Best Soulslike Action RPGs to Play After Elden Ring: 9 Picks by Play Style

If Elden Ring was your first dark-fantasy action RPG, the best next game depends on what you want to preserve: open-ended exploration, tightly linked dungeons, parry-heavy duels, elaborate character builds, gothic mood or spectacular bosses. Start with Dark Souls III for the classic interconnected formula, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice for precise deflections, Lies of P for a focused story campaign, or Nioh 2 for exceptionally deep combat and build crafting. The other recommendations below serve more specific tastes.

This guide treats “Soulslike” as a family of games built around deliberate combat, dangerous encounters, meaningful deaths and discovery. Some entries closely follow that structure; others are adjacent games that borrow the tension and boss design while changing progression or level design.

#	Preview	Product	Price
1		Lords of the Fallen Standard Edition - PlayStation 5	$17.99	Buy on Amazon
2		Dark Souls: RPG Unkindled Dice	$23.95	Buy on Amazon
3		Steamforged Games: Dark Souls The Roleplaying Game Miniatures Bundle (Alonne Knights, Captains &...	$32.95	Buy on Amazon
4		Steamforged Games Dark Souls RPG Book Bundle: Core Book, The Tome of Strange Beings, The Tome of...	$59.95	Buy on Amazon
5		Soulslike Gamer Boss Fight Hardcore RPG Player Gift Hardcover Journal, Black	$16.99	Buy on Amazon

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Choose by the experience you want next

There is no single best follow-up to Elden Ring because its appeal combines several different ideas. Its open world, flexible builds, dramatic bosses and willingness to let you walk away from a difficult fight can each lead to a different recommendation.

• Want a concentrated version of the traditional formula? Play Dark Souls III.
• Want combat built around timing rather than rolling? Choose Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice.
• Want a readable, story-led third-party game? Try Lies of P.
• Want the largest toolbox of weapons, skills and loot? Choose Nioh 2.
• Want oppressive gothic atmosphere and aggressive healing? Play Bloodborne.
• Want another large world to explore? Return to Elden Ring if you have not finished it, then consider Lords of the Fallen for its two-realm design.
• Want cinematic myth and boss spectacle more than a traditional interconnected map? Try Black Myth: Wukong.
• Want to see the template’s earliest form in a modern presentation? Play the 2020 remake of Demon’s Souls on PlayStation 5.

At-a-glance comparison

Elden Ring: the open-world benchmark

Elden Ring remains the obvious reference point when someone says “Soulslike,” but it is also the most useful game to revisit if you want freedom rather than a different formula. Bandai Namco’s official action-games catalog lists its release date as 25 February 2022. Its defining feature is the ability to leave a dangerous encounter, explore elsewhere and return with a different weapon, spell or strategy.

#1 Best Overall

Lords of the Fallen Standard Edition - PlayStation 5

• Overhauled Character Creator – Create more lifelike characters with improved facial detail, body shapes, and visual fidelity
• Shared-Progression Cross-Play Cooperative Play – Both players now save all main story progress as long as they’re on the same “New Game” and have defeated a similar number of main bosses within one. Both players retains all loot, 100 percent vigor, and can revive each other in all online sessions.
• Free Friend’s Pass – Invite any friend to join your adventure in online co-op even if they don’t own the game. Friends keep loot and character progress, plus get full offline access to the tutorial and character creator
• Revamped Combat and Movement – V2.0 adds smoother animations, better weapon response, refined lock-on, improved evasions, and new grievous strike prompts

$17.99

Buy on Amazon

Why play it after another dark-fantasy game?

The open world turns difficulty into a routing problem. You can search for map fragments, optional dungeons, upgrade materials and side areas before committing to a major boss. That structure makes the game unusually welcoming to players who like experimentation: a failed build is rarely a permanent dead end because the world contains many alternative activities and equipment paths.

Who should choose it?

Choose Elden Ring when your priority is scale, discovery and build variety. It is less suitable if you want a short, tightly authored campaign or if you prefer every encounter to test the same narrowly defined skill. Before buying a physical copy or a particular edition, confirm the current platform, regional price and stock because those details change.

Dark Souls III: the cleanest classic follow-up

Dark Souls III is the strongest recommendation for players who want the traditional Souls structure without another enormous open world. FromSoftware describes the series as pursuing consistent design ideals that create a high sense of accomplishment while preserving traditional role-playing appeal: “DARK SOULS spans a series of Action RPG titles that each pursue consistent game design ideals that lead to a high sense of accomplishment for the player, as well as delivering on aspects of traditional RPG appeal, such as tense dungeon exploration, the fear that comes from encountering fearsome enemies, and the joy that comes from each new discovery.”

What feels different from Elden Ring?

Progression is more concentrated. Areas are arranged around shortcuts, locked doors and visual landmarks rather than a broad map filled with optional markers. Because the route is curated, enemy placement and boss sequencing teach a steadier rhythm of spacing, stamina control and weapon commitment. The game still supports different weapon classes, magic and character builds, but the surrounding world does less of the balancing work for you.

Best reason to pick it

Play Dark Souls III when you want every detour to reinforce the same central loop: enter an unfamiliar space, find a shortcut, survive its enemies and learn a boss. Its campaign is a better fit than Elden Ring for readers who value density over scale.

Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice: the parry specialist

Sekiro is the sharpest change of pace in this group. Instead of letting you solve most encounters through shield use, heavy armor, ranged attacks or a radically different stat spread, it asks you to learn deflections, posture damage and aggressive counterattacks. You can dodge, jump and use prosthetic tools, but standing your ground is usually the fastest path to victory.

Rank #2

Dark Souls: RPG Unkindled Dice

• The Unkindled Dice Set features 8 engraved, polyhedral, resin dice, perfect for bringing the dangers of your Dark Souls roleplaying campaigns to life…or death.
• Forged in the flames of despair and presented in a sleeved, magnetic collector’s box featuring the iconic YOU DIED message, these luxury dice capture the flickering glow of the bonfire beneath their glassy surface. Will they be a beacon of hope in the darkness?
• Time to dice with death and let the bonfire guide your fate. Embrace the darkness and roll with the flame…

$23.95

Buy on Amazon

How its combat works

Enemy health matters, yet posture is the central target. Repeatedly deflecting attacks fills an opponent’s posture meter until a deathblow becomes possible. Hesitating allows that meter to recover, so the game rewards controlled pressure rather than waiting for a safe opening after every swing. Bosses become lessons in rhythm: identify the sound and animation of an attack, respond correctly and keep the exchange moving.

Who should avoid it?

Sekiro is a poor choice if your favorite part of Elden Ring was changing builds whenever a fight felt wrong. Its progression offers fewer traditional role-playing substitutions, so you cannot bypass the core timing test with a completely different character concept. Choose it when mastering one demanding combat system sounds more appealing than collecting options.

Lies of P: a focused, story-led Soulslike

GamesRadar+ lists Lies of P as released on 18 September 2023 for PC, PlayStation and Xbox. It transplants familiar Soulslike tension into a Belle Époque-inspired city filled with hostile puppets, giving the formula a clear visual identity instead of reproducing medieval fantasy.

Why it works as a bridge

The campaign is directed enough to keep the story and setting in view, while its weapon system remains flexible. You can combine weapon parts, experiment with handles and blades, and decide whether to emphasize guarding, perfect guards, heavy attacks or status effects. That makes individual upgrades easier to understand than the sprawling equipment ecosystem of Nioh 2.

Best match

Pick Lies of P if you want recognizable Soulslike fundamentals with a strong narrative frame and a more compact route through the world. It is especially suitable for players who enjoy reading enemy animations and improving through repeated attempts but do not want to manage dozens of overlapping progression systems.

Nioh 2: the build-crafting laboratory

GamesRadar+ lists Nioh 2 as released on 12 March 2020 for PC, PS4 and PS5. It is the most mechanically dense recommendation here. Missions are selected from a map rather than traversed as one seamless world, and the loot stream is closer to an action game than to a minimalist RPG.

Rank #3

Steamforged Games: Dark Souls The Roleplaying Game Miniatures Bundle (Alonne Knights, Captains & Warriors, Protector of The Asylum, Dread Knights of Renown, and The Steadfast & The Hollow - 13 Items)

• Official Steamforged Games Dark Souls: The Roleplaying Game miniatures featuring iconic characters, creatures, and enemies inspired by the acclaimed fantasy game series
• Compatible with Dark Souls: The Roleplaying Game and suitable for use in a variety of fantasy tabletop roleplaying adventures and miniature-based encounters
• Highly detailed unpainted miniatures provide an excellent canvas for hobbyists who enjoy assembling, painting, and customizing fantasy figures
• Perfect for players, game masters, collectors, and miniature enthusiasts looking to create immersive tabletop adventures and memorable battle scenes
• Expand your collection with a variety of character and creature miniatures that bring the atmospheric world of Dark Souls to life on the tabletop

$32.95

Buy on Amazon

The systems that set it apart

• Ki: Your stamina-like resource governs attacks, dodges and recovery. A well-timed Ki Pulse restores part of it and keeps your offense alive.
• Stances: High, mid and low stances alter speed, reach, damage and defensive options for each weapon.
• Weapon skill trees: Every weapon type has its own techniques, giving a familiar category a long learning curve.
• Yokai powers: Transformations and special abilities add another layer to human-versus-monster encounters.
• Loot and builds: Equipment bonuses, stats and set effects invite constant refinement.

Trade-off for Elden Ring players

Nioh 2 offers more combat decisions per second but less geographic wandering. If you enjoy opening a menu to tune a build, testing a new combo and replaying missions for better gear, it can become your long-term game. If you mainly want environmental discovery and a singular journey, its mission structure may feel fragmented.

Bloodborne: gothic mood and forward pressure

Bloodborne is the pick for players who want the most concentrated atmosphere: gaslit streets, diseased hunters, towering architecture and horror that escalates through discovery. Its PlayStation-only availability is the key practical limitation, so check the current regional listing before planning around it.

The rally system changes your instincts

After taking damage, attacking quickly can recover part of the lost health. This temporary recovery window discourages retreating after every mistake and encourages decisive counterattacks. Firearms are used primarily to interrupt and stagger enemies rather than to replace close combat, while trick weapons let one weapon occupy two distinct forms.

When it is the right choice

Choose Bloodborne if you value setting, enemy design and aggressive tempo more than a large catalog of character builds. Its interconnected districts reward close observation, and its story is delivered through implication, architecture and item details rather than constant exposition.

Lords of the Fallen (2023): two worlds in one route

Lords of the Fallen differentiates itself through a dual-realm structure. The living world and its parallel realm overlap, and moving between them can reveal bridges, ladders, enemies, secrets and alternate routes. An in-game tool lets you inspect or interact with the other realm, turning traversal into a puzzle rather than a simple sequence of combat arenas.

Why the two-realm design matters

Exploration asks you to think in layers. A blocked path in one realm may be open in the other; a seemingly dead end can contain a route visible only through the alternate perspective. This creates a different kind of tension from Elden Ring’s open fields: the challenge is not only surviving enemies but understanding which version of the environment is currently useful.

Rank #4

Steamforged Games Dark Souls RPG Book Bundle: Core Book, The Tome of Strange Beings, The Tome of Journeys, and GM Screen (4 Items)

• Experience DARK SOULS like never before in this complete tabletop roleplaying game of adventure, horror, and tactical combat
• The Roleplaying Game is designed to be a punishing but rewarding experience that will delight hardcore fans and roleplayers alike
• Engage in jolly cooperation to vanquish your foes!
• Discover profiles for over 80 unique monsters and bosses from various ages within these 120 of the Tome of Strange Beings
• The journey through the treacherous realms of DARK SOULS continues, and we invite you to immerse yourself in the Tome of Journeys. Here lie the means to make your next roleplaying campaign twice as thrilling and thrice as deadly!

$59.95

Buy on Amazon

Who should play it?

Pick this game when environmental problem-solving and interconnected traversal are as important to you as boss fights. It is adjacent to the classic formula, but its dual-world rules are the main attraction rather than a minor feature.

Black Myth: Wukong: mythic spectacle over strict imitation

Black Myth: Wukong is best approached as a Soulslike-adjacent action RPG. It emphasizes memorable boss encounters, cinematic presentation, transformations, spells and staff-based combat rooted in Chinese myth. Its chapter-based areas do not reproduce the same kind of interconnected world as Dark Souls III or Bloodborne.

What it delivers

Bosses are the center of gravity. Encounters are staged as set pieces with distinct phases, visual motifs and ability checks. The player’s toolkit expands through stance changes, spells, transformations and equipment rather than through a huge matrix of traditional RPG stats.

Who will enjoy the difference?

Choose it if you want a visually dramatic sequence of fights and a strong mythological setting. Avoid treating it as a direct replacement for Elden Ring’s open-ended exploration; its appeal is closer to a focused action campaign with Soulslike pressure.

Demon’s Souls (2020 remake): the template’s origin in modern form

The 2020 remake of Demon’s Souls is the best choice for PlayStation 5 owners who want to understand where many modern Souls conventions began. Its structure uses separate archstones branching from a central hub rather than one continuous open world. Each archstone presents a self-contained atmosphere, enemy ecosystem and sequence of challenges.

Why its design still feels distinctive

Progression includes unusual systems that can alter enemy behavior, level conditions and the value of returning to an area. The game often expects you to identify a specific weakness or route instead of simply overpowering a boss. That makes experimentation and observation important, but it can also feel less transparent than later entries.

Best Value

Soulslike Gamer Boss Fight Hardcore RPG Player Gift Hardcover Journal, Black

• Celebrate soulslike gamers, soulslike players, boss fight fans, hardcore RPG gamers, action RPG players, challenge run enthusiasts, difficult game lovers, and anyone who enjoys mastering demanding combat.
• A thoughtful soulslike gift for players, boss battle gamers, action RPG fans, challenge run enthusiasts, hardcore gamers, and anyone who enjoys difficult games built around persistence, practice, and mastery.
• Hardcover journal with 240 line-ruled pages (120 sheets)
• Built-in elastic closure and ribbon bookmark
• Includes an expandable inner storage pocket and a pen holder

$16.99

Buy on Amazon

Best reason to play

Choose the remake for historical context, striking visual design and compact areas with strong identities. It is not the broadest or most forgiving option, but it shows how the genre’s ideas developed before the open-world expansion of Elden Ring.

Match the game to your preferred combat language

If you rely on rolling and spacing

Dark Souls III provides the clearest continuation of that style. Elden Ring also supports it, while Lies of P adds guarding and perfect-guard choices without abandoning readable attack patterns.

If you want to parry almost everything

Sekiro is the purest test because deflection is the central answer to ordinary attacks and boss strings. Bloodborne offers a firearm-based interruption system, but its broader identity is aggressive movement rather than a dedicated posture duel.

If you prefer combos and stance changes

Nioh 2 has the deepest toolkit. Its high, mid and low stances, Ki Pulse timing and weapon-specific skills make combat feel closer to a technical action game than to a minimalist sword-and-shield RPG.

If you want defensive planning and build variety

Lies of P, Lords of the Fallen and Elden Ring all let you combine equipment and abilities in different ways. Nioh 2 goes furthest, but that depth demands more menu time and more willingness to learn overlapping systems.

Match the game to world structure and campaign length

Difficulty, learning curve and the kind of practice each game demands

“Hard” does not mean the same thing across these games. Dark Souls III and Demon’s Souls test route knowledge, stamina and enemy-specific weaknesses. Sekiro tests reaction timing and sustained pressure. Nioh 2 tests whether you can track Ki, stance, skill and equipment decisions at once. Lies of P asks for careful guarding and attack recognition, while Bloodborne rewards the willingness to counterattack instead of retreat. Lords of the Fallen adds spatial awareness because the correct realm can matter as much as the correct dodge. Black Myth: Wukong concentrates its hardest lessons in boss patterns and ability management.

Choose the learning curve you are prepared to practice, not simply the game with the reputation for being hardest. A player who enjoys repeating one duel to perfect deflections may find Sekiro more satisfying than a game with more forgiving combat but a larger inventory. A player who dislikes repetition may prefer Elden Ring, where exploration can provide upgrades and alternative encounters before a rematch.

Platform, edition and buying checks

Platform support and physical stock vary by region and edition. The dated availability details that are established here are specific: GamesRadar+ reports Lies of P on PC, PlayStation and Xbox, Nioh 2 on PC, PS4 and PS5, and Bloodborne as PlayStation-only. The Demon’s Souls remake is intended for PlayStation 5. For Elden Ring, Dark Souls III, Sekiro, Lords of the Fallen and Black Myth: Wukong, confirm the current store or retailer listing for your region before purchasing.

• Check whether a listing is for the base game, a complete edition or an expansion bundle.
• Confirm that the disc or code matches your console generation and account region.
• Compare physical and digital editions only after checking current prices, included expansions and stock.
• For second-hand copies, verify that any advertised bonus content is actually included rather than tied to a redeemed code.

A practical play order after Elden Ring

1. Start with Dark Souls III if you want to understand the focused version of the formula.
2. Move to Lies of P for a polished, directed third-party interpretation with a strong setting.
3. Choose Sekiro when you are ready to replace build swapping with deliberate deflection practice.
4. Try Nioh 2 when you want a long-term systems project built around loot, stances and skills.
5. Use Bloodborne or Demon’s Souls if you have access to PlayStation hardware and want either gothic aggression or the genre’s earliest blueprint.
6. Pick Lords of the Fallen or Black Myth: Wukong when their specific twists—two-realm traversal or cinematic mythic bosses—matter more to you than strict adherence to Souls conventions.

Final recommendation

For most Elden Ring players, Dark Souls III is the safest next step because it preserves the essential combat and discovery loop in a denser, more focused world. Select Sekiro for the greatest combat transformation, Lies of P for a clear story-driven campaign, or Nioh 2 if build experimentation and fast technical fighting are your priorities. The remaining games are strongest when chosen for their distinctive identity rather than as interchangeable copies.

Quick Recap

Bestseller No. 1

Lords of the Fallen Standard Edition - PlayStation 5

$17.99

Bestseller No. 2

Dark Souls: RPG Unkindled Dice

$23.95

Bestseller No. 3

Steamforged Games: Dark Souls The Roleplaying Game Miniatures Bundle (Alonne Knights, Captains & Warriors, Protector of The Asylum, Dread Knights of Renown, and The Steadfast & The Hollow - 13 Items)

$32.95

Bestseller No. 4

Steamforged Games Dark Souls RPG Book Bundle: Core Book, The Tome of Strange Beings, The Tome of Journeys, and GM Screen (4 Items)

Engage in jolly cooperation to vanquish your foes!

$59.95

Bestseller No. 5

Soulslike Gamer Boss Fight Hardcore RPG Player Gift Hardcover Journal, Black

Hardcover journal with 240 line-ruled pages (120 sheets); Built-in elastic closure and ribbon bookmark

$16.99

Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.

action RPGsBloodborneDark SoulsElden RingLies of PNioh 2PlayStation 5SekiroSoulslike