With the Demon’s Souls remake out and well-received, you might still somehow be itching for more Souls-like content. Of course, there are games like Nioh 2, Sekiro, or technically even Bloodborne, but what about the people who just want some of that good Souls-y action without a $60 price tag, like they’d have to invest with something like Code Vein?
Well, we’ve got some amazing recommendations for those of you who’d like the experience a Souls-like game, but are on a bit of a budget.
Updated March 21, 2022 by Jacob Buchalter: With From Software’s newest title, Elden Ring, taking the world by storm, people are even more on the hunt for anything even tangentially related to the Souls, and Bloodborne franchises. And, thankfully, there are quite a few more games out there they have been released in recent years that bear a lot of similarities to these. So, let’s comb through the seemingly-infinite Steam listings and pick out some more beloved Souls “sort of” games.
18 Remnant: From The Ashes
First and foremost is a game most people described as “Dark Souls with Guns” otherwise known as Remnant: From The Ashes. Remnant is a fantastic game to play with friends, as its co-op is a bit easier to operate and more inclusive than FromSoftware’s, and overall the game is a tad more streamlined (especially compared to its recently released prequel PC port, Chronos).
It has a nice setting, great designs, tons of replayability, some neat interpersonal character interactions, and specific builds or combinations you can try out. The game has also made frequent appearances in Epic Sales in the past so keep an eye out for it.
17 Unsighted
While the next game on here is a bit more of a Metroidvania than a Souls-like, it definitely scratches a similar itch. Unsighted is a wonderfully dark indie game all about an apocolyptic world where humans are long-gone after robots gained sentience and now these Robots are slowly losing the element that gives them their sentience, causing them to go “Unsighted”.
Essentially, think of it as a Humanity and Hollowing sort of situation from Dark Souls. Outside these few tonal similarities, Unsighted just has a beautiful combat system all about well-timed parries and dodges, and it also has a large interconnected map with tons of shortcuts spread throughout. It’s a completely unique game in its own right, but just to give those unfamiliar with it a clear picture, it’s a mixed bag between something like a handheld Legend of Zelda game, a Metroidvania, and a Dark Souls. It’s an easy grab with a whole lot of replayability.
16 Undungeon
Undungeon is a game well-worth pushing through the initial feeling of not understanding what’s going on, because there’s a real gem underneath. At first, Undungeon might seem overly obtuse, but past the two or three hour mark the information presented starts to click more easily. Now, this game, at its core, is an RPG and a rougelike, but its moment-to-moment gameplay and overall absurdly unique setting/tone are what will make it appealing to fans of the Souls games and especially those who adore Bloodborne’s Lovecraftian elements.
There’s a lot that’s easy to spoil about Undungeon, both in regard to its narrative and its gameplay. So, because that’s a large part of what makes the game so initially interesting, let’s just say that Undungeon is all about trying to make the best possible outcome of a universe that’s on the brink of destruction. Funnily enough, doesn’t that also sound similar to another game franchise all about things like “linking the flame” and “ushering in the age of dark”?
15 Vigil: The Longest Night
Here comes another Metroidvania like Unsighted, but unlike Unsighted, Vigil:The Longest Night has more in common with Bloodborne than it does to any other Souls game. Mechanically, Vigil is like a cross between a standard Metroidvania and something like Salt and Sanctuary. And, because SaS tries to be like a 2D Soulslike, so does Vigil.
But, Vigil is sort of like the sequel to SaS, in that it innovates and escalates almost every aspect of the game that inspired it. Visually, Vigil: The Longest Night is beautiful and has an incredibly unique style to it. But, what about its comparisons to Bloodborne? Well, just to name a few of the glaring similarities between the two titles:
Like Unsighted and Undungeon, Vigil is also great value.
14 The Surge & The Surge II
Of course, The Surge 2 is the more obvious recommendation, but this is for gamers on a budget, and the sequel is still being sold at full price, while the original is much cheaper. The game obviously takes inspiration from Dark Souls at every turn, and it’s pretty unabashed about it, so it’s easy to compare the two.
The setting of The Surge is likely what you’ll be drawn to most, but the gameplay is nothing to scoff at either, and we especially love the “scavenging” mechanic of it where you can target specific body parts of enemies to cut off and equip them on your own Exo-suit. Looking back, The Surge has its fair share of janky-ness, but as a whole package, it’s absolutely worth a Souls-fans time.
The Surge II
It’s odd that this sequel seemed to not have nearly the same amount of groundswell as the first game, considering that it attempts to improve upon just about everything that was complained about in the original. The Surge II is a sequel in the truest sense where the devs at Deck 13 took into consideration all the most common (and loudest) complaints about the first game, and attempted to fix it. The enemy placements are better, the maps aren’t quite as confusing (mostly), there are even more weapon types to be found, and there are a ton of quality-of-life changes. That said, not everything was addressed, and most of the janky-ness still remains. Still, The Surge II is absolutely worth the investment, just from sheer replayability alone.
13 Lords Of The Fallen
Ah, the original Souls-copycat, Lords of the Fallen. It was one of the first “big” games to un-apologetically use the Dark Souls design formula and played a big part in creating this Souls-like genre we see nowadays. But, since it was one of the first, it was also one of the jankiest. In general, players will likely run into lot of issues with how slow everything moves in the game, how nebulous the hit-boxes are, and how long it takes to fight bosses.
But, at the end of the day, it’s still a 15+ hour experience with a ton of love and care put into it, so it’s at least worth a look. That said, it usually sits in a slightly higher price bracket than many others on this list, which assuredly puts it lower in the line of “to play” games, but still on there for sure.
12 Hellpoint
Out of all the Souls-like settings talked about so far, Hellpoint might just have the coolest aesthetic. I mean, you play as a 3D printed humanoid fighting against aliens of all types in a space station right next to a black hole!
The game has its fair share of flaws, but the tone, verticality/platforming, and unique concepts it brings to the table makes Hellpoint well worth it. If you like games that have anything to do with space and the universe as a concept, this is right up your alley. Just keep an eye on the price, as this is another title that tends to be a staple in those wallet-busting Steam sales.
11 Hollow Knight
We’ve already talked about a couple of Dark Souls-inspired Metroidvanias on here, but none of them compare to Hollow Knight. No game with this much love and content should be so cheap, but it is, so take advantage of Team Cherry’s kindness. Hollow Knight is a wondrous little Metroidvania platformer where you explore the underground kingdom full of all different types of insects called the Hallownest as a cute little bug called “The Knight”.
It has upgrade paths, Charm combinations, platforming challenges, boss fights, tons of DLC content, exploration galore, NPC quests, and a whole ton more. Hollow Knight has more in common with most other Metroid-like games than it does Dark Souls, but there are still some great similarities between the two in terms of a few mechanics and the overall tone. Hollow Knight has 60+ hours of content in it, so it’s absolutely worth the investment.
10 Dead Cells
Dead Cells is one of those games that has received such a huge amount of support from the developers after release that it’s only comparable to maybe The Binding of Isaac in that respect. Motion Twin has released update after update and expansion after expansion for this game, even during its long run in Early Access. Frankly, it’s too much, the game has so much content it feels insurmountable, in fact, in the time between publishing this originally and updating it, they’ve added another new DLC content drop called The Queen and the Sea for a total of four different content expansions.
Dead Cells is another Metroidvania game, but it takes a lot of inspiration from a Soulsborne game in terms of its NG+ difficulties, challenging boss fights, and all the unlockable items/blueprints. It also offers you hundreds of hours of absurdly difficult content to experience.
9 Mortal Shell
Mortal Shell is a bit of a unique case. On one hand, this game is arguably harder than Dark Souls in some respects, and on the other hand, it can be a lot more forgiving if you take the time to learn the mechanics. And, funnily enough, Mortal Shell is an even easier jump to make for those who finished Elden Ring, as both games have a similar atmosphere.
The main thing Mortal Shell does differently is with its Harden system. Basically, you can “harden” your body like stone at any point. Timing your Harden right takes some time, but once you learn it, and the parrying system, you’ll be diving headfirst into this vague yet intensely atmospheric game.
8 Let It Die
Let It Die was a free-to-play title released on PS4 back in 2016 and made by Grasshopper Manufacture, the same people behind the No More Heroes franchise AKA No More Heroes 3, the long-awaited threequel of the franchise that came out mid 2021. Let It Die is a brutally unforgiving game where you take control of many different “characters” and make your way up the Tower of Barbs to make Uncle Death happy, getting new recipes, weapons, and new types of mushrooms along the way.
It’s an absurdly weird game, but that’s sort of the MO or Modus Operandi of Grasshopper games, so it’s pretty typical for them. In any case, Let It Die is a punishing gauntlet where players try to see how high they can climb without getting destroyed by the unforgiving enemies along the way. It’s a ton of fun, requires a lot of strategy, and once again, is a completely free souls like game available to play on Steam.
7 Blasphemous
Blasphemous is one of the most metal yet beautiful games to come out of an indie studio (or any studio for that matter) in years. The game was originally a Kickstarter project back in 2017 and released near the end of 2019 to an overwhelmingly positive reception. In any case, the title’s lore, characters, bosses, items, and overall narrative are based on the most hardcore parts of Christianity and Catholicism, which is a subject most other pieces of media are too afraid to approach.
It’s ridiculously hard, incredibly atmospheric, has a ton of different interesting locations, and is pretty unforgiving all things considered. Blasphemous is more than worth a look.
6 Death’s Gambit: Afterlife
Death’s Gambit is another one of those Metroidvania games, featuring a pixel-art style a bit less detailed than Blasphemous or Dead Cells, but with fantastic illustrations for all the characters shown during the dialog sections.
Death’s Gambit is a lot more similar to Dark Souls than any of the other Metroidvania games on here, and that works to both its benefit and detriment. But, with an interesting story, creative gameplay mechanics, and some pretty absurdly challenging bosses, it’s absolutely worth a look.
5 Ender Lillies: Quietus Of The Knights
This next game is a little something special as it’s obvious that it’s a passion project for the devs at Live Wire Adglobe. Ender Lillies is a 2D Souls-like game, similar to something like Salt & Sanctuary. But, by comparison, Ender Lillies has a lot more complexity in almost every category.
The combat is enjoyable and deep thanks to the Spirit Weapon system, the music is beautiful with a lot of piano-heavy tracks, and the art style is engaging and horrifying at the same time. The tone and atmosphere of this game, especially, bears a lot of resemblance to the Souls games as Lily wanders around a ruined kingdom full of undead monstrosities. It offers build diversity, replayability, and a variety of branching paths.
4 Shattered: Tale Of The Forgotten King
Coming up now is a game that feels much more Early Access than Ender Lillies, but is a full release, Shattered: Tale of the Forgotten King. S: TotFK has a lot going for it, don’t get us wrong. It has a unique art style, a fantastic setting, great music, competent combat, and some very interesting blends of mechanics from different game genres.
You have an open-world map in this game, a ton of platforming sections, can ride around on a hoverbike, and can horde items for lore or trade them in for skill points. It truly is unique in a lot of ways. But, the bugs are plentiful and the game doesn’t guide you where to go enough, so it feels sort of unfinished. That said, it’s absolutely worth a look.
3 Ashen
Ashen is the other co-op recommendation of this list, along with Remnant. In Dark Souls games, you have to summon your friends again between every fog gate, and the server/connectivity issues were always plentiful. In Ashen, it’s drop-in/drop-out, meaning friends can just hop on and experience the entire game together with little to no issue.
That said, Ashen is a bit short for its original price point, and there is some lag when friends are hanging around. The online community for it is mostly dead, so it’s absolutely something two friends should buy together to play. Just make sure to check on GoG or Epic, considering it’s usually about half the price on there.
2 Titan Souls
Titan Souls is likely the most oddball inclusion on this list. It’s is a game where both you and the boss die in one “hit”. For you, it’s almost anything that hits you, for the boss, it’s one hit to their “weak” point, which can sometimes be a real struggle to reach. Oh, and did we mention you only have the ability to either roll or let loose your single arrow?
So yes, Titan Souls is a difficult game all about learning and overcoming enemy patterns through trial and error. There’s nothing to do outside of Boss Fights though, so those who love exploring, upgrading, and picking up new weapons might want to look elsewhere.
1 Momodora: Reverie Under The Moonlight
Momodora: Reverie Under The Moonlight, is another title from 2016. It’s actually the fourth installment in the Momodora franchise, but can easily be played by those of you new to the series with little to no issue. That said, Momodora is a beloved game by the Metroidvania/Soulslike communities, and for good reason.
It’s short, polished to a sheen, charming, atmospheric, punishingly fair, and above all it’s fun! It’s a single-player experience, so keep that in mind, and as we said above, it’s a tad short. But, it’s a cult-classic that’s worth the time of anyone who feels drawn to its style and charm.
NEXT: Elden Ring: The Most Useful Crafting Materials And Where To Farm Them
