nerve

Publisher(s)
Devolver Digital

Engine
Unity

Number of Players
1

Steam Deck Compatibility
Verified

Platform(s)
PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S

How Long To Beat
10 Hours

X|S Optimized
Yes

File Size Xbox Series
3 GB (November 2023)

OpenCritic Rating
Mighty

I do not think that Death’s Door is a Soulslike game as we would expect from the genre, but I have to say that its tone, world-building, and combat feel like an ambitious mix between Dark Souls and The Legend of Zelda classic titles.

And yes, it is just as amazing as you are picturing it right now, and can get you hooked pretty quickly, especially if you are into short, combat-driven adventures.

You control a crow who works as a reaper, collecting souls (literally) for a mysterious organization and, consequently, having to battle and kill your “clients”. It has an interesting, melancholy story and dark setting, along with charming visuals and tough boss fights (with A LOT of dodging strategies).

Also, after finishing for the first time, you unlock a harder mode, where you need to face everything all over again with a simple and weak umbrella as your main weapon. It is a nice and fun way to sharpen your skills even more.

6 Blasphemous

Amen

Games That Will Make You A Souls Fan Blasphemous

Blasphemous

Speaking of games that enjoy adding elements of Soulslike to their formula, Blasphemous is also an excellent experience for getting used to (and consequently, hooked on) punishing mechanics.

It is actually an incredible Metroidvania that some people have nicknamed a “2D Dark Souls”, especially for having a dark medieval aesthetic, plenty of bosses, and challenging gameplay, with a respectful die-and-respawn-with-healing system.

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If you want even more blasphemy, or even try a lighter version of it instead, go for its sequel, Blasphemous 2. It removes systems like instantly dying from falls or spikes, being slightly less Souls.

5 Salt and Sanctuary

Throwing Salt Over Your Shoulder

Games That Will Make You A Souls Fan Salt And Sanctuary

Released
March 15, 2016

ESRB
M For Mature 17+ // Blood and Gore, Violence

Developer(s)
Ska Studios

Publisher(s)
Ska Studios

Engine
FNA / Microsoft XNA Game Studio

Multiplayer
Online Multiplayer

Steam Deck Compatibility
Verified

PC Release Date
May 17, 2016

Nintendo Switch Release Date
August 2, 2018

Platform(s)
PS4, Xbox One, Switch, PS Vita, PC

How Long To Beat
16 Hours

OpenCritic Rating
Strong

Now it is finally time to talk about an actual Soulslike that is fully 2D – the true “2D Dark Souls” in my heart – a little action-RPG called Salt and Sanctuary.

When I first played it, it felt like the game managed to perfectly capture all the feelings, the challenge, and the joy of playing through the original Dark Souls. But on a much more contained and smaller scale, of course.

What matters is that, from the character creation screen to the seamless exploration and stamina system, it is as Souls as a platformer allows it to be.

Also, its story is capable of making Hidetaka Miyazaki completely jealous of dealing with forgotten islands, a lost princess, grotesque creatures, and horrible secrets.

4 Lies of P

Pinocchio Meets Dark Souls

Games That Will Make You A Souls Fan Lies Of P

Released
September 19, 2023

ESRB
M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood, Violence

Developer(s)
Round8 Studio, Neowiz

Publisher(s)
Neowiz

Engine
Unreal Engine 4

Platform(s)
PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One

How Long To Beat
20 Hours

X|S Optimized
Yes

File Size Xbox Series
35 GB (November 2023)

Metascore
84

PS Plus Availability
N/A

OpenCritic Rating
Strong

In my opinion, Lies of P is the best Soulslike game not made by FromSoftware (since it is pretty hard to beat the studio that basically established the genre, right?), so there is nothing more fair than putting it right before we get into Soulsborne territory.

It is an action-RPG that is surprisingly inspired by the classic tale of Pinocchio – yes, the wooden boy that cannot lie, otherwise his nose will grow.

You actually control him in a dark, nightmarish city, where puppets have revolted against humanity. So it is up to you, with the help of Geppetto (obviously), to find a way to stop this madness and even turn yourself into a real boy.

You have this weird, yet compelling story guided by challenging gameplay, with different builds, tricky systems like timing and parry, and plenty of tough bosses to defeat. A pretty cool mix, and one that now even features an easier difficulty if you really need to ease yourself in.

3 Elden Ring

It Is Time, Tarnished

Games That Will Make You A Souls Fan Elden Ring

Released
February 25, 2022

ESRB
M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Language, Suggestive Themes, Violence

Developer(s)
From Software

Publisher(s)
Bandai Namco Entertainment, From Software

Engine
Proprietary

Multiplayer
Online Co-Op, Online Multiplayer

Cross-Platform Play
PS4 & PS5 and Xbox One & Xbox Series X|S

Cross Save
no

Steam Deck Compatibility
yes

Platform(s)
PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X

How Long To Beat
58 Hours

X|S Optimized
yes

Metascore
96

Platforms That Support Crossplay
PS4 & PS5 and Xbox One & Xbox Series X|S

PS Plus Availability
N/A

OpenCritic Rating
Mighty

The reason I did not put Elden Ring earlier on the list (as I imagine many would do) is because I feel that Margit, the Fell Omen, also known as the first major boss of the game, can crush a beginner’s hopes and dreams right on the spot if you do not know what you are doing.

But it is FromSoftware’s most accessible title by far, and it manages to do that by offering different systems and mechanics to amplify build options for your characters, consequently making the journey easier (as much as possible for a Souls experience, of course).

On top of that, we have an open world full of secrets that encourage you to freely explore, since every corner has something interesting to find and keeps you engaged. But it is also possible to simply follow the main story, if you so desire.

2 Dark Souls

Everlasting Classic

Games That Will Make You A Souls Fan Dark Souls

Released
September 22, 2011

ESRB
M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Partial Nudity, Violence

Developer(s)
From Software

Publisher(s)
Namco Bandai

Engine
Havok

Multiplayer
Online Multiplayer

Cross-Platform Play
No, Dark Souls 3 is not cross-platform between PS4 and PC

Cross Save
Dark Souls always save your game data using steam cloud

Franchise
Dark Souls

Steam Deck Compatibility
yes

PC Release Date
August 24, 2012

Platform(s)
Xbox 360, Xbox One, PC, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch

How Long To Beat
100 hours

X|S Optimized
no

OpenCritic Rating
Mighty

I have already been called crazy for saying so, but the original Dark Souls is like a basic training for getting into Soulslikes for me.

Despite being very challenging and even scary at first sight, trust me when I say that the first half of the game perfectly teaches the players how to play it – and, most importantly, while you are already playing it.

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That idea is so well-crafted into the gameplay that you suddenly see yourself immersed in the gimmicks, mechanics, and mysteries of that world without even noticing, fully exploring Anor Londo, befriending Solaire, and looking for a way to trick the Iron Golem into falling off the ledge.

1 Bloodborne

Embrace The Old Blood

Games That Will Make You A Souls Fan Bloodborne

Released
March 24, 2015

ESRB
M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Violence

Developer(s)
From Software

Publisher(s)
Sony

Engine
Havok

Multiplayer
Online Multiplayer

Cross-Platform Play
ps4,ps5

Cross Save
yes

Steam Deck Compatibility
no

Platform(s)
PlayStation 4

How Long To Beat
33 Hours

X|S Optimized
no

PS Plus Availability
Extra & Premium

OpenCritic Rating
Mighty

Bloodborne was my first Soulsborne ever, and became my favorite one after finishing it. Also, it is one of the few games that I consider to be a true masterpiece of horror. So it was impossible not to be on this list.

But I have to confess that I was a little confused on my first try. Those first corridors of wolves and enemies are not beginner-friendly at all, and even made me give up for a while. Months later, I tried again with a friend – and so my journey truly began.

In a Lovecraftian horror setting, you play as a Hunter in this fictional, dystopian universe where most humans have gone mad and ended up transformed into monsters. It is up to you, then, to defeat them and uncover the mysteries of this world.

You have this challenging, yet extremely exciting experience that deals with epic boss fights, an extremely gothic atmosphere, and even entities beyond human comprehension. And I guarantee that every fight rewards you with an amazing, rewarding feeling.

Give it a try, because this one is the main culprit for Souls being my favorite genre today – and I bet it could be yours too.

A collage of Soulsborne games: Dark Souls, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, Elden Ring, and Bloodborne

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