In 2016, Dark Souls III game developer, From Software, once said that they were officially taking a break from the iconic franchise. This means that in the near future, it is likely that you will not meet the latest series from the studio. Of course this is a decision that is very unfortunate for lovers of this game. Maybe one of them is you.
Even so, you don’t have to be sad just yet. You see, currently there are lots of studios that have developed or published games with “DNA” similar to the Dark Souls franchise. An example is the games below that not only carry a similar combat method or resource management, but also have a level of difficulty that both makes us angry when playing.
- Nioh
Team Ninja, who is also the developer of the Ninja Gaiden series, is very familiar with creating games with a high level of difficulty. As a result, it wouldn’t be surprising if they gave birth to Nioh. Through the combat style of Dark Souls and the “Guardian Spirit” system that allows you to choose a fighting style that suits your playing character, this action role-playing game can be said to be Dark Souls set in feudal Japan. So, you really have to try this game if you really like colossal games with “different” levels of difficulty.
- Salt & Sanctuary
Salt & Sanctuary is a 2-D style game that has a stamina system, gameplay elements, and various weapons similar to Dark Souls. The difference is, in Dark Souls you have to accumulate “soul” to upgrade your character, weapons, to your armor, in this game the currency is “salt”. Even though it is 2-D style, Salt & Sanctuary is a complex game and has a broad line of skills to customize your playing style.
Well, the even greater fact is that Ska Studios as the developer of this game only contains two people. They are a husband and wife who really love the Dark Souls series. So cool!
- Titan Souls
If you want to play a game that is as difficult as Dark Souls but with a little less complexity, maybe Titan Souls can be the answer for you. Here, you will play a character who is so small on the screen and frail when compared to the row of giant bosses that you will face.
Armed only with a bow and arrow, this game has one absolute rule. Once you get just one attack, you will die. Vice versa. You can also beat the boss with one hit. However, don’t take it lightly yet. Finding the enemy’s weak points is not as easy as you think.
- Hyper Light Drifter
Playing Hyper Light Drifter is like entering a new, isolated world. In it, you will find living creatures and environmental landscapes with beautiful pixel-style graphics wrapped in serene, yet haunting, silent dialogue, and without words.
God-level concentration is needed to play this game. If you just let your guard down a little, you will die easily. Dark Souls veterans will die many times in this game. Hyper Light Drifter offers a mysterious, yet amazing world for you to explore throughout the game.
- Lords of the Fallen
Apart from being similar to Dark Souls with a dark fantasy background, this game is also similar to the Diablo series which has a loot collection system. There are combat methods, weaponry, and other class upgrades that can accommodate almost every player’s unique style.
The game that was formulated by Dek13 Interactive also has a risk / reward system, which is that the longer you play this game without saving, the higher the prize or experience you will get. If you die? Yes, the risk is that you have to return to your last save point. You can also taste this game in the mobile version on Android or iOS for a fee.
- The Surge
After creating Lords of the Fallen, the Deck13 Interactive studio continued to release The Surge which was also inspired by the Dark Souls franchise plus a game launched more than two decades ago, Rise of the Robots. The game is set in a future when technology has evolved beyond today’s human imagination.
The character of this game will use an exosuit, an armor that gives humans super abilities that you can upgrade regularly throughout the game. It’s like, well, the same exosuit from the film adaptation of the novel Edge of Tomorrow.
- Exanima
This early access game has a combat system and an environment that is the same as Dark Souls, but with a different control scheme. Your character will continue to advance following the mouse cursor. Bare Mettle Entertainment as the developer and publisher of this game really respects detailed and realistic simulations in order to produce an amazing and dynamic gameplay experience.
- Bloodborne
It’s incomplete to discuss a game similar to Dark Souls without including another masterpiece from From Software, Bloodborne. Produced from the same studio, it’s no wonder that almost all of these gameplay elements are very similar to Dark Souls. In this exclusive PlayStation 4 game released in 2015, you will play a character named The Hunter in a gothic world in the Victorian Era.
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Those are seven games that you can taste as a lover of the Dark Souls series. Hopefully From Software wakes up from its hibernation period and releases the successor of Dark Souls III.
FYI, for those of you who don’t know, in the middle of last month, Bandai Namco confirmed that it will release a remastered version of the first generation Dark Souls for PC, PS4, Xbox One X, and Nintendo Switch. Just wait for the game date, OK!
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