Soulslikes Worth Playing Just For Their Worldbuilding

Video games are often overlooked for their potential as storytelling mediums, but some of the best games demonstrate a remarkable ability to immerse players in their stories and worlds. This is commonly seen in the Soulslike genre; many entries in this habitually grim subgenre depict an intricate world full of peril and darkness.

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By  Vincent Arogya

Since many Soulslikes put a heavy emphasis on exploration and discovery, as well as thoughtful combat that often forces players to pay close attention to their surroundings, it makes sense that several Soulslikes put a lot of thought into their world design. Here are Soulslikes that go above and beyond in designing and writing their worlds.

10 Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn

Guns And Gods

The world of Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn is an unquestionably unique one. This game combines epic fantasy tropes with flintlock pistols and gunpowder to create a distinctly explosive conflict where ancient gods rise up to destroy the mortal world. The protagonist, Nor Vanek, must join with a supernatural fox creature named Enki to defeat the gods and save the world.

In addition to its blend of fantasy and firearms, Flintlock also stands out through its use of Mesopotamian mythology. These ancient legends inspired the design of many of the game's murderous gods, as well as the significant part the underworld plays in the game's story. A video game inspired by this fascinating culture is not common, making Flintlock a particularly interesting game for fans of ancient lore.

9 Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order

A Soulslike Far, Far Away

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is far from the first piece of fiction to take place in the illustrious Star Wars universe. This galaxy has been explored at length dozens of times through movies, books, and TV shows, but Fallen Order lets players experience the rise of the Empire from a much more intimate perspective.

Cal's quest to keep the Jedi Order alive at the height of Imperial oppression brings him and the player to some of the farthest corners of the iconic Star Wars galaxy. During his journey, players will learn ancient lore about the Jedi order and the history of the sinister Imperial Inquisitors. Fans of this legendary franchise won't want to miss this title.

8 Nioh

A Spiritual History

Nioh is one of the most prominent Soulslikes on the market, and it owes much of its success to its unique premise. This game takes place in a fictionalized version of the Sengoku period, characterized in real life by a turbulent series of civil wars and political upheavals. The situation is complicated in-game by the meddling of the English empire, which seeks a mystical stone known as Amrita to aid in its wars with Spain.

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The constant war and turmoil have unbalanced the spiritual world of Japan, leading to the emergence of dangerous Yokai. The world of Nioh combines the turbulent real-life history of Japan with its rich tradition of folklore and mythology to create a unique and striking setting. This makes playing the game an excellent experience for anyone who wants to learn more about Japan and its culture.

7 Lies of P

Playing With Puppets

Lies of P is certainly one of the strangest Soulslikes out there. The game presents a grim dystopian steampunk take on the classic tale of Pinocchio. In the world of Lies of P, the puppets created by Geppetto have gone berserk and turned the city of Krat into a warzone. Meanwhile, the humans of the town are afflicted with a strange supernatural disease that slowly robs them of movement and life.

The worldbuilding in Lies of P is some of the most outlandish on the market, but it works in service of an immersive and well-realized city rich with clockwork wonders and horrors in equal measure. Prowling the streets of Krat will let players understand more about this odd world and how it met its gruesome end.

6 Hollow Knight

The Buried City

Hollow Knight blends many of the hallmarks of the Soulslike genre with 2D Metroidvania gameplay, with spectacular results. One of the most striking things about the game, however, is its art direction. Hollow Knight takes place in an illustrious but ruined kingdom populated by fallen insectoid creatures, and the game's caves and passages are full of beautiful detail bringing the ghosts of this ancient city back to life.

As players make their way through these strange ruins, they'll learn more about the connection between the player character and the history of the fallen kingdom. Hollow Knight presents an immersive story of sacrifice, tragedy, and injustice, and it's worth playing for that just as much as it's worth playing for the gameplay.

5 Black Myth Wukong

A Mystical Monkey

As the title suggests, Black Myth: Wukong centers on Sun Wukong, the legendary Monkey King. This iconic mythical figure is best known from Journey to the West, a famous epic novel from 16th-century China. Sun Wukong has influenced countless works of fiction, including Dragon Ball, but Black Myth Wukong gives players the chance to step into the character's shoes themselves.

Black Myth Wukong draws heavy inspiration from the events of Journey to the West and even incorporates real-life landmarks and buildings from China, but the plot and world have their own appropriately dark twist. The game follows a Destined monkey who is searching for the ancient relics of the original Monkey King so that he can inherit the legend's powers and become the new Sun Wukong. The game is rich with ancient Chinese lore and influences that will make the game especially exciting for any fan of ancient history.

4 Dark Souls

A Legend Among Soulslikes

The Soulslike genre as it is known today was built on the back of Dark Souls, hence the title. This game set the standard for many of the genre's most fundamental gameplay hallmarks, and it also influenced the stories of many of those games as well. The genre is commonly and prominently associated with dark fantasy, in large part due to the grim world of Lordran.

The dark history of Gwyn's kingdom and its inevitable decline is painted throughout the shadowed corridors and crumbling buildings of Anor Londo. Thanks to the game's fully interconnected map, players can see how the kingdom's decay has affected every level of its society. Dark Souls presents a vivid and immersive portrait of corruption and downfall, and there are few games that can beat it.

3 Bloodborne

The Neverending Hunt

The story of Bloodborne seems decently straightforward at the start, at least as far as FromSoftware titles go. The city of Yharnam has fallen to a blood curse that is turning its residents into hideous beasts, and hunters are sent out each night to put a stop to them. The city looks impressively gothic, and many of the early enemies reinforce this beastly theme.

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However, as players continue the hunt, they find themselves face to face with the grotesque history of Yharnam's blood plague, and the otherworldly origins of its curse. The game masterfully handles a transition to cosmic horror, introducing alien monsters and mindbending curses as players struggle to reach the true origins of the nightly hunt.

2 Blasphemous

Penitent Be The Heart

Blasphemous is a grim and gory 2D Soulslike with a lush and disturbing pixel art aesthetic. It takes place in a dark fantasy world known as Cvstodia, which is governed by a supernatural force known as the Miracle. This deific phenomenon manifests in strange and often cruel magical effects throughout the world, as humans are cursed and punished in sick and twisted ways seemingly at random.

Worship of the Miracle runs deep in the world of Blasphemous, and cathedrals and altars are common throughout the game. By reading item descriptions and meeting humans twisted and transformed by the sinister curse, players will gain intimate knowledge of the strange and horrible nature of this sinister entity.

1 Elden Ring

The Living Lands Between

The illustrious Elden Ring takes the intricate and detailed worldbuilding FromSoftware is known for and spreads it across a massive open world. The lore and storytelling of the game are treated with a spectacular level of care given the massive scope of the title. Many of the characters and bosses play majorly influential roles in the game, and even minor aspects of dungeon design can have massive implications.

Even though the recent Shadow of the Erdtree DLC is the last the franchise is set to receive, its story still hasn't ended. Countless players are still poring over every bit of in-game writing and character work to discover new bits of lore and piece together the vast history of the Lands Between. This game has some of the most robust worldbuilding out there, and it's all waiting to be uncovered.