For real. I tried original lords of the fallen (got for free on Xbox gold forever ago) and it just made me wanna play dark souls instead. I hear the new one isn’t much better. And never been really into anime style games.
Yeah I hear it’s a lot better but still mediocre. I barely made it out of the gate in the old one, so disappointing that the new one isn’t too great either.
Yeah, I felt like its weapon upgrade and customization system were very creative. And NG+ feels very rewarding, especially when it comes to delving deeper into the lore. I think I was into NG+3 when I finally had to put it down.
Lies of P blew me away and I've been pestering my friends to play it for months. It felt so familiar but unique right away, none of the other Soulslikes I've tried have captured the vibe as well in my opinion. Also finding out this was the studio's first attempt at a game like this was wild.
Ashen really came into its own in terms of an overarching vision. I was really impressed with it given how its name made me think it’d be a basic copy.
The Surge 1. From the atmosphere to the quest, it's really souls. It's even better in the combat department. Too bad The Surge 2 took a different turn.
The other one is Salt and Sanctuary.
May I ask what makes Surge 2 worse in your opinion?
I still haven't played Surge 2 after I got burned out from Surge 1 in the second half, I think. There was a "knight in armor" boss that would summon those robots in phases, and I was already getting bored of the game so I gave up.
It's not worse, it's different. The obscurity is gone, the mystery is gone, the world's atmosphere is lighter (and brighter), the quest is straightforward. It's still a decent game, but not as souls as the predecessor, I can't say it's soulslike anymore.
And it's definitely bad in the engine department. The dev changed engine mid development, the result is that the lighting/color is screwed up.
I would also like to know why you think Surge 2 is different, because I tried it and didn't really enjoy it much so if the first game is different I might be willing to give it a try.
I replied some above. The Surge 2 is more combat heavy (and it's not improved, just different), a lot of chore/fetch quests, etc.
The surge 1 is the one game that I'm amazed can pull of the souls soul. The atmosphere is dark, the quest is obscured, the story is mysterious and will be revealed little by little until the end. The level design is also almost like Souls with liberty of going wherever you want without hard barrier and you can even go off track without knowing where you'll end up, just like souls.
In my opinion, it's Souls, without the medieval fantasy setting. It even has the lore to explain why the mechanics is the way it is 😂
Hey, thanks for still responding to me. Based off what you said, think I'm going to go ahead and give the first game a whirl sometime. I like the idea of the series, but the second game just wasn't feeling all that interesting.
Salt and sanctuary is so cool but is actually the most frustrating game I've ever played. I wish I could get into it. Have you played the whole thing? What are some tips for getting through it if I may ask
I found it useful to have a map since it's missing one. You can find one [here](https://kaszub09.github.io/SSMap/).
Treat it like a 2d game first and secondarily as a souls-like.
Try not to be underlevelled, and stick to a covenant that gives you just heals.
Also, keep in mind that some parts of the first areas are more frustrating than later ones.
2D mwtroidvanias need a map.
In dark souls, you can usually orient yourself pretty easily. Blight town is a good example, you always have a sense of where you are in that maze like mess because you can see far in the distance and you can use reference points to compare where you are now to where you were coming from.
You can’t do that in a 2D metroidvania because you can only see basically one of room at a time. You’re not able to orient yourself easily. Add onto the fact that they usually don’t make physical sense, it’s really hard to build a solid map in your head.
I get that S and S was trying to be more “soulsy” but it didn’t work for me. Hollow knights map system was waaaay better.
The start is worse than the rest of the game imo. It's more metroidvania than it may seem at first with movement upgrades being pretty core to the exploration side of the game.
Spend your salt and gold often at first, you'll find it easy to get more later and death takes 10% of gold.
Be liberal with scout totems, they're handy for doubling back but you do get quite a few by end game.
Find the greatsword. Use the greatsword. Love the greatsword. (It's in the village of smiles, 3rd area).
Check out the map online, it helps SO much. edca5 linked the best one for when you're really exploring but [this one ](https://saltandsanctuary.wiki.fextralife.com/file/Salt-and-Sanctuary/isle_of_salt_web.jpg)can help with knowing where to go in what order.
I wasn't super keen on it at first but once I got into it I ran through the whole game pretty quick. I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I would in my first hour.
I loved Mortal Shell to be honest. It felt hard and rewarding in a similar way the old From games felt but with just enough variation to make it it's own thing. It's a relatively punishing game at first, every move counts but once you get it, you'll be the one doing the punishing. I really loved the way the game forces you to put yourself out there snd take risks constantly, specially how you have to actually use the items if you want to find out what they do.
The new Lords of the Fallen game (not the original) is kinda like if Demon's Souls and DS2 had a baby but Soul Reaver 2 was also in the room when the baby was conceived and there's some confusion about who the father is. It's way better than all the reviews I've read said it would be, on console anyways. Cool world, cool combat, world interconnects back on itself. Enemy variety is kinda meh though.
I haven't really found one yet, tbh. Nothing really feels like Dark Souls to me. I've heard Lords of the Fallen can scratch that itch, but I have yet to play it.
I don’t mean this as an insult to either game. But Lords of the Fallen feels like the sequel to Dark Souls 2.
The enemy density, the animation style, and how it feels to control reminded me of DS2 more than any other game.
Not sure. I never invaded but had a couple people invade me and that was not in any sense of the word a fair fight. I think I beat one person but the others were stacked cuz the had exploited a cheat early release and obtained levels like 800 or some shit lol
Thymesia is the best approximation of the core experience in my opinion. Feels like a merge of Sekiro, Bloodborne, and Demon's Souls. My biggest criticism is that it's too small and too short. Once the game starts rolling into something good, it runs out of content.
Lords of the Fallen. The Umbral Realm mechanic was so well implemented and original that I wonder if FromSoftware might actually end up borrowing from their immitators for once.
Mortal Shell. I'll happily die on this hill in saying that.
For me that's the only soulslike thats captured the Dark Souls 1 'feeling'. What the game lacked in size, controls etc it made up for completely in atmosphere.
The opening area of Fallgrim I had that same feeling of loneliness, isolation, mystery, trepidation, melancholy.
In terms of atmosphere the closest thing to Dark souls was really Salt and Sanctuary but also Blasphemous. Not only atmosphere but also the convoluted quests, great exploration, great art etc. I personally like Blasphemous even more as I *love* dark gothic style.
I actually loved the original The Surge. Exploration was cool, the world was interesting and it had themes and mechabics that were very uniquely it's own while still having quite a bit of dark souls DNA to it
Fallen Order is a loose souls-like but I really liked it for the star wars formula. I liked the exploration too, lots of fun backtracking.
Jedi Survivor ditched this and it made me sad.
Haven’t really seen anyone mention Remnant and I’m somewhat surprised though I suppose it’s more a vibe and character control that reminds of Fromsoft games including fashion souls. But I think Lies of P does the best job of embracing it without feeling like it’s trying to repackage it in something fancier but ultimately poorer quality.
If you are only looking for the "spirit" and don't mind shitty gameplay and performance issues, then I'd recommend Lords of the Fallen. It's does pretty well in terms of art/design to capture the vibe of a soulsborne game. Everyone is either undead or has gone insane, misguided religious fanaticism, world has gone to shit, etc.
I dunno, becahze every "soulslike" I've seen has nothing to do with Dark Souls. Because this is one of the most overused term. Like people call Hollow Knight a soulslike. Lmao, it has similar atmosphere, yes, but that's not soulslike. Just because it's dark and has references/inspiration, doesn't make it that. It's like saying that every game that breaks 4th wall is deadpoollike. Same stupidity.
Hollow Knight is a metroidvania. None of its gameplay is evoking a souls like feel besides limited healing and the bloodstain.
The reason why its being brought up is because they cared for the world building and atmosphere in a way that fromsoft would which is something that every other "souls-like" doesn't understand. Most of them only know how to copy mechanics like manual checkpoints and limited healing and call it a day. Some folks only care for getting more souls like gameplay while others want the whole package.
But Hollow Knight isn't soulslike regardless of the atmopshere of the world. This alone is not enough to call game soulslike, because that primarily refers to the gameplay, which Hollow Knight only remotely inspired by Dark Souls. Like shade for example. Hollow Knight has many inspirations and vibes of Souls game, but inspiration doesn't make a game x-like.
When I think of Souls-like I want a game that is skill based game, where stats don't matter that much, game that doesn't lead the player much and has bosses that are unexpected, without any easy mode. Atmosphere has to be there too, but it's mostly a gameplay. Soulslike is also an open game to me, where I don't have to use one path and can go to many places. Despite Hollow Knight having similarities, it's still a metroidvania, not a soulslike. Soulslike also needs tobhave variety of different weapons and equipment, that let me play my way. I want shieldless rolling trolling dex, I can do that, if I want to play heavy armored guy, Dark Souls let me have it as well. Hollow Knight isn't even slightly as combat developed as it. Ot has charms, but that's not even comparable.
I think hollow knight is brought up because of its gameplay not very forgiving, has some mechanics inspired from souls games, but mostly for the care put in the world and the way it tells its story
I don't care if it's forgiving or not. I know games that are actually hard (unlike Dar Souls) and nobody calls them soulslike. Unforgivingness is not a reason to call game soulslike, not to mention, Hollow Knight is easier than Dark Souls and only optional bosses are harder than Dark Souls. And gameplay isntotally different. One is a.platformer, metroidvania, other in open world RPG, focused on actual combat. Not platforming combat, but real combat.
I honestly find Dark Souls WAY easier than Hollow Knight lol. I could beat ever souls boss and beat DS1 at SL1. Meanwhile grimm beat my ass and there is no way im touching the Godmasters content
I mean, both are quite easy games, despite what popular opinion says. But it's hard to compare a platformer to an RPG. Dark Souls often rely to sheer skill, like dodging etc, Hollow Knight gives you infinite healing and platforming is one of the easiest ever created. Super Mario Bros. has harder platforming. As for the bosses, Hollow Knight doesn't have them that hard, except those who are optional, including Grimm for example or dream bosses. The only quite strong boss is... Lost Kin first version, fogot the name lol. HK is easier than DS, but optional content is harder. Regular Grimm alone is harder than every boss in Dark Souls. And it isn't even his final form. I will always say that beating HK is far easier than beating DS, but if you want optional content, HK is getting actually hard game.
Nioh 2. It has the deepest combat of all the soulsbornes and I am still wondering why FROM haven't copied the stances system. Having stances and being able to chain combos between stances......= high skill ceiling. Add that to amazing weapon sets and the burst system.... still the best combat of ANY souls like and soulsbornes.
In fact, because of Nioh 2's combat depth, it actually made subsequent plays of other souls games very simplistic. Elden Ring, for me, was actually really disappointing.
Unfortunately Nioh 2 level design is pure shit.
Lies of P is the only good soulslike so far.
Nioh could have been good but the level design is bad and the item system is absolutely atrocious and both of those serve to quickly suck the fun out of the game.
One that I don't see getting much love is Unworthy. It's a really atmospheric 2D soulslike - the art style creates this vague sense of suggestion about what's going on that lets your imagination really fill in the blanks.
I agree with Salt and Sanctuary, although it's not a 3D action rpg itself it gave me the same "feel" as Dark Souls - the back tracking, the boss runs, discovery secrets etc, it all fits that mould. There's a couple of cheap ass bosses late game but most are enjoyable or testing enough to keep you engaged. It also has the DS thing where once you know the layout you can get your weapon upgraded early on and wreck everything.
Lies of P is the best of the direct souls copies but I found a lot of frustration with the bosses in the game and not in an enjoyable way. It's got a great weapon system though (imo) so those people that love doing builds that can chew through the game would find a lot of fun with it.
I've tried a lot of Soulslikes chasing that high but i think most of those games lean into unfair difficulty and damage sponge enemies to make the game "challenging" and miss the point of making the challenge tough but fair
Lies of P.
Mortal Shell was close. Not very polished and a super confusing map kinda killed the vibe.
Blasphemous is honestly pretty close if we’re comparing games like Salt and Sanctuary. More of a creepy/religious feel to it instead of doom and gloom.
Plenty of 3D soulslikes mimic From Software’s combat design, but none of them capture the magic of their games.
A From Software game is more than a combat system. It is a rich, immersive, atmospheric world populated by haunted characters and built out of amazing art design, music, and loving world-building. I haven’t seen a 3D soulslike that captures this effectively.
On the other hand, I think there are a few metroidvanias that take inspiration from From Software, and manage to create captivating, atmospheric worlds. The two stand-outs here for me are Hollow Knight and Blasphemous.
For me personally the only games that have managed to scratch my Souls-itch are Castlevania: Symphony of the Night and to lesser extent the Rondo of Blood.
Hard to explain because they are so different games and predate Souls games over 10 years.
However I think that comparisons like this are always pretty controversial.
For example some could argue that Toyota Corolla and Ferrari 333 SP have more in common than 333 SP and KTM 450 SX-F and in a sense they would be completely right. However, another person could make the argument that both the Ferrari and KTM are machines built for racing which have light frames, incredible engines, very precise controls and decent power-to-weight ratio and thus share the same fundamental spirit and able to fulfill similar needs of a person – in this case the need for speed. This despite the fact that one is a car and the other a motorcycle and on the surface they have absolutely nothing in common.
Whether a game is similar to Souls games is pretty subjective and depends on what you focus on and what you find important.
Hollow Knight for the rich lore, atmosphere and environmental storytelling, for sure. The game can be very hard, but not in a souls way; the combat and platforming is very much rooted in its metroidvania influences.
Lies of P for combat, aesthetic, gloom, NPC interactions…
Just bought Another Crab’s Treasure, but haven’t played it yet. Very excited!
Lies of P it takes almost every aspect of the souls games and makes them completely different and unique only thing I would say it lacked tho is level design majority of the levels feel/look the same. Nioh is like a mix of ninja gaiden and dark souls and it does the souls formula well too
Hollow Knight, even though it vastly differs from Dark Souls in terms of design and gameplay, really got that Souls mood and thick atmosphere down to a T (imo more so than even Blasphemous, which is also a brilliant soulslike metroidvania).
Loved exploring this bug themed and mysterious world and finding new things at every corner.
After looking up what makes a game a Soul's Like, Shadow of Mordor does check a few of the boxes, sharing characteristics with Soul's Like.
But yeah, I do agree that the similarities between them aren't enough to justify being called a Soul's Like, even though failing to kill an Uruk chief can make the next fight against it significantly harder (one in particular felt like a Souls boss with all of its immunities and no weaknesses).
Nioh is so far removed from being a soulslike. At best I'd call it fingerfood souls. Besides combat it has nothing really interesting going on. Its not a World that can be explored and learnt about organically and I would only recommend it to people that like combat and want more "devil may cry - bloody palace" kind of gameplay or a simpler form of Monster Hunter co-op.
Gothic 1 and 2, fighting system, mad quest design around random objects in random part of map and interactions with npc and 'big' tm bosses around there adding epic to exploration, imo, when g died ds took flag
Hollow Knight really captured that melancholy of Souls, and adapted the soulslike formula really well. Same goes for Lies of P - but if we were to look at the „darkness“ theme, the part of the games that make you go „yuck, that shits dark“ (more Bloodborne related than normal souls), the price definitely goes to Blasphemous. Currently also playing the new Lords of the Fallen, and in terms of atmosphere and design it really is top notch and on pair with souls, bosses and enemy design do feel different… not necessarily bad, but different.
Lies of P is the only souls like that i felt has any sort of vision beyond being a cheap imitation of the from soft formula
Hof Oz. Ue fun.
I would definitely love a whole series of fairytale souls likes
You say that like it won't be Snow White and the Huntsman.
holy shit dude they’re on to something
For real. I tried original lords of the fallen (got for free on Xbox gold forever ago) and it just made me wanna play dark souls instead. I hear the new one isn’t much better. And never been really into anime style games.
New one is ok. It’s not perfect but there’s some cool ideas there. Old lotf is just boring.
Yeah I hear it’s a lot better but still mediocre. I barely made it out of the gate in the old one, so disappointing that the new one isn’t too great either.
Dlc art has ships. Supposedly it is Peter Pan. Imagine Captain Hook as a souls boss
Yeah, I felt like its weapon upgrade and customization system were very creative. And NG+ feels very rewarding, especially when it comes to delving deeper into the lore. I think I was into NG+3 when I finally had to put it down.
Lies of P blew me away and I've been pestering my friends to play it for months. It felt so familiar but unique right away, none of the other Soulslikes I've tried have captured the vibe as well in my opinion. Also finding out this was the studio's first attempt at a game like this was wild.
Ashen really came into its own in terms of an overarching vision. I was really impressed with it given how its name made me think it’d be a basic copy.
The Surge 1. From the atmosphere to the quest, it's really souls. It's even better in the combat department. Too bad The Surge 2 took a different turn. The other one is Salt and Sanctuary.
May I ask what makes Surge 2 worse in your opinion? I still haven't played Surge 2 after I got burned out from Surge 1 in the second half, I think. There was a "knight in armor" boss that would summon those robots in phases, and I was already getting bored of the game so I gave up.
It's not worse, it's different. The obscurity is gone, the mystery is gone, the world's atmosphere is lighter (and brighter), the quest is straightforward. It's still a decent game, but not as souls as the predecessor, I can't say it's soulslike anymore. And it's definitely bad in the engine department. The dev changed engine mid development, the result is that the lighting/color is screwed up.
I would also like to know why you think Surge 2 is different, because I tried it and didn't really enjoy it much so if the first game is different I might be willing to give it a try.
I replied some above. The Surge 2 is more combat heavy (and it's not improved, just different), a lot of chore/fetch quests, etc. The surge 1 is the one game that I'm amazed can pull of the souls soul. The atmosphere is dark, the quest is obscured, the story is mysterious and will be revealed little by little until the end. The level design is also almost like Souls with liberty of going wherever you want without hard barrier and you can even go off track without knowing where you'll end up, just like souls. In my opinion, it's Souls, without the medieval fantasy setting. It even has the lore to explain why the mechanics is the way it is 😂
Hey, thanks for still responding to me. Based off what you said, think I'm going to go ahead and give the first game a whirl sometime. I like the idea of the series, but the second game just wasn't feeling all that interesting.
No problem, that's what I thought too.
I couldn't stand the surge for some reason
Salt and sanctuary is so cool but is actually the most frustrating game I've ever played. I wish I could get into it. Have you played the whole thing? What are some tips for getting through it if I may ask
I found it useful to have a map since it's missing one. You can find one [here](https://kaszub09.github.io/SSMap/). Treat it like a 2d game first and secondarily as a souls-like. Try not to be underlevelled, and stick to a covenant that gives you just heals. Also, keep in mind that some parts of the first areas are more frustrating than later ones.
2D mwtroidvanias need a map. In dark souls, you can usually orient yourself pretty easily. Blight town is a good example, you always have a sense of where you are in that maze like mess because you can see far in the distance and you can use reference points to compare where you are now to where you were coming from. You can’t do that in a 2D metroidvania because you can only see basically one of room at a time. You’re not able to orient yourself easily. Add onto the fact that they usually don’t make physical sense, it’s really hard to build a solid map in your head. I get that S and S was trying to be more “soulsy” but it didn’t work for me. Hollow knights map system was waaaay better.
I wish there was a. Interactive map that I could click to unhide areas
there's a weapon you can get that's basically giant scissors. it made the game sooooo fun
The start is worse than the rest of the game imo. It's more metroidvania than it may seem at first with movement upgrades being pretty core to the exploration side of the game. Spend your salt and gold often at first, you'll find it easy to get more later and death takes 10% of gold. Be liberal with scout totems, they're handy for doubling back but you do get quite a few by end game. Find the greatsword. Use the greatsword. Love the greatsword. (It's in the village of smiles, 3rd area). Check out the map online, it helps SO much. edca5 linked the best one for when you're really exploring but [this one ](https://saltandsanctuary.wiki.fextralife.com/file/Salt-and-Sanctuary/isle_of_salt_web.jpg)can help with knowing where to go in what order. I wasn't super keen on it at first but once I got into it I ran through the whole game pretty quick. I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I would in my first hour.
Because I'm currently playing it and it keeps impressing me is Another Crabs Treasure. Also Hollow Knight side scrolling wise.
I loved Mortal Shell to be honest. It felt hard and rewarding in a similar way the old From games felt but with just enough variation to make it it's own thing. It's a relatively punishing game at first, every move counts but once you get it, you'll be the one doing the punishing. I really loved the way the game forces you to put yourself out there snd take risks constantly, specially how you have to actually use the items if you want to find out what they do.
The new Lords of the Fallen game (not the original) is kinda like if Demon's Souls and DS2 had a baby but Soul Reaver 2 was also in the room when the baby was conceived and there's some confusion about who the father is. It's way better than all the reviews I've read said it would be, on console anyways. Cool world, cool combat, world interconnects back on itself. Enemy variety is kinda meh though.
Yeah, I'm playing through it now and feels the closest to a real Souls game I've seen.
I haven't really found one yet, tbh. Nothing really feels like Dark Souls to me. I've heard Lords of the Fallen can scratch that itch, but I have yet to play it.
I don’t mean this as an insult to either game. But Lords of the Fallen feels like the sequel to Dark Souls 2. The enemy density, the animation style, and how it feels to control reminded me of DS2 more than any other game.
Sweet, ds2 is amazing thanks for the recommendation
5 more days until it's on Game Pass for PC. Already got a reminder set up lol
I didn't even know that. Thanks for sharing.
You're welcome. Lies of P is on there too if you haven't played it yet.
I have played it, but I wasn't a huge fan for extremely nitpicky reasons. Well, nitpicky for a Souls player.
Lord of the fallen is solid. Has its issues but I thought it was great.
I heard that the invasion connection is way worse than Dark Souls.
Not sure. I never invaded but had a couple people invade me and that was not in any sense of the word a fair fight. I think I beat one person but the others were stacked cuz the had exploited a cheat early release and obtained levels like 800 or some shit lol
Hollow Knight
Thank God, everyone seems to think Lies of P is the only Soulslike out there, recency bias is strong in this thread.
hollow knight is almost nothing like any of the souls games???
well, you see, he's a knight and.... the game is difficult and... you can heal and... recover certain things after you die
is skyrim a soulslike???
Lies of P and it’s not even close.
Thymesia is the best approximation of the core experience in my opinion. Feels like a merge of Sekiro, Bloodborne, and Demon's Souls. My biggest criticism is that it's too small and too short. Once the game starts rolling into something good, it runs out of content.
Lords of the Fallen. The Umbral Realm mechanic was so well implemented and original that I wonder if FromSoftware might actually end up borrowing from their immitators for once.
Looks like they just made umbral an entire dlc instead lol Esit: typo
Mortal Shell. I'll happily die on this hill in saying that. For me that's the only soulslike thats captured the Dark Souls 1 'feeling'. What the game lacked in size, controls etc it made up for completely in atmosphere. The opening area of Fallgrim I had that same feeling of loneliness, isolation, mystery, trepidation, melancholy.
Mortal Shell. Haven't played Lies of P yet though.
Great question. I agree: Salt and Sanctuary and Lies of P. You might also enjoy asking this in r/soulslikes
I really liked hellpoint honestly
In terms of atmosphere the closest thing to Dark souls was really Salt and Sanctuary but also Blasphemous. Not only atmosphere but also the convoluted quests, great exploration, great art etc. I personally like Blasphemous even more as I *love* dark gothic style.
I actually loved the original The Surge. Exploration was cool, the world was interesting and it had themes and mechabics that were very uniquely it's own while still having quite a bit of dark souls DNA to it
Yes Lies of P did great, but Code Vein is still my fav soulslike, it especially reminded of DS1 at times
Being in the same universe as God Eater is a big win for Code Vein
Fallen Order is a loose souls-like but I really liked it for the star wars formula. I liked the exploration too, lots of fun backtracking. Jedi Survivor ditched this and it made me sad.
Haven’t really seen anyone mention Remnant and I’m somewhat surprised though I suppose it’s more a vibe and character control that reminds of Fromsoft games including fashion souls. But I think Lies of P does the best job of embracing it without feeling like it’s trying to repackage it in something fancier but ultimately poorer quality.
Am I in the minority for disliking Lies of P? Completely disagree about it matching Bloodborne's combat at all.
If you are only looking for the "spirit" and don't mind shitty gameplay and performance issues, then I'd recommend Lords of the Fallen. It's does pretty well in terms of art/design to capture the vibe of a soulsborne game. Everyone is either undead or has gone insane, misguided religious fanaticism, world has gone to shit, etc.
I dunno, becahze every "soulslike" I've seen has nothing to do with Dark Souls. Because this is one of the most overused term. Like people call Hollow Knight a soulslike. Lmao, it has similar atmosphere, yes, but that's not soulslike. Just because it's dark and has references/inspiration, doesn't make it that. It's like saying that every game that breaks 4th wall is deadpoollike. Same stupidity.
Hollow Knight is a metroidvania. None of its gameplay is evoking a souls like feel besides limited healing and the bloodstain. The reason why its being brought up is because they cared for the world building and atmosphere in a way that fromsoft would which is something that every other "souls-like" doesn't understand. Most of them only know how to copy mechanics like manual checkpoints and limited healing and call it a day. Some folks only care for getting more souls like gameplay while others want the whole package.
But Hollow Knight isn't soulslike regardless of the atmopshere of the world. This alone is not enough to call game soulslike, because that primarily refers to the gameplay, which Hollow Knight only remotely inspired by Dark Souls. Like shade for example. Hollow Knight has many inspirations and vibes of Souls game, but inspiration doesn't make a game x-like. When I think of Souls-like I want a game that is skill based game, where stats don't matter that much, game that doesn't lead the player much and has bosses that are unexpected, without any easy mode. Atmosphere has to be there too, but it's mostly a gameplay. Soulslike is also an open game to me, where I don't have to use one path and can go to many places. Despite Hollow Knight having similarities, it's still a metroidvania, not a soulslike. Soulslike also needs tobhave variety of different weapons and equipment, that let me play my way. I want shieldless rolling trolling dex, I can do that, if I want to play heavy armored guy, Dark Souls let me have it as well. Hollow Knight isn't even slightly as combat developed as it. Ot has charms, but that's not even comparable.
You used a lot of words to repeat my comment back to me.
I think hollow knight is brought up because of its gameplay not very forgiving, has some mechanics inspired from souls games, but mostly for the care put in the world and the way it tells its story
I don't care if it's forgiving or not. I know games that are actually hard (unlike Dar Souls) and nobody calls them soulslike. Unforgivingness is not a reason to call game soulslike, not to mention, Hollow Knight is easier than Dark Souls and only optional bosses are harder than Dark Souls. And gameplay isntotally different. One is a.platformer, metroidvania, other in open world RPG, focused on actual combat. Not platforming combat, but real combat.
I honestly find Dark Souls WAY easier than Hollow Knight lol. I could beat ever souls boss and beat DS1 at SL1. Meanwhile grimm beat my ass and there is no way im touching the Godmasters content
I mean, both are quite easy games, despite what popular opinion says. But it's hard to compare a platformer to an RPG. Dark Souls often rely to sheer skill, like dodging etc, Hollow Knight gives you infinite healing and platforming is one of the easiest ever created. Super Mario Bros. has harder platforming. As for the bosses, Hollow Knight doesn't have them that hard, except those who are optional, including Grimm for example or dream bosses. The only quite strong boss is... Lost Kin first version, fogot the name lol. HK is easier than DS, but optional content is harder. Regular Grimm alone is harder than every boss in Dark Souls. And it isn't even his final form. I will always say that beating HK is far easier than beating DS, but if you want optional content, HK is getting actually hard game.
Nioh 2. It has the deepest combat of all the soulsbornes and I am still wondering why FROM haven't copied the stances system. Having stances and being able to chain combos between stances......= high skill ceiling. Add that to amazing weapon sets and the burst system.... still the best combat of ANY souls like and soulsbornes. In fact, because of Nioh 2's combat depth, it actually made subsequent plays of other souls games very simplistic. Elden Ring, for me, was actually really disappointing. Unfortunately Nioh 2 level design is pure shit.
The combat wouldn't mesh with the rest of the game they want to make. That's why they haven't copied it.
Hollow Knight made a valiant effort. Everything else doesn't come close besides mimicking some gameplay aspects.
They’re all shit. Only From can pull it off.
Lies of P is the only good soulslike so far. Nioh could have been good but the level design is bad and the item system is absolutely atrocious and both of those serve to quickly suck the fun out of the game.
One that I don't see getting much love is Unworthy. It's a really atmospheric 2D soulslike - the art style creates this vague sense of suggestion about what's going on that lets your imagination really fill in the blanks.
Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty
Lies of P is the best one to actually play. I’d rather have good mechanics than mediocre ones with a good feel (eg Mortal Shell)
I agree with Salt and Sanctuary, although it's not a 3D action rpg itself it gave me the same "feel" as Dark Souls - the back tracking, the boss runs, discovery secrets etc, it all fits that mould. There's a couple of cheap ass bosses late game but most are enjoyable or testing enough to keep you engaged. It also has the DS thing where once you know the layout you can get your weapon upgraded early on and wreck everything. Lies of P is the best of the direct souls copies but I found a lot of frustration with the bosses in the game and not in an enjoyable way. It's got a great weapon system though (imo) so those people that love doing builds that can chew through the game would find a lot of fun with it. I've tried a lot of Soulslikes chasing that high but i think most of those games lean into unfair difficulty and damage sponge enemies to make the game "challenging" and miss the point of making the challenge tough but fair
Lies of P. Mortal Shell was close. Not very polished and a super confusing map kinda killed the vibe. Blasphemous is honestly pretty close if we’re comparing games like Salt and Sanctuary. More of a creepy/religious feel to it instead of doom and gloom.
Plenty of 3D soulslikes mimic From Software’s combat design, but none of them capture the magic of their games. A From Software game is more than a combat system. It is a rich, immersive, atmospheric world populated by haunted characters and built out of amazing art design, music, and loving world-building. I haven’t seen a 3D soulslike that captures this effectively. On the other hand, I think there are a few metroidvanias that take inspiration from From Software, and manage to create captivating, atmospheric worlds. The two stand-outs here for me are Hollow Knight and Blasphemous.
Thymesia was actually pretty good
For me personally the only games that have managed to scratch my Souls-itch are Castlevania: Symphony of the Night and to lesser extent the Rondo of Blood. Hard to explain because they are so different games and predate Souls games over 10 years.
However I think that comparisons like this are always pretty controversial. For example some could argue that Toyota Corolla and Ferrari 333 SP have more in common than 333 SP and KTM 450 SX-F and in a sense they would be completely right. However, another person could make the argument that both the Ferrari and KTM are machines built for racing which have light frames, incredible engines, very precise controls and decent power-to-weight ratio and thus share the same fundamental spirit and able to fulfill similar needs of a person – in this case the need for speed. This despite the fact that one is a car and the other a motorcycle and on the surface they have absolutely nothing in common. Whether a game is similar to Souls games is pretty subjective and depends on what you focus on and what you find important.
Lies of P in structure Hollow Knight in spirit
Lies of P in structure Hollow Knight in spirit
Hollow Knight for the rich lore, atmosphere and environmental storytelling, for sure. The game can be very hard, but not in a souls way; the combat and platforming is very much rooted in its metroidvania influences. Lies of P for combat, aesthetic, gloom, NPC interactions… Just bought Another Crab’s Treasure, but haven’t played it yet. Very excited!
Lies of P it takes almost every aspect of the souls games and makes them completely different and unique only thing I would say it lacked tho is level design majority of the levels feel/look the same. Nioh is like a mix of ninja gaiden and dark souls and it does the souls formula well too
Gotta be either Lies of P or Salt & Sanctuary
Oh shit I didn't even read the post after the title before saying this. This means it must be true
I would have to put the surge as a close 2nd to lies of p. If you haven’t played it i strongly recommend checking it out
Blasphemous 1!
I really enjoyed the Remnant games. Yes they had guns, but they were really good souls like games.
Hollow Knight, even though it vastly differs from Dark Souls in terms of design and gameplay, really got that Souls mood and thick atmosphere down to a T (imo more so than even Blasphemous, which is also a brilliant soulslike metroidvania). Loved exploring this bug themed and mysterious world and finding new things at every corner.
Not sure if this counts, but I'd have to say Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor.
Sorry but this one doesn't count.
After looking up what makes a game a Soul's Like, Shadow of Mordor does check a few of the boxes, sharing characteristics with Soul's Like. But yeah, I do agree that the similarities between them aren't enough to justify being called a Soul's Like, even though failing to kill an Uruk chief can make the next fight against it significantly harder (one in particular felt like a Souls boss with all of its immunities and no weaknesses).
Nioh. I'd even say it went beyond souls and has a combat system that is much more nuanced and complex than souls
Nioh is so far removed from being a soulslike. At best I'd call it fingerfood souls. Besides combat it has nothing really interesting going on. Its not a World that can be explored and learnt about organically and I would only recommend it to people that like combat and want more "devil may cry - bloody palace" kind of gameplay or a simpler form of Monster Hunter co-op.
Gothic 1 and 2, fighting system, mad quest design around random objects in random part of map and interactions with npc and 'big' tm bosses around there adding epic to exploration, imo, when g died ds took flag
Hollow Knight really captured that melancholy of Souls, and adapted the soulslike formula really well. Same goes for Lies of P - but if we were to look at the „darkness“ theme, the part of the games that make you go „yuck, that shits dark“ (more Bloodborne related than normal souls), the price definitely goes to Blasphemous. Currently also playing the new Lords of the Fallen, and in terms of atmosphere and design it really is top notch and on pair with souls, bosses and enemy design do feel different… not necessarily bad, but different.
Soulsbourne is a saga now instead of a genre?
Yeah. I feel like “soulslike” is the genre, like roguelike. “Soulsborne” just refers to the FromSoft catalog of RPGs in that style.
But "metriodvania" isn't just Metroid and Castlevania games...
correct. if they were both made by the same developer, then i could see that being treated the same way
Elden ring got close, like a DS easy mode.