Summary
Soulslike gamesare notoriously difficult, but they generally do a great job of giving players all the necessary tools to deal with any challenges that might come their way. While arguably no longer the case thanks to releases likeElden Ring,Dark Soulsis still the genre’s defining property and could be most people’s first exposure to Soulslikes.
FromSoftware’s 2011 masterpiece packs a considerable punch in terms of difficulty, to the point that it could put off newcomers who are still taking their first steps into the genre. Consequently, some players might prefer to try out a feweasier Soulslike games.
Difficulty can be subjective to an extent.
Updated August 10, 2025 by Mark Sammut:This month ended up great for Soulslike fans, with the genre producing pretty good titles. At the moment, it is still too early to determine whether AI Limit or The First Berserker: Khazan areeasier than Dark Souls; however, early impressions suggest that only the former has any chance of qualifying. Khazan is fairly difficult.
Two older games have been added as recommendations. Click below to jump directly to these titles.
Starting with a unique case, 2009’sDemon’s Soulsput Soulslikes on the map, setting the stage for the bigger and more successfulDark Souls. FromSoftware’s original game was refreshingly difficult, forcing players to work their way through five worlds that are split into intense and (at times) convoluted stages.
A strong argument could be made thatDemon’s Soulshas the hardest paths to boss fights in anySoulsgame, especially since each stage has only one bonfire. Death is punished severely and can result in substantial time being lost. That said,Demon’s Souls' boss fights are easy, with most of them having obvious gimmicks that can be exploited. The campaign has two challenging compulsory bosses: Maneater and Flamelurker. Even then, they would be just mid-tier fights inDark Souls.
In this case, the remake is taking center stage. The original game’s novelty enhanced its difficulty as there was nothing similar in 2009. By 2020, Soulslikes had become so common that most people had years of experiences when they dived into Bluepoint’sDemon’s Souls. Crucially, a lot of itstricks and popular tips were already known, and the remake even includes a ring that reduces the difficulty of one of the hardest areas (Swamp of Sorrow).
New players who have never touched a Soulslike might findDemon’s Soulsto be even harder thanDark Souls, or at least roughly around the same level. Experience with the genre plays a big role here.
Primarily known as the shooter souls franchise, Gunfire’sRemnantis by no means easy, with both games putting up considerable challenges.Remnant: From the Ashesis arguably harder thanDark Souls, particularly if played solo rather than with a few friends. While still demanding, the sequel is better balanced than its predecessor, with the campaign having fewer notable difficulty spikes.
More importantly,Gunfire included a class tailor-made for single-player, one that comes with a built-in dog companion. This decision madeRemnant 2viable for solo runners who would rather ignore the co-op. That said, the game’s third-person shooter gameplay is fairly far removed fromDark Souls' melee-driven action, and a player’s mileage will likely come down to which type of combat they prefer. Still,Remnant 2is a relativelyeasy Soulslike game, going solely by the very high bar set by the genre.
Plenty of Soulslike games wear their influences on their sleeves for everyone to see, butThe Last Hero of Nostalgaiamight just be the most blatant. As suggested by its title, this indie game revels in celebrating gaming’s past, especially FromSoftware’s Souls projects. Throughout the relatively short campaign, players will be constantly bombarded with nods toDark Soulsweapons, bosses, and ideas, creating an experience that is OK on its own but a blast when viewed through the lens of a genre fan.
While not a walk in the park by any stretch of the imagination,The Last Hero of Nostalgaiais one of theeasiest Soulslike gamesof all time, with only a handful of bosses presenting much of a challenge (and they are not plentiful). Honestly, the “hardest” part of the game is the reliance on backtracking, which is more frustrating than actually difficult.
More of an action RPG with Soulslike elements than a full entry in the genre,Asterigos: Curse of the Starsshares enough things in common withDark Soulsto warrant a try by anyone craving something similar. Besides having difficulty levels,Asterigos' standout difference is its weapon system, which grants Hilda, the protagonist, access to six types at any given moment. Players are encouraged to switch between all weapons as necessary so they can target enemy weaknesses, and they each have unique skill trees.
Although not perfect,Asterigosis a pretty darn good game with solid combat, a fun setting, and enjoyable boss battles. On normal difficulty, the game offers a minor but easily surmountable challenge, especially for people who are intimately familiar with Soulslikes. Certain weapons, like the Staff, are also really overpowered, although that can be said for some of FromSoftware’s projects as well.
Another Crab’s Treasurecomes from Aggro Crab, the studio responsible for the 2020 titleGoing Under. Aggro Crab is a development company that’s known for a couple of things, such as:
Another Crab’s Treasurehas all of these elements and more. It is not only a Soulslike but also a platformer and an all-around delightful experience. While some of the new mechanics the game introduces to the subgenre, such as a shell mechanic that ties unique moves to (essentially) armor, can take some getting used to,Another Crab’s Treasureis, by and large, a fairly easy Soulslike. Just to be clear, this is by the genre’s standards, as the game is still quite challenging and includes several boss fights (and even casual enemies) that will test even seasoned fans of these types of releases.
Hellpointhas a lot of parallels toBloodborne, one of From Software’s most well-known Soulslike games. Both games have a major theme of eldritch horror, cosmic horror, and the concept of humanity messing with old powers that should not be messed with. That said, Hellpoint has a lot more of its focus on the cosmic horror side of things thanBloodbornedoes, while the latter leans more on the eldritch side of things. Mechanically, Hellpointdoesn’t really hold a candle toBloodborne.
The game is good, and the controls are responsive, but they’re nowhere near as polished asBloodborne’sare, and it can lead a lot of the boss battles inHellpointfeeling like they’re a bit of a dice roll. Still,Hellpointis easier than any of FromSoftware’s SoulsBorne releases, especially since the game prioritizes exploration quite a bit. Boss fights can offer a challenge, though.
Starting things off with a relatively recent Soulslike,The Last Faithis a great representation of the genre’s ties to Metroidvanias. Games likeHollow Knight, Salt &Sacrifice,Grime,Blasphemous, and more all fit into this sub-category, and almost all of them are fantastic.The Last Faithunabashedly wears its inspirations on its sleeve, as anyone who even watches a tiny bit of footage can see the heavyBloodborne,Blasphemous, andCastlevaniainfluences everywhere.
All that said, as a game,The Last Faithis probably one of the better representations of a 2D Soulslike, transferring most ofDark Souls' core mechanics in the process. Players light ‘bonfires’ that can be used as fast travel, drop their currency on death, find and send NPCs back to their hub area to function as merchants, and much more. But, when it comes to difficulty, this is probably the one area where players will wishThe Last Faithwas even more similar to a Souls game since it’s a bit too easy, at least for anyone who has a decent amount of experience with these types of games.
Funnily enough, in recent years,two separate Soulslike gameshave come out that feature an automatonas the main protagonist. BothLies of PandSteelrisinghave a puppet main character (Aegis & Pinocchio) who are fighting to save a crumbling world and are set in a very steampunk-inspired setting.
However, whileLies of Pis pretty darn difficult and features an extremely challenging final boss fight,Steelrising’s challenge level most falls in the middle of the pack for the genre, and that is before taking into account Assist Mode. On a standard playthrough,Steelrisingarguably gets easier as the campaign progresses and repetition sets in. The boss fights are regularly spectacularly but should not present too much of a challenge for Soulslike veterans.
Assist Mode is basically easy mode and a welcome option.
Sticking with Team Ninja for a while longer,Wo Long Fallen Dynastyis quite similar toNioh, just slightly easier overall. The Morale, Fortitude, and Guardian Spirit systemsWo Longuses are also incredibly inventive in the way they differentiate the game from others in the same genre and also serve to make the game easier in a way.
So,while learning the combat systemand Deflect timing ofWo Long: Fallen Dynastyis initially difficult, as soon as players learn that they can just farm stages to get max Morale and make the end boss easier, especially if they have a co-op partner, the game becomes a lot more of a ‘cakewalk’ to get through.
Little Witch Nobetawill probably not hit the mark with every Soulslike fan out there, but it is worth a try for anyone craving an indie project that takes the genre in a fresh direction. Putting aside the anime coat-of-paint, the game’s biggest novelty is the focus on ranged magic attacks, which play closer to a third-person shooter than a traditional Soulslike. While far from the first project to add shooting mechanics into the mix,Little Witch Nobetafeels considerably different fromRemnantor even the ranged options in FromSoftware’s titles.
Unlike most Soulslikes,Little Witch Nobetathrows in two difficulty settings: Standard and Advanced.There is also New Game+, which does not ramp up the base difficulty but rather boosts enemies. Standard is effectively just an easy mode and will probably not provide a significant challenge for players who are huge fans of Soulslikes, at least once they grow accustomed to the combat. Advanced is considerably more challenging, but still not on the level of something likeDark Souls.
