Top 15 Best Games Like Dark Souls

Dark Souls is a game that has often made the suffering of its players obvious. If you ever hear your gaming friend screaming about dying, they’re probably playing Dark Souls. As luck would have it, there are many similar games out there.

Best Games Like Dark Souls

The Surge

The Surge is certainly an interesting storyline to play. Your character is Warren – who, having been bound to his wheelchair, decides that it would be a great idea to try out an exoskeleton. The experiment goes a bit haywire, and you’re released into the facility full of robots.

As far as gameplay goes, it’s a little clunky, but still extremely playable. If you imagine that they decided to set Dark Souls in outer space, you’d have some idea of what lies ahead in The Surge.

Platforms: Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.

Hollow Knight

The boss battles that Hollow Knight uses are pretty like those that you would experience if you were playing Dark Souls. There’s a sense of urgency throughout the game, but also a sense of discovery. Like Dark Souls, you’ll need to follow every lead and questline to get to the end game. This kind of storytelling is what makes games so enjoyable and addictive.

Hollow Knight has an interesting art style to it – more cartoonish than other games that are like its combat system or storyline. Despite this, it’s still a game with a lot of darker undertones, and everything is earned the hard way.

Platforms: Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Nintendo Switch.

Dead Cells

A game that’s like both Dark Souls and Roguelike, Dead Cells is a game where you will die. Often. Spent some time learning how your enemies move, and you’ll spare yourself a few long hours full of headaches and despair.

In Dead Cells, you’ll be playing as a parasite who is inhabiting a dead body. The aim is to survive, explore, and reveal the secrets hidden within the paths you take. The story plot isn’t overly involved, but the game is fun to play.

Platforms: Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.

Salt and Sanctuary

Taking a step back into the 2D world, Salt and Sanctuary is an action-based RPG with a lot to offer. The combat system is hugely developed, leaving no room for any accidental errors as you fight your way through an eerie and unforgiving island.

Explore dungeons and the ruins of forgotten cities, take a stand against your enemies and try to survive on an island that no one has ever charted before. Take your shipwrecked sailor and attempt to prevail in epic boss fights.

Platforms: Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, PSVITA, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.

Nioh

The hardier and less relaxed version of Shinobi Souls, Nioh, is a game that will happily punish its players when they mess up. But, unlike the more western Dark Souls game, Nioh is all about authenticity and Japanese culture.

While you play as an actual samurai (albeit, one who is Irish rather than Japanese), you’ll have access to a huge range of Japanese weapons. Bring your best sword to battle, utilize the Ki Pulse to gain back your stamina, and play through quests that take inspiration from real events throughout history.

Platforms: Microsoft Windows and PlayStation 4.

Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice

Having won Game of The Year in the 2019 Game Awards, new players can be sure that they aren’t making a bad decision by picking up Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. This game comes from the same creators who brought the Dark Souls series to your gaming screen.

As a player, you’re here to restore your honor. You’ll be playing as a disgraced warrior who was brought back from the very edge of death. A man who is descendent of greatness cast down, and targeted by enemies from afar.

Platforms: Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.

Below

A lot of gamers realize that Dark Souls has become something more than a game series; it’s becoming its own type of game, its own genre. Below is very obviously inspired by Dark Souls, even using the same bonfire checkpoint system that Dark Souls does.

Though this is common throughout many popular games, it’s one of the many mechanics that feels the same as the Soul series. Each death gives you time to take stock of what you did wrong and where you can go next. Take advantage of that system.

Platforms: Microsoft Windows and Xbox One.

Demon’s Souls

Though Dark Souls and Demon’s Souls were created by the same producer and the same director, the games are not related in any way. That said, the mechanics behind both games are obviously going to be somewhat similar because the same people worked on them.

Fans have said that Demon’s Souls is one of the hardest games of its series, and many believe it to be more challenging that Dark Souls is. So, if you’re looking for a new game to play with the intention of eventually throwing it out of the window in your frustration – you’ve found it.

Platforms: PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Now.

Titan Souls

Another game with “souls” in the name, Titan Souls is inventive and delightful to play. The game revolves around all the little moments of chance that we take when we play games that are meant to create atmospheres of suspense. Take, for example, the few seconds you have between dodging an attack, healing yourself, and getting ready to fight again.

Titan Souls embodies that rush. The few seconds between blows where you could live or die. A titan can kill you in one hit, but you can do the same to them if you’re able to line up the perfect shot. Your goal is to find them and take them out. In a way, we suppose Attack on Titan anime fans might enjoy this one.

Platforms: Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and PSVITA.

Immortal Planet

Similar to both Dark Souls and Nioh (which we’ve mentioned in this list, too), Immortal Planet is not a costly game to purchase, and it’s similar enough to Dark Souls that you could consider it a starting point before you get into the Souls series.

The world of Immortal Planet is a combination of science fiction and fantasy. Like Dark Souls, you’ll be punished for stupidity and recklessness, and rewarded when you’re patient. It’s not a well-known game, but the positive reviews speak for themselves.

Platforms: Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.

Ashen

Those who play Ashen will quickly note the similarities in both the combat system and the progression rate of the story when compared to Dark Souls. Ashen is more likely to reward its players when they go through missions carefully, taking time to create in-game relationships with available companions.

The premise of Ashen is one that can easily warm the heart. You play as a wanderer, one who is searching for a place to call their home. This RPG is one that many can identify with.

Platforms: Microsoft Windows and Xbox One.

The Witcher 3

If you’d like a break from the everlasting cycle of death and life that is Dark Souls, many gamers turn to The Witcher 3 for a moment of clarity and enjoyment. Though the combat system in The Witcher 3 isn’t as fluid as the one in Dark Souls, the storyline is much more enticing and friendly.

The Witcher 3 is an RPG at its finest. Beautiful landscapes, great characterization, and enough dialogue and quests to keep you busy for a while

Platforms: Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.

Bloodborne

Death lurks around the next corner, watching and waiting for you to fail. Bloodborne is a journey of madness, surrounded by creatures that look as if they’ve walked straight out of someone’s nightmares. Technically, it’s not a difficult game, but it can take some effort to get used to the mechanics if you haven’t played Dark Souls before.

You play a Hunter, wandering through the city of Yharnam at the beginning of the game. This city’s people have been infected by a blood-borne disease, and you’ll spend your time trying to figure out the mysteries of the city. Secrets that are held behind closed curtains and performed in backstreet clinics.

Platform: PlayStation 4.

Lords of the Fallen

Despite being a somewhat inexpensive game (by today’s retail price standards) that very few people have ever heard of, Lords of the Fallen is a lot like Dark Souls. It’s brutal, it feels medieval, and it’s the kind of RPG that will force you to fail so that you can learn from your mistakes.

The graphics are beautiful, the gameplay is good, and although it borrows a lot of its mechanics from Dark Souls, it’s not as difficult to play. There’s no level grinding, either!

Platforms: Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.

Elden Ring

Not yet released at the time of writing, Elden Ring is an upcoming RPG with a lot to offer. Though there’s no official release date yet, some stores have Elden Ring pegged for release this summer.

Miyazaki, the man behind the game, invited George R.R. Martin to get involved in the Elden Ring because he’s a fan of Martin’s work. The collaboration has a lot of people excited. It’s been speculated that the heavy action-based system of the game will be like Dark Souls and Sekiro.

Platforms: Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.

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