The Dark Souls series and its family of spinoff Soulsborne titles have put players to the test for years, slowly cultivating and collecting a dedicated, vocal, and slightly sadistic fanbase. Hordes of players have been lighting bonfires, bashing and rolling through enemies, and meeting gruesome and unsavory deaths time and time again. That all being said, Dark Souls isn't for everybody.
The "git-gud" mentality of its players and the game's infamous "prepare to die" strategy understandably turn a lot of newcomers off. But that's not to say there aren't enjoyable Souls-like titles. On the contrary, there are plenty of action games and RPGs out there that carry the Dark Souls elements without brutalizing new players to the genre.
Ghost Of Tsushima
Ghost of Tsushima might not be the first title that comes to mind when someone thinks of a Souls-like, but it fits more than a few criteria to be considered. Apart from its RPG elements and its distinctively stylistic hack-and-slash combat, it's a very atmospheric game that pulls a portion of said technique from Dark Souls.
It's this atmosphere that's liable to draw in more players, as the Akira-Kurosawa-inspired visuals mesh perfectly with the bushido-inspired swordplay for a truly ninja-born experience. As a samurai-turned ninja, players will explore a beautifully mythic and equally treacherous world on their quest for vengeance. Mowing down warriors might be easier than horrific monsters, but players will still walk away from encounters feeling like an extra on Seven Samurai.
Titan Souls
While it might resemble a SNES game, Titan Souls blends elements from Zelda, Dark Souls, and Shadow of the Colossus to create a challenging yet addictive dungeon-crawling boss rush. Behind the 16-bit beauty of the aesthetic, the controls and combat feel much more at home in the kingdom of Lordran than anywhere else.
Several top-down adventure titles have Souls-like qualities to them, but this game truly hits the nail on the head. With its dodge-roll combat and emphasis on an enemy's weakness and environment, it's blatantly clear how much it truly tries to be a hybrid of Zelda and Souls. Many of the game's bosses and the way they are defeated feel scarily close to the likes of the Asylum Demon and the Gaping Dragon.
Death’s Door
Death's Door is yet another crossbreed of Zelda and Dark Souls, but it takes a much more atmospheric than a difficulty-based approach to its identity. While it does have a healthy serving of weirdly whimsical side characters, the gothic designs, atmosphere, and motifs of death, souls, and other such themes are heavily saturated through the game.
True, it has its cute elements and eccentric characters, but its bosses, combat, and an overall mixture of darkness and supernatural entities are clear homages to the infamous series. Paired with the semi-familiar combat, it begins taking on more and more Dark Souls qualities the further a player goes.
Hades
"Prepare to Die" is a phrase all Souls players are all too familiar with. Death is a necessary, yet ultimately infuriating, part of the genre experience. In most cases, it's ultimately what turns gamers away from anything in FromSoftware's Soulsborne family, but Hades turns death into more of an aid than a sign of defeat.
Being an immortal means death is more of an inconvenience than anything else. With each fall to the forces of the underworld, Zagreus comes back stronger and more prepared to ascend to Mount Olympus. The mix of dungeon-crawling and dodge-roll combat mechanics is what earns it a Souls-like reputation, but the emphasis on death is what cements its status.
Salt And Sanctuary
There's perhaps no better way to describe Salt and Sanctuary than "2D Dark Souls." Right from the early levels of this gothic and gruesome Metroidvania, it's painfully obvious that the developers were clearly pulling from Dark Souls for their world, monsters, and overall aesthetic.
Darkness, brutal bosses, and the emphasis on repetitive death are the flavors of the day in this action-platformer, but it's the Metroidvania format that will keep new Souls-like players coming back. The combat is where the challenge truly comes into play, and a guide would certainly benefit most players, but it's still easier to swallow compared to most of its breed.
Blasphemous
For a game that takes more from the Metroidvania side than the Souls side, Blasphemous is just what the doctor ordered. Although it does pull certain elements like combat mechanics and death consequences, it's the gruesome, gothic, and nightmarish designs that truly pull it into Dark Souls territory.
Its bosses, enemies, and combat are exceptionally visceral and violent. For a game with 16-bit graphics, the Penitent One is capable of some exceedingly gory takedowns, no matter what he faces.
Lords of the Fallen
Lords of the Fallen takes the gameplay and framework of Dark Souls, but removes the steep learning curve and tones down the unfair difficulty spike to offer up a more action-focused adventure. By pulling the focus more towards hack-and-slash combat and less towards its punishing difficulty, players can actually have a fair and fighting chance against the unholy legions of Darkspawn that are running amuck.
The field of battle is considerably more balanced than its inspiration, and the combat is more hard-hitting, crunchy, and satisfying than the constantly rolling battles seen before. Especially once the shield-bash skill is unlocked. It's not just a satisfying experience, but an empowering one as well.
Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen
Capcom's high fantasy adventure definitely has a Dark Souls flavor, but there's a certain air of Monster Hunter. It's a game that mostly focuses on its story and world rather than combat. That being said, many of the massive monsters and bosses take some time to bring down, much like any Souls boss.
It's a rich fantasy world that comes with all the bells and whistles a player can expect from a western ARPG, but even seasoned Souls players will find themselves right at home. Though not as dark, it's certainly a classic RPG ideal for anyone looking for a classic hack-and-slash adventure.
Hollow Knight
When it comes to genre-defining Metroidvanias, Hollow Knight is often put right at the forefront. And while it does have its dark and gothic atmosphere, massive bosses, death mechanic, and expansive world, to call it purely a Souls-like game would be grossly unfair.
There are some similarities at face value, but the game simply has so much more to offer than just the standard-issue dark action-platformer with gothic elements and brutal boss fights. It's not just something to hack-and-slash through, but an exploratory experience that keeps pulling the player deeper and deeper into its strange and unusual world.
Ashen
Ashen is a Souls-like game every newcomer should play, simply because it factors in all the mechanics and practices of the titular series, but completely takes away the overly-difficult learning curve, and the overpowered bosses in favor of exploration, learning, and a heavy focus on progression. It's easily the most user-friendly alternative to the Souls series.
What truly makes this title stand out above the rest is the attention to progression. From the player character's evolving armor and weapons to the improvement and growth of their settlement, the game makes it overtly known how much they are progressing and encourages further exploration in its low-fantasy world of gods and monsters. It definitely makes the experience less of a grind and more of a building to complete the game.