This is no secret Elden Ring is a special game, and when it comes to the world of soulslikes, it's pretty hard for other titles to even come close to it, let alone compete with it. The game represents decades of refinement and perfection all rolled into one experience, so it's easy to see why it's rated so highly and considered an almost unbeatable titan in a genre filled to the brim with perfection.
The 7 best soulslike games on Xbox Game Pass, ranked
Game Pass doesn't have Dark Souls or Elden Ring, but it does have some great Soulslike games that can keep you entertained for a long time.
However, the soulslike space is stacked today and there are still few other games that can compete with the greatness found in The Lands Between. Some were born from FromSoftware's own arms, while others came from completely new studios, but in both cases the level on display is truly incredible and a true testament to how difficult it is to create something so close to perfection.
What kind of weapon is that?
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
Start
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
Easy (7.5s) Medium (5.0s) Hard (2.5s) Permadeath (2.5s)
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice might be FromSoftware's best
Maybe the best there is
Details:
-
Perfect parry mechanic
-
A smaller but more elaborate list of bosses
It's pretty fair to say that when An axe exploded onto the soulslike scene, the entire genre was shaken to its core. Gone are the days of slow, methodical exploration, and in its place are fast-paced, ruthless combat that relies solely on reaction speed and muscle memory in a way that no other game in the universe even comes close to.
Mechanically, it remains at the top of the genre, demonstrating a level of precision and satisfaction that many have tried to replicate, but very few have succeeded. Then there are the boss fights, each of which presents a different kind of challenge to the player and all of which require a huge amount of knowledge and patience to defeat. Elden Ring may have a scale but An axe it ticks every other box, the most important being the gameplay and actual mechanics that players will learn and master over time.
Bloodborne is still a gothic masterpiece
Atmosphere And Taste For Days
Details:
-
Incredible world building and environments
-
A rough and fast fight that still holds up today
Bloody it's over a decade old now, but FPS aside, the game hasn't aged a day. From the moment players enter the world, it's abundantly clear that they're in for something special, as everything from the towering structures to the eerie skybox creates a sense of darkness and intrigue that never fades until the end credits finally roll.
5 Soulslike games with as good or better lore than Elden Ring
Immerse yourself in the rich tradition of 5 soul-like games, each offering unique stories and worlds that rival the depth and mystery of the Elden Ring.
While previous games had their own parrying mechanics, here the guns become the player's deflection tool, setting up incredibly visceral sequences where they quickly detonate and destroy everything and anyone who dares swing at them. However, what will always stand out the most will be the world and the stories within it, both of which will be heavily influenced by Lovecraftian fiction to deliver a terrifying yet enticing experience that will have players on their knees begging for more.
The Hollow Knight Is An Entirely Different Type Of Masterpiece
On a completely different level
Details:
-
Considered the king of metroidvanias
-
Detailed and dynamic world
Hollow Knight doesn't look like the traditional third-person shooter that many people associate the genre with, yet the gameplay and design of the game quickly reveal that it more than meets the criteria. The way the game develops feels so organic and natural, that sort of thing Elden Ring it definitely stands out, but here the environments are much more claustrophobic and intimate, making the player feel at one with the world during their long and dangerous journey.
The goodness doesn't end there, as players will be tested to their absolute mechanical limits, pushing their platforming mechanics and combat prowess far beyond what they might have expected. By the time players have scoured the map for caterpillars and defeated nearly every enemy in sight, they may think the adventure is coming to an end, but that's exactly when the game throws a curveball, introducing a brand new cave of mystery for them to explore and fall in love with all over again.
P's lies helped usher in a new era for soul lovers
A new name enters the conversation
Details:
-
It refines the lessons learned from many other souls
-
A beautiful new environment with lots of surprises
Lies P showed the world that non-FromSoftware souls can actually compete with the big dogs. Set in a twisted fairytale world filled with mechanical monsters and mutated life forms, players are thrown straight into the darkness and must bounce and deflect their way through the world to uncover the much darker truth that lies beneath the surface.
5 Soulslike Games With Better Combat Than Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice
Wait, is that even possible? These soul-like action titles could prove that this is indeed the case.
Instead of perfecting one particular mechanic or aspect, the game manages to meet all the criteria without missing a single pause, and has so much gameplay refinement and storytelling goodness that it's pretty hard to put it down, even after hours of sitting through it. Perhaps the game's greatest achievement, however, is how it has now paved the way for so many more new souls to enter the universe, showing that with a good enough concept and a compelling enough world, voting positions can indeed be won.
Dark Souls 3 perfects the Souls formula
Soundtrack Trilogy with a bang
Details:
-
Incredible boss battles from start to finish
-
Tasteful fan service
Dark Souls 3 feels like a distant memory in the context of a soul-like world, yet has somehow maintained its place among the best since its release. Learning from the mistakes and triumphs of its previous games, FromSoftware has decided to end its trilogy with a heroic finale that will drive players into giant castles and fiery caverns, all to the brim with action, lore, and plenty of enemies to defeat.
When it comes to the boss list, it's fair to say the game has one of the best in the industry, with even its lowest points higher than its rivals and its highs setting a new high that's barely been broken in the last decade. Without this series, the genre simply wouldn't exist today, and this third installment's role in catapulting Souls into the mainstream came entirely from the unforgettable experiences players encounter within it.
Black Myth: Wukong Nails Combat
Legends have become reality
Details
-
Quick skill combos and attack chains
-
A diverse cast of characters and enemies
Black Myth: Wukong takes a legendary story from the Eastern world and brings it to life with as much beauty and glory as is physically possible. The game's very first scene sets the tone in a big way, offering players a cinematic encounter that kicks off a long series of others that seem to get more and more extravagant as they progress further into the story.
Where the game really struggles Elden Ring is in combat because instead of players using a weapon with multiple tricks, they can instead unleash a flurry of combos, transform mid-fight, and continuously pound the boss without the spectacle disappearing. This level of cinematic grandeur remains present in virtually every fight, making it quite difficult to distinguish cutscenes from real-time moments, making the entire game feel like one drawn-out epic with the player at the center of all the action.
8 of the best soulslike games with simple but great combat, ranked
The combat systems in these soul games prove that sometimes simplicity is best.
