The best soulslike games on PC, Xbox and Nintendo Switch
Demanding, precise and brutally fair: games where you learn from every defeat and every victory feels earned.
How to find games that really suit you: Tap “I like it” on up to 5 games. Playalike compares 20 traits such as combat, story and atmosphere and suggests games that hit exactly the same spot, even across genres.
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1 Elden Ring
- Challenging difficulty
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Action-packed real-time combat
A vast open world, demanding combat and countless secrets, from the creator of the Dark Souls series.
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2 Dark Souls III
- Challenging difficulty
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Action-packed real-time combat
A dark action RPG with precise, unforgiving combat and intricately connected levels.
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3 Dark Souls
- Challenging difficulty
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Action-packed real-time combat
A merciless action RPG whose interconnected world of Lordran rewards careful exploration with clever shortcuts, deliberate combat and cryptic, melancholic lore. Every death teaches something, and every victory feels truly earned.
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4 Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice
- Challenging difficulty
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Action-packed real-time combat
Sword fighting in feudal Japan, where parrying and posture decide everything.
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5 Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
- Challenging difficulty
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Action-packed real-time combat
The definitive competitive tactical shooter: terrorists versus counter-terrorists in tense round-based matches where precise aim, team coordination and smart economy management decide every win.
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6 Cuphead
- Challenging difficulty
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Action-packed real-time combat
A brutally tough boss-rush shooter animated like a 1930s cartoon, where precise dodging, parrying and shooting decide every fight. A swinging big-band jazz score and local co-op round it out.
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7 Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number
- Challenging difficulty
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Action-packed real-time combat
A brutal top-down action sequel where one hit kills and every floor demands split-second planning and reflexes. A fractured, non-linear story across multiple characters unfolds in garish neon, driven by a hypnotic synthwave soundtrack.
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8 Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening
- Challenging difficulty
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Action-packed real-time combat
A blistering hack-and-slash where young Dante juggles swappable fighting styles, weapons and guns, and the game rewards you for fighting with flair. It is famously punishing, with legendary boss duels like the fights against Vergil and a heavy metal soundtrack.
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9 Counter-Strike 2
- Challenging difficulty
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Action-packed real-time combat
The definitive competitive tactical shooter, where two teams fight short, high-stakes rounds over bomb sites and precise aim, utility usage and team coordination decide everything. Source 2 adds reactive volumetric smoke to a famously unforgiving skill ceiling.
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10 Enter the Gungeon
- Challenging difficulty
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Action-packed real-time combat
A tough, pun-filled bullet-hell roguelike where you dodge-roll and flip tables through procedural floors with hundreds of wildly creative guns. Every run plays differently, and mastering the dense projectile patterns is deeply rewarding.
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11 Lies of P
- Challenging difficulty
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Action-packed real-time combat
A Soulslike based on Pinocchio, set in a decaying Belle Époque city with a strong focus on parrying.
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12 Devil Daggers
- Challenging difficulty
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Action-packed real-time combat
A brutal retro-styled arena shooter where you survive as long as possible against escalating demon swarms in a pitch-black void. Every second counts, with tight movement and crucial audio cues deciding your spot on the global leaderboard.
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13 Elden Ring Nightreign
- Challenging difficulty
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Action-packed real-time combat
A co-op roguelike spin-off of Elden Ring where a trio races across a shrinking map over three days, powering up before facing a towering Nightlord boss. Fast, intense runs with distinct hero classes replace the sprawling solo journey.
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14 Ninja Gaiden 4
- Challenging difficulty
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Action-packed real-time combat
Ninja Gaiden 4 revives the legendary hack-and-slash series with lightning-fast, brutal combat, co-developed by Team Ninja and PlatinumGames. As newcomer Yakumo you carve through a rain-soaked, demon-infested Tokyo where reflexes and combo mastery decide everything.
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15 Escape from Tarkov
- Challenging difficulty
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Action-packed real-time combat
A brutally hardcore extraction shooter where every raid risks all the gear you bring in. It stands out for its deep weapon customization, realistic ballistics and nerve-wracking encounters with other players.
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16 The First Berserker: Khazan
- Challenging difficulty
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Action-packed real-time combat
A punishing soulslike set in the Dungeon & Fighter universe, where the betrayed general Khazan seeks revenge through weighty, precise melee combat and brutal boss duels. Its striking cel-shaded look and aggressive parry-and-stamina system set it apart.
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17 Nioh 3
- Challenging difficulty
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Action-packed real-time combat
Demanding samurai action where you switch on the fly between Samurai and Ninja fighting styles to take down yokai from Japanese myth. Deep loot and build systems meet an open world for the first time in the series.
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18 Returnal
- Challenging difficulty
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Action-packed real-time combat
As a stranded astronaut caught in a time loop, you fight across a constantly shifting alien planet. Frantic bullet-hell shooting and a dark, enigmatic story make every run intense and punishing.
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19 Hotline Miami
- Challenging difficulty
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Action-packed real-time combat
A brutally fast top-down shooter where one hit kills and every floor is mastered through rapid trial, error and instant restarts. Its neon visuals, pulsing synthwave soundtrack and unsettling, surreal story about violence make it unforgettable.
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20 Hollow Knight: Silksong
- Challenging difficulty
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Action-packed real-time combat
The sequel to Hollow Knight: faster, more acrobatic and even more demanding.
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21 Dark Souls II
- Challenging difficulty
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Action-packed real-time combat
The second Souls entry sends you as a cursed undead through the decaying kingdom of Drangleic, offering punishing bosses, huge weapon and build variety, and a sprawling, branching world packed with secrets.
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22 Counter-Strike
- Challenging difficulty
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Action-packed real-time combat
The genre-defining team shooter where terrorists and counter-terrorists clash in tense rounds over bombs and hostages. With no respawns, an economy for buying gear and unforgiving gunplay, every round rewards teamwork, tactics and sharp aim.
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23 Apex Legends
- Challenging difficulty
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Action-packed real-time combat
A fast free-to-play battle royale hero shooter set in the Titanfall universe, where squads of three legends with unique abilities fight to be the last team standing. Slick movement, tight gunplay and squad synergy define it.
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24 Bayonetta
- Challenging difficulty
- Timing and reflexes matter (parrying, dodging)
- Action-packed real-time combat
A supremely stylish character action game where the witch Bayonetta battles hordes of angels using Witch Time, precise dodges and absurdly over-the-top finishers. Deep combo mechanics, colossal bosses and plenty of tongue-in-cheek charm.
What matters with Soulslike games
Soulslikes hook players with a simple loop: you die, you learn the enemy's patterns, and eventually you win through skill rather than luck. Checkpoints are sparse, mistakes are punished, and progress feels earned. Most also hide their story in item descriptions and environmental details, so exploration and lore-hunting become part of the reward.
When choosing, think about pace and combat style. Elden Ring is the most flexible starting point, because its open world lets you leave a tough boss and come back stronger later. Dark Souls: Remastered offers the original interconnected world of Lordran with its clever shortcuts, plus the Artorias DLC. Bloodborne, available on PlayStation, pushes you to stay aggressive instead of hiding behind a shield and leans into gothic and cosmic horror. Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice drops most RPG systems in favor of parrying and posture, which makes it feel more like a pure sword-fighting test. Lies of P is a strong pick if you want a newer, story-rich take with a parry focus and a Belle Époque setting.
The list also includes difficult games that are not soulslikes, such as Cuphead, a hand-drawn boss rush with local co-op, and Hotline Miami, built on instant restarts. They scratch a similar itch of trial and error mastery, but in very different genres. Counter-Strike and Devil Daggers are demanding too, though they are competitive or score-chasing shooters rather than soulslikes.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best soulslike for beginners?
Elden Ring is often recommended because its open world lets you explore elsewhere and level up when a boss feels too hard. Dark Souls III is another good entry point with a more linear structure.
Should I play Dark Souls or Dark Souls: Remastered?
Dark Souls: Remastered is the easier recommendation, since it keeps the original world of Lordran while adding sharper visuals, smoother framerates and the Artorias DLC.
Which soulslike focuses most on parrying?
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice builds its combat around parrying and breaking enemy posture. Lies of P also puts a strong focus on parrying within a more traditional soulslike structure.
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