The Souls-like subgenre has become progressively more ingrained into the mainstream gaming space since FromSoftware popularized the formula, especially with Elden Ring's recent emphatic success. And like the similarly coined "Metroidvania" subgenre, FromSoft's Demon's Souls and Dark Souls inspired a wealth of developers to try their hand at the formula.
Some admittedly fell flat and came off as copies. However, there are other more underrated Souls-likes -- like the sci-fi rendition of the genre in The Surge series -- that are admirable endeavors.
Blasphemous
Blending the aforementioned Metroidvania subgenre that Metroid and Castlevania paved the way for with Souls-like, The Game Kitchen's Blasphemous is arguably one of the best 2D games in the genre.
This action RPG is set in a similarly bleak dark fantasy world with a pixel art style, where players combine the platforming and exploration elements of Metroidvanias and the gritty combat of Dark Souls during gameplay. The game puts players in the role of the Pertinent One in a fictional Spain-inspired country ruled by the vice grip of the land's analog of Christian Fundamentalism during the Middle Ages.
The Surge 2
While Deck13 Interactive's first game received a more lukewarm critical reception, The Surge 2 was positively received as a welcome improvement over its predecessor. Like the Dark Souls games that influenced it, The Surge 2 is another action RPG rendition of the Souls-like genre. However, this game takes out the usual dark fantasy setting that it inspires and puts a sci-fi spin on it.
It takes place in a sci-fi dystopian future where humanity has wasted all of the earth's resources and is attempting to right their mistakes. Combined with violently entertaining combat mechanics and crafting systems, The Surge 2 should be a welcome change of pace from FromSoftware's catalog of "Soulsborne" games.
Remnant: From The Ashes
Souls-like games typically involve a focus on hand-to-hand combat (with ranged magic on the side). However, Remnant: From the Ashes by Gunfire Games is a rare example of a Souls-like that effectively throws gunplay into the mix. The game is set in a post-apocalyptic world where the planet has been devastated by an interdimensional scourge called the Root.
Throwing fast-paced third-person shooter mechanics with survival elements into its gameplay loop, Remnant: From the Ashes is a fun and unique game within the dense Souls-like genre. Just as well, the game is even more exhilarating thanks to its multiplayer components and loot-based character customization.
Salt And Sanctuary
Ska Studios' Salt and Sanctuary is another 2D dark-fantasy Souls-like that uses a gloomily stylized pixel art direction. Even if the general approach to the game is a dime a dozen, the way it implements its mix of Metroidvania with Souls-like is still engaging in its own right.
Exploration takes from the former, with players encouraged to backtrack and explore other locations after unlocking new abilities. Salt and Sanctuary cleverly uses its 2D platforming mechanics in boss fights, with players able to use the environments to their advantage. Its dark fantasy setting borrows aspects of Eldritch horror as well.
Code Vein
With how popular FromSoft's subgenre has become, it's no surprise that a game developer like Bandai Namco came along to blend that formula with anime. Code Vein admittedly received a more mixed critical reception, with criticisms aimed at the messy story, graphics, and level design.
However, the game's on-the-fly class system and bombastic anime combat style still made for an overall fun anime game. Code Vein allows for some delightfully weird character customization set to a vampiric-themed dark fantasy backdrop for those willing to play a quirky take on the subgenre.
Grime
Last year's Grime, developed by Clover Bite, is one of the most inventive Metroidvania/Souls-like games when it comes to visuals and premise. It's certainly fantastical by nature, but it's a world that's grotesquely surreal as its environments and monsters are based on monstrous bodily anatomy.
The main character, whose head is a black hole, then traverses the world to uncover how it came to be the body-horror nightmare that it is. Grittily-tough Souls-like combat with literal evolving weapons and 2D Metroidvania action-platforming come together for a creative game based on familiar inspirations.
Mortal Shell
Though certainly smaller in scope, developer Cold Symmetry's Mortal Shell has been regarded as one of the non-FromSoft Souls-like games most similar to Dark Souls. It takes place in a dreary fantasy world populated by brutal monsters to make combat a constantly intense affair, but Mortal Shell also features some standout gameplay features.
The protagonist is an entity that can possess the corpses of warriors and use their unique combat style. Players can also use a charged "Harden" ability for defense in the middle of the action, which makes for an interesting change to the gameplay loop.
Ashen
A44's Ashen is another aesthetically unique Souls-like that simultaneously distills the subgenre to its core mechanics. The game takes place in a sunless world where a character embarks on a journey in search of a home. While the bleak atmosphere is certainly par for the course in a Souls-like, it's Ashen's gloomy minimalist world that visually sets it apart.
It uses the traditional tough combat, unpredictable enemies, and subtlety unraveling story to great effect so as to not feel like a lazy knock-off of Dark Souls. The gameplay loop is even stronger thanks to the co-op multiplayer functionality.
Tunic
While the game was both released this year and garnered an impressive critical reception, it's gone somewhat under the radar due to 2022's triple-A title releases. Tunic is a beautifully and charmingly crafted action-adventure game in both art direction and gameplay. It blends the best elements of classic The Legend of Zelda games as well as Dark Souls, with an isometric perspective where level design and progression go hand-in-hand and combat that involves stamina and item management in real-time.
And, of course, Tunic drops the player into the world with little direction and a narrative that unfolds through item discovery and environmental storytelling. Hopefully, it will receive more exposure when the game releases again this fall for PlayStation consoles.
Lords Of The Fallen
Often cited as one of the original "Souls clones," Deck13 Interactive and CI Games' Lords of the Fallen unabashedly wears its inspirations on its sleeve -- which was also one of the game's several critiques amid its average reception.
It's for that reason that FromSoft veterans might understandably shrug the game off, but it's still a different enough experience for those that want more of the same and newcomers that want to tackle something more forgiving. Lords of the Fallen opts for a faster-paced action RPG experience that's partly based on loot mechanics.