The Surge 2

Ever since 2014’s Lords of the Fallen, Deck13 Interactive has specialized in the Souls-like experience. Out of all the studio’s efforts, The Surge 2 comes the closest to fully replicating FromSoftware’s masterpieces, all the while still separating itself from the crowd through a sci-fi aesthetic and a limb-targeting mechanic.

Mortal Shell

Another game that screams Dark Souls, Mortal Shell takes the subgenre’s standard formula and injects a mechanic that changes everything: stone. In this game, players unlock shells which essentially serve as different classes, and a central aspect of combat is the ability to turn into stone at the click of a button.

Thymesia

Thymesia wears its Bloodborne influence on its sleeve, including a playable character who could pass for an NPC in FromSoftware’s game. Cast as a plague doctor, players travel through primarily linear areas, fighting challenging enemies en route to a final boss fight. Compared to other Souls-likes, Thymesia is a relatively streamlined experience that can be completed in potentially a day. People who really enjoy this project can get some more mileage by completing side quests, some of which even reveal hidden areas worth exploring.

Blasphemous

Through games like Hollow Knight and Salt & Sanctuary, Souls-like transitioned into 2D, a match made in heaven considering the origin of Metroidvanias. From its obtuse lore to its grim visuals and weighty combat, Blasphemous wears its influences on its sleeves; thankfully, the game also does justice by them.

Packed with religious imagery and spectacular boss fights, Blasphemous takes players on an evocative trip into a world fit for nightmares. Focusing on parrying, dodging, and reading moves, the combat system is incredibly satisfying and dominates the entire experience.

Assassin’s Creed Odyssey

Odyssey’s Ancient Greece setting produces some of the most impressive sights in the franchise’s history, and the world is simply a joy to explore. The writing is also pretty good, and that goes beyond the main storyline since even the side quests are quite strong.

Castlevania Anniversary Collection

The Luna+ and Retro channels both have the Castlevania Anniversary Collection, which comes with eight games. As old as these releases are, quite a few of them hold up well, and Konami’s series could be seen as something of a precursor to modern gothic titles such as Dark Souls.

Covering the franchise’s 8-bit and 16-bit eras, Castlevania Anniversary Collection showcases fantastic level design, clever boss fights, timeless music, and gorgeous visuals for the time. While not every game hits the mark, Castlevania, Dracula’s Curse, Super Castlevania 4, and Bloodlines certainly strike a bullseye.

Other Games Fans Of Dark Souls Might Enjoy

Control: Ultimate Edition

Remedy Entertainment’s Control takes inspiration from the SCP Foundation, a wiki filled with fictional stories about creepy occurrences and unexplainable phenomenon. Set in the headquarters of the Federal Bureau of Control, Jesse Faden enters the building in search of her brother, but she soon finds herself cast as the new Director and put in charge of taking out a powerful and corruptive threat known as the Hiss. Equipped with an awesome gun and gradually unlocking a range of unique powers, Jesse must explore a location that defies the laws of space and time while taking out reanimated corpses and bizarre entities from another dimension.

In terms of gameplay, Control is generally a third-person shooter, albeit one that complements its gunplay with offensive, defensive, and mobility abilities. Even though the minute-to-minute action is not similar to a Souls-like, Remedy’s game has a Metroidvania structure akin to a FromSoftware project. While the FBC building is considerably smaller than something like Lothran, Control’s world is similarly designed to be explored thoroughly and (mostly) freely.

Devil May Cry 5

OK, Devil May Cry 5 plays nothing like Dark Souls. Capcom’s game is all about stylish, fast-paced action with a heavy emphasis on combos. Nothing about that is Souls-like, however, DMC 5 is still a worthy recommendation for fans searching for a game that focuses on melee combat and knows its way around an epic boss fight.

DMC 5 has three playable characters who all control very differently, allowing the gameplay to remain fresh for way longer than a single playthrough. Look, this game is just fantastic, and sometimes that is enough.

Resident Evil 2 (2019)

Another Capcom offering, Resident Evil 2 (2019) is a remake of the 1998 PS1 classic, and it is a more than respectful update of an all-time great horror game. A third-person shooter, RE2 plays completely differently from a Souls-like, both in terms of pacing and mechanics. As Leon or Claire, players traverse Raccoon City in the midst of an outbreak; to make matters worse, they are stalked by Mr. X, a Tyrant that is like a Terminator on steroids.

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Differences in gameplay aside, RE2 maintains a steady state of danger and tension similar to the greatest Souls-like games. Every corner could lead to a horrifying menace that spells doom for the heroes, creating an experience that puts players constantly on edge.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance

Warhorse Studios’ Kingdom Come: Deliverance is an ambitious RPG that prioritizes realism above accessibility or immediacy. Set during the 15th century, players step into the shoes of an ordinary guy who seeks revenge following the destruction of his village. This leads him down a path of war, tragedy, sacrifice, and death.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance features a first-person combat system designed around carefully reading the enemy’s movements and reacting accordingly. Rushing or button-mashing is a recipe for disaster, similar to Souls-likes, and the combat requires a lot of practice to master. The RPG is set in an impressive and immersive open-world, and the latter descriptor extends to every aspect of the campaign. Players have to live in this world, and it is cruel, harsh, and unforgiving.

Dusk

A first-person shooter inspired by classics like Doom, at a glance, Dusk could not seem further removed from Dark Souls. Offering fast-paced action that depend more on reflexes than memorizing the enemies’ movement, David Szymanski’s project is very much cut from the same cloth as ’90s shooters, which is positive thing.

No More Heroes

Although they have their share of issues such as bland side activities and, in the case of the first entry, an empty hub world, the No More Heroes games excel in one department that Souls-like fans will likely appreciate: boss fights. Each of these challenges is epic, exciting, and unique. The bosses are nearly all memorable, some of which have backstories that are shockingly great considering their relatively limited time on screen.

Shadow Man Remastered

Originally released in 1999 and developed by Acclaim Studios Teesside, Shadow Man is a singular entity quite unlike anything else on the market. It shares similarities with some action-horror games like BloodRayne, but those titles do not come close to matching Shadow Man’s sheer bizarreness and open-ended nature. The story is absurdly brilliant: Michael LeRoi, a warrior, is the only person stopping the world from being plunged into chaos courtesy of a villain named Legion and his horde of serial killers taken from history. Therefore, LeRoi heads to Deadside, which is basically hell, to eliminate the killers and collect their Dark Souls.

Shadow Man does not play anything like a FromSoftware project, and the combat has not aged particularly well. However, the game drops players in the intimidating hellscape that is Deadside with little in the way of direction, expecting them to make their own way. This is somewhat reminiscent of a Souls game, and Shadow Man’s nightmarish ambient is quite effective.