Souls-likes
Welcome to the second a part of our So You Need to Get Into the Souls Sequence primer. We’re taking a look at just a few video games thought-about to be essential within the Souls-like style, principally from non-FromSoftware studios (exterior the primary entry). These video games present pathways to sequence veterans for extra Souls-like goodness, in addition to alternate entry factors for sequence newcomers. If you would like extra on the core sequence video games from FromSoftware, take a look at Half One.
Armored Core 4 (2006)
Accessible on PS3 and Xbox 360
by Noah Leiter
For Souls historians and Miyazaki completionists, Armored Core 4 marks the sort-of “true” starting of the style. It’s, in spite of everything, the start of auteur Hidetaka Miyazaki’s profession as a sport director. His imaginative and prescient for iterative trial-and-error demise mechanics, methodical locomotion, and creative extravagance begins to take form in Armored Core 4. To notice, FromSoftware as an organization has imbued a lot of its video games with these parts since its inception, so some followers may even select to go way back to King’s Area on the PlayStation. Nevertheless, the early FromSoftware catalog titles will possible be powerful to abdomen for many who aren’t enthralled by PS1 mechanical and technical issues; I might additionally argue that Miyazaki’s participation marks a turning level the place the important thing Souls-like parts talked about in Half One go from conceptual to actual.
Armored Core 4 needs to be acquainted for folk who’ve performed different Armored Core video games. It has mech customization, fight, missions, enviornment battles, and a plot centered round world battle. Nevertheless, it steps away from the complexities and conventions of its ancestors, slimming down mech controls and customization in favor of streamlined fight, tight controls, clear gameplay targets, and a much bigger deal with vibe.
That vibe is partly why AC4 is on this record, aside from being a really early style curiosity and essential historic context. AC4 can be bizarre, surreal, and foggy, with a wierd story besides. It follows the Earth because it descends into civil unrest following overpopulation and hunger, anti-corporate unrest, and the unexpected penalties of particle physics developments. There are hidden layers right here of anti-capitalism, anti-establishment, and the ephemeral nature of being — simply basic Miyazaki undertone issues. It’s a hell of experience, too, prioritizing extra intimate fight situations just like the Souls sequence would later do, but in addition making room for giant setpiece-heavy Armored Core moments. That is all to say: Armored Core 4 walked (properly, strafe-glided) so Souls video games might run.
Creator Word: Whereas this sport doesn’t essentially fall inside our conventional protection, I deemed it essential sufficient to the core design philosophy of the sequence to say right here. Is Armored Core 4 an RPG? Perhaps. It’s exhausting to say, as a result of primarily based on vibes and the sequence’ advertising, most likely not. Gameplay-wise, it’s far nearer to a ways sport than a mech shooter, with most of its methods centered on strategic planning, useful resource allocation, loadout modifying, and strategic map traversal. It has leveling and character customization to rival any RPG sequence. And, properly, it’s a mech opera; what mech opera video games aren’t RPGs??? Titanfall? Hm, possibly Titanfall needs to be in our protection, too…
Why ought to I begin right here?
When you love mech video games however you don’t essentially jive with the Souls titles’ sword/sorcery gameplay, or equally, you have an interest however mechs and lasers are cooler to you than swords and dragons, then this might be your superb entry level. Alternatively, you probably have performed a number of the video games on this record and also you wish to begin initially of Miyazaki’s profession, otherwise you need one thing aesthetically new however mechanically comparable, strive AC4. 2023’s Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon can be an important mech sport, however its quicker tempo displays extra trendy developments in mech and motion gaming than AC4, which actually oozes that early Souls sequence DNA.
Nioh sequence (2017 – Current)
Accessible on PS4, PS5, & PC
by Noah Leiter
William Adams was a real-world navigator recognized for being the primary English liaison to Japan in 1600, the place he was trapped for a decade and ultimately grew to become a samurai (his Wikipedia entry is a reasonably wild experience). Centuries later, Adams’ life impressed Akira Kurosawa to develop a screenplay primarily based on his story, titled “Oni” — to not be confused with the Bungie/Rockstar joint of the identical title, although maybe that one takes unfastened inspiration from Kurosawa’s script too. Regardless, the screenplay by no means manifested right into a film, however an edited model was tailored by Crew Ninja into Nioh, a slower-paced, extra story-focused motion RPG tackle feudal Japan than earlier works, reminiscent of their 2004 hit Ninja Gaiden. The sport took an astonishing 13 years to make, with a number of iterations between Tecmo studios, a merger, three interstitial Ninja Gaiden titles (not counting remasters/remakes), and, after all, two Lifeless or Alive XTreme Seaside Volleyball video games between its inception and launch. A ten-plus-year growth cycle isn’t fully unusual as of late, however by 2017 requirements, this was a lifetime.
Their exhausting work paid off, after all, as Nioh launched to widespread popularity of its participating fight, attractive setting, adaptation of Japanese folklore and Kurosawa’s work, in addition to its spin on the Souls-like style. It options leveling methods, bonfire checkpoints (shrines), boss challenges, and on-line multiplayer methods acquainted to followers of Darkish Souls. It additionally has a blessing system with the same vibe to Bloodborne’s tub messengers. So far as gameplay, Nioh is similar to former and future Souls-like titles made by FromSoftware. For all intents and functions, it’s feudal Souls.
This isn’t to say Nioh lacks its personal essence exterior its aesthetic. Nioh introduces stances to its fight system. Gamers select excessive, center, and low stances to greatest execute offensive and defensive methods. Excessive stance is slower and extra offensive; center is a balanced, extra defensive strategy; low is the quickest, however works greatest at shut vary. In parity with that is Nioh’s Ki system, a type of stand-in for Souls-like stamina — the twist is that Ki drain differs between stances, and gamers can cost their Ki strategically throughout their offense. In brief, Nioh has a lot to set it aside from Souls-like mainstays, although the moniker “feudal Souls” suits properly and doesn’t diminish its distinctive place within the area. In actual fact, I believe it units an instance, not only for Souls-like video games, however the business at giant.
Go searching, and it’s simple to see that feudal Japan is sizzling in videogames proper now. It’s arguably been sizzling within the business for the reason that first Nioh sport got here out in 2017, although we’re possible at a peak for the development proper now, with latest releases like Ghost of Yotei, Murderer’s Creed Shadows, Rise of the Ronin, three Ninja Gaiden video games, and Sengoku Dynasty, and with Nioh 3 and a brand new Onimusha sport on the best way shortly. We’re inundated with feudal Japanese settings, which is all of the extra motive to return to what’s possible the beginning of the development, in addition to the beginning of different giant sport growth corporations mixing Souls style staples into their very own designs. Nioh has its personal DNA, preferring fashion and aggression to Souls-likes’ persistence and preparation, however there’s no mistaking its essence: it has the builds, bonfires, and loot a Souls-like fan would count on. It is usually possible the one sport on this record not made by FromSoftware that will have influenced their later works, with Ki and stances reflecting Sekiro’s posture system in a approach that feels (for my part) too synergistic to be a coincidence.
Why ought to I begin right here?
The Nioh sequence is a superb place to start out, a real peer within the style that competes with its greatest video games, and it definitely suits RPG tastes higher than the extra motion/rhythm-focused Sekiro from FromSoftware, for those who’re craving extra feudal Japan however don’t jive with brute-forcing assessments of focus. (No shade to Sekiro; it’s a nice sport that performs very in a different way from these on this record.)
Lies of P (2023)
Accessible on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, XSX/S, & PC
by Noah Leiter
Lies of P is one other sport within the Nioh lineage of extremely polished, subtly twisted, and beautiful Souls-like video games not made by FromSoftware. The place Nioh is feudal Souls, I would name Lies of P toy Souls or puppet Souls. In Lies of P, gamers take the strings of a nascent Pinocchio, leaping into boyhood as he all the time is, however this time he’s thrust into the terrors of a monster-filled grunge Belle Epoch. Every part within the sport’s setting, Krat, has fallen into disarray and pestilence, like Bioshock meets Bloodborne. As in each of these video games, a brand new substance has pushed Krat’s individuals right into a violent fervor. “Ergo,” an alchemically altered mineral meant to drive commerce by means of robotics, finally killed human beings by means of Petrification illness and made puppets homicidal.
You gather this Ergo alongside your journey to improve Pinocchio’s stats in a well-recognized Souls-like method. This time, issues are extra balanced towards consumables and ranged weapon expertise, with fight maybe much more defensive right here than within the Darkish Souls sequence. People who gravitate towards the extra offensive kinds of Nioh and Bloodborne will get pleasure from boss fights in Lies of P. They require comparable persistence and fast-twitch response, however those that just like the “run and combat once more one other day” of Darkish Souls may be eager on Lies of P.
Regardless of this, Lies of P could not satiate the tastes of present Souls-like fans as a result of it lacks the trademark multiplayer of that sequence. Gone are the reliance on community-driven strats, participant suggestions in-game, and multiplayer co-op help. These parts aren’t out there right here, or are scarce at greatest. As an alternative, Lies of P’s challenges, whereas equally testing persistence and preparation, are much more linear and require higher reflexes. If you’re struggling, the technique is usually strive, strive once more.
This notably makes Lies of P a extra “hardcore” Souls-like expertise. Followers of difficult video games will simply discover one thing to like, although these trying to gently wade into the Souls-like pool could want to look elsewhere, particularly towards video games that do supply multiplayer methods. On the flipside, Lies of P is afforded extra linear storytelling on this approach. Particularly for many who have learn Collodi’s novel and/or watched different Pinocchio media, Lies of P presents a very nice twist on that story’s method, turning lies into pathways of empathy, and taking the themes of labor and exploitation explored within the novel to a different degree. It’s additionally presumably essentially the most attractive sport on this complete record, actually pushing the gothic otherwhere factor to a different degree of surrealism. It’s the newest title right here, and that exhibits.
Both approach, and regardless of its lack of multiplayer, I think about Lies of P an unmissable title within the Souls-like style for folk who’re already accustomed to it; you simply could wish to come again to this one later.
Why ought to I begin right here?
Maybe architectural kinds drive you to Lies of P first: Victorian, French Gothic, Italian Neoclassical, and so forth. Or possibly it’s one other aesthetic, like darkish creepy puppets, Belle Epoque, or Werewolves in London. Perhaps you’re a Carlo Collodi scholar (there are dozens of us!), a fairy story fanatic, or a Disney property-adjacent videogame completionist. I don’t know what drives you to start out your Souls journey with Lies of P, however I received’t decide. I might, nonetheless, suggest beginning anyplace else right here, a minimum of to get accustomed to the style by means of a sport that has multiplayer co-op. I’d be mendacity if I stated Lies of P is simple, even when all lies maintain hidden truths, and maybe this title is less complicated to get into for causes apart from its gameplay methods.
Some Different Issues
Code Vein (2019)
by Noah Leiter
Code Vein is admittedly extra hacky, slashy, and theatrical than Souls-like video games, nevertheless it’s obtained a lot of that Souls essence intact. It has the weird structure, the backstabs, the bonfires (mistles), principally all of the Souls-like tropes you count on. It additionally rips from anime tropes like that’s its job: there are runway-level outfits, age weirdness, grunts for days, tropey dialogue, friendship is magic, the record goes on. In fact, I’m the kind of anime sicko who’s right here for all that, but when the veneer you’d wish to see draped over a Souls-like sport isn’t the again of a Uniqlo model Naruto graphic tee, then you might be within the fallacious place, sister. However, you probably have a Library of Congress value of manga boxsets and anime VHS tapes, Code Vein will delight you, whether or not or not you’ve gotten ever been Souls-curious. If you’re Souls-curious, nonetheless, Code Vein will scratch that itch; you simply could must mute the dialogue or skip a number of the reminiscence sequences. A sequel, aptly titled Code Vein II, can be on observe for a 2026 launch.
Salt & Sanctuary (2016) and Salt & Sacrifice (2022)
by Noah Leiter
Genres and modes mix collectively in videogaming like meals on an overfull buffet plate. The DNA of RPGs, stealth video games, shooters, visible novels, and platformers are virtually in each AAA sport these days. So, it’s simple to see how the 2 different common eponymic genres, Metroidvania and roguelike, mix properly with Souls-likes. All of them draw inspiration from a foundational textual content, they contain extremely specialised development methods, they usually encourage passionate followings amongst style followers. Metroidvanias, particularly, are each a gateway and a foil for Souls-like video games, alike in development and exploration, however totally different in moment-to-moment gameplay and story, although all of those parts replicate the tenor and vibe of a Souls-like sport in a approach that makes the transition seamless.
Nothing will get me craving a Souls-like greater than a moody Metroidvania sport, and the Salt & video games are most likely the very best at bridging that hole of style fandom. These video games are like gravy between Souls-like’s peas and Metroidvania’s mashed potatoes on an overfull Thanksgiving plate of performatively blended sport genres. They take tropes of Souls video games, reminiscent of defensive and methodical fight, bonfires (sanctuaries), souls (salt), and so forth, and throw them on an expansive 2D map along with your typical Metroidvania unlockables (manufacturers). This fusion is seamless, and followers of different great and difficult Metroidvanias like Hole Knight or Symphony of the Night time trying to transition to the Souls-like style ought to think about beginning that course of with the Salt & sequence.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (2015)
by Noah Leiter
Lastly, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is a good sport for motion RPG novices, however it could be a tricky promote for folk who’re already acquainted with Souls-like gameplay (it performs extra like an Murderer’s Creed sport than a Souls-like; some Souls veterans discover it clunky for that reason). Nevertheless, its sword-and-sorcery vibe is comparable, as is its story supply, in a sure approach (hear me out). The Witcher 3 requires gamers to uncover its mysteries by means of investigation and energetic participation. Although its cutscenes and direct lorebuilding make it markedly totally different for many, there may be a minimum of some equivalence in its oblique storytelling and that of the Souls-like style. It’s, after all, extra overt in its investigatory beat, tasking gamers with uncovering the mysteries of its objects, characters, and storylines by way of journal entries, cutscenes, and Geralt’s Witcher Senses, reasonably than by means of menu descriptions, cryptic dialogue, and wiki pages, however the essence of unraveling deeper narratives by means of ingenuity and gameplay persists throughout the 2.
The Witcher 3 can be a sport about persistence and preparation, requiring apply and occasional consumable work earlier than fights. On this approach, getting accustomed to The Witcher 3‘s fashion and gameplay could also be a eager approach of easing into Souls-like video games, on the very least for many who are unfamiliar with Souls-likes or 3D motion RPGs basically. People on the fence may think about the Dragon’s Dogma or Lords of the Fallen sequence, which sit equally in an aesthetic and narrative center floor that may mix properly with Souls-like titles.
