The 10 Best Indie Soulslikes

Recently, Soulsborne fans passim the satellite were amazed to larn that FromSoftware’s adjacent large project, The Duskbloods – an online multiplayer crippled with a quasi-Victorian aesthetic that mightiness beryllium the closest we ever get to Bloodborne 2 – volition beryllium locked down the Nintendo Switch 2’s $449.99 terms tag.

While the disappointment experienced by undead, hunters, and tarnished alike is understandable, they request not autumn prey to the abyss. Ever since the archetypal Dark Souls enactment FromSoftware connected the representation successful 2011, developers of each shapes and sizes person tried their manus astatine either replicating oregon reinventing the company’s compelling, elusive formula. And portion galore person failed, much than a mates succeeded.

Chances are you’re already acquainted with a fewer of the large ones, similar Nioh, Lies of P, and Black Myth: Wukong. But immoderate of the astir effectual and inventive soulslike games person been made by tiny indie teams who don’t person the wealth oregon manpower to rival their AAA competitors successful standard oregon scope. Instead, they had to get creative, and it’s done this creativity that they negociate to scratch the aforesaid itch Hidetaka Miyazaki’s squad has been scrubbing for the amended portion of its existence.

And that brings america to this list. In nary circumstantial order, present are the 10 champion indie soulslikes you tin play today, nary Switch 2 required.

Eldest Souls

There are galore components to the Soulsborne formula, including – but by nary means constricted to – exploration, skill-based combat, cryptic lore, biology storytelling, and big, bombastic brag battles. Being a boss-rush gauntlet, Eldest Souls specializes successful the latter.

Putting players successful the shoes of a lone warrior making their mode done a sprawling, Bloodborne-esque citadel portion battling the creatively-designed monsters lurking within, Eldest Souls delivers connected thing fewer 2D games have: a dynamic combat strategy wherever fights don’t consciousness similar you’re conscionable pressing the close fastener astatine the close time, adjacent if – astatine the extremity of the time – that is mostly what you’re doing.

Blasphemous

Speaking of Bloodborne-esque citadels, those of america who felt close astatine location wandering astir the winding spires and sprawling apses of Yharnam’s Healing Church are bound to autumn successful emotion with the satellite of Blasphemous, a 2D metroidvania successful which a masked crusader uncovers the eldritch horrors hiding down his own, Roman Catholicism-inspired order.

While the Healing Church takes inspiration from the late-medieval Gothic churches of Northern Europe, Blasphemous – acceptable successful the onshore of Cvstodia – evokes the spiritual creation and civilization of Renaissance Italy and Inquisition-era Spain. Its mesmerizing quality and brag designs, which carried implicit into 2023’s Blasphemous 2 and its Mea Culpa DLC, are 2nd lone to FromSoftware successful their quality to seizure the disturbing qualities of centuries-old Christian iconography.

Tunic

One of the surest ways to make an effectual soulslike is to instrumentality inspiration not from FromSoftware, but FromSoftware’s ain inspirations. Like Miyazaki himself, the creators of Tunic – a 3D isometric action-adventure crippled – are large fans of the archetypal Zelda games, specifically the mode those games evoke feelings of curiosity and wonder.

Don’t fto the game’s protagonist – a cartoonishly cute, anthropomorphic fox with a consecutive sword – fool you: Tunic intimately resembles FromSoftware’s output successful presumption of its interconnected, deliberately obtuse level design. There are nary nonsubjective markers to constituent the mode forward, and each in-game dialog is delivered successful indecipherable script. As with the Dark Souls trilogy and Elden Ring, it’s wide that thing atrocious happened to the satellite of Tunic. But what?

Tails of Iron

To picture Tails of Iron and its sequel, Tails of Iron 2: Whiskers of Winter, arsenic “cutesy” would beryllium lone partially true. Sure, some enactment RPGs person a charming representation publication aesthetic and diagnostic tiny rodent knights that talk successful high-pitched gibberish, but they are besides filled with blood, gore, and stories of decease and betrayal ripped consecutive retired of Game of Thrones oregon The Witcher. (Coincidentally, they’re narrated by nary different than Geralt of Rivia dependable histrion Doug Cockle).

While some games decidedly person much successful communal with George RR Martin’s spirit of phantasy than FromSoftware’s – what with their explicit storytelling and densely-populated worlds – they inactive lucifer the likes of Dark Souls and Elden Ring insofar arsenic their cautiously crafted environments, which ooze quality and atmosphere.

Mortal Shell

One of the amended known and astir visually arresting soulslikes to person emerged successful caller years, Mortal Shell ditches FromSoftware’s adjacent infinite customization and leveling options successful favour of a mechanic which lets you instrumentality implicit the bodies (shells) of characters with preset builds, allowing you to attack bosses utilizing a assortment of playstyles.

Aside from its stellar force plan (the last brag successful peculiar gives Bloodborne’s Lovecraftian Great Ones a tally for their money), Mortal Shell delivers combat that’s some challenging and epic – a delicate equilibrium which FromSoftware itself arguably didn’t execute until Bloodborne’s fast-paced combat carried implicit into Dark Souls 3 and consequent titles.

Sinner: Sacrifice for Redemption

Another surefire mode to make a compelling soulslike is to present an absorbing gameplay gimmick that turns FromSoftware’s progression curve onto its head. Sinner: Sacrifice for Redemption does conscionable that by forcing the subordinate to level down alternatively of up, making each combat much hard than the last.

This mechanic works wonders for replayability. Instead of adding a perk to their arsenal, players person to determine which quality they tin unrecorded without earlier heading into the adjacent brag battle. Because you tin prime the bid successful which you combat the bosses – each modeled aft 1 of the Seven Deadly Sins – you person to familiarize yourself with their strengths and weaknesses to coordinate a palmy run.

Nine Sols

Where different games connected this database instrumentality inspiration from the implicit FromSoftware catalogue, Nine Sols – a 2D enactment platformer that elegantly blends elements of cyberpunk with East Asian mythology and spirituality – takes aft 1 crippled successful particular: Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice.

As with Sekiro, combat successful Nine Sols is much antiaircraft than offensive, emphasizing dodging, blocking, and parrying. As a result, combat encounters don’t boil down to brute unit oregon clever positioning. Instead, you person to cautiously ticker each enemy’s movements, tapping into a satisfying bushed of enactment and reaction.

Unsighted

An undervalued facet of the Soulsborne look is the narration that you make with the world’s characters. Much similar The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask, wherever NPCs expect the infinitesimal the evil satellite destroys everything they’ve ever known, characters successful FromSoftware’s games are victims of a unspeakable fate, beryllium it Hollowing, the Beast Scourge, Dragonrot, oregon Scarlet Rot.

Unsighted, a metroidvania acceptable successful a satellite populated by automatons, turns this conception into some a communicative and gameplay mechanic. Every NPC, including merchants, has a constricted powerfulness proviso and is removed from the crippled erstwhile this proviso runs out. As a result, you’re not lone encouraged to play arsenic rapidly arsenic imaginable – adding a invited consciousness of urgency to the acquisition – but besides program retired the bid successful which you progress.

Another Crab’s Treasure

One of the latest improbable soulslikes to make a splash, Another Crab’s Treasure – a 3D action-adventure platformer wherever you play a SpongeBob-esque crustacean whose hunt for their disposed location (shell) morphs into a amazingly morose quest to power the destiny of the water itself – rests connected yet different originative gameplay mechanic.

Unlike astir games successful the genre, you person lone 1 superior weapon. Instead, it’s your antiaircraft ammunition you’ll person to customize. Courtesy of biology pollution, the water level is littered with wearable quality garbage – from vessel caps to changeable glasses. Each ammunition has a unsocial onslaught and constricted durability, forcing you to follow antithetic playstyles arsenic you scurry on your underwater journey.

Exanima

Occasionally described arsenic the emotion kid of Dark Souls and Getting Over It, Exanima is simply a physics-based endurance crippled successful which – you guessed it – the subordinate explores dark, demon-infested dungeons. Although it’s inactive successful improvement (and has been for implicit a decade, with precise agelong stretches betwixt updates), the aboriginal entree mentation has arsenic overmuch amusement worth arsenic a fully-finished game. There are radical who person been enthusiastically playing it for years.

Exanima channels FromSoftware’s enactment insofar arsenic its intentionally finnicky, highly delicate controls crook each force brushwood into a suspenseful – and truthful riveting – ordeal. Swaying your weapons with the aforesaid grade of incoordination arsenic the Getting Over It guy’s shovel, portion of you can’t assistance but beryllium reminded of your archetypal outings successful Lordran oregon Drangleic, feeling comically unequipped to woody with the challenges astatine hand.

Those are our 10 picks for the champion indie soulslikes. But determination are galore much retired determination worthy your time, including Death's Door, Loot River, Featherfall, and Dark Devotion. Did we see your favorite? Let america cognize if we missed a large 1 down successful the comments. And for much challenging encounters, beryllium definite to cheque retired our database of the champion soulslikes (non indie edition!)

Tim Brinkhof is simply a freelance writer specializing successful creation and history. After studying journalism astatine NYU, helium has gone connected to constitute for Vox, Vulture, Slate, Polygon, GQ, Esquire and more.