The PS Plus catalog is a bountiful treasure trove of all sorts of games. You’ll find open-world hits,narrative-driven epics,and even some worthwhileclassic titles from console systems of old.But you may be wondering how well the service caters to thesadistic Souls community.
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Mid-tier budgets, top-tier punishment
Well, the simple answer is, pretty well. The catalog has a bunch of great Souls games, some under the FromSoft umbrella and some not, but all are games that are worth your time and attention.
However, you may be struggling to rank them in terms of priority, so we have taken the liberty of doing just that. Here are the best souls games on the PS catalog at the time of writing.
Seeing as there were only three other possible inclusions here that we would consider Souls-like, I thought I would give them a quick mention. These are Thymesia, Kena: Bridge of Spirits, and Stray Blade.
10Salt and Sacrifice
SacrificeSome Of Your Free Time
Salt and Sacrifice
I’ll admit right from the off that Salt and Sacrifice was a bit of a disappointing sequel, mainly due to the sheer quality of the original title in the series, Salt and Sanctuary. But, if you may separate this game from its predecessor, you’ll find that Salt and Sacrifice still has a fair bit to offer.
It’s a game that still offers the same staples as the original. That meanstough 2D Souls combatand a wealth of build options and playstyles that promote replayability. Not to mention beautifully bleak and gritty visuals, tight platforming, and a slew of difficult bosses that would love nothing more than to beat you to a pulp.
Deaths feel a little cheaper in this outing compared to the original, fast travel has been overhauled for the worse, and Mage Hunts are irritating. But, even still, the good outweighs the bad here, and this is still a phenomenal 2D Souls game worth checking out.
9The Surge 2
Tech-Savvy Souls
The Surge 2
You have access to both of The Surge series' titles on the catalog, but we would say that the sequel does just enough to be considered the standout of the two, and the one you should prioritize playing.
Not many Souls games embrace a more futuristic setting where technology rules the day, but The Surge leans into this niche and is all the better for it, offering an interesting dystopian future, and a story worth engaging with.
The combat is easily the star of the show here, as each encounter with even lowly mob enemies feels bombastic and satisfying, as you have access to varied gear that makes each skirmish feel amazing, but equally, the enemy variety always keeps you on your toes and forces you to adapt.
The downside is that the bosses aren’t quite up to code in comparison to some of the best Souls games on the market, and the time-based ‘find your corpse, get your souls’ mechanic will rumble a few. But overall, it’s a cool concept done well, and worth checking out if you’re tired of medieval fantasy settings.
8Mortal Shell
AShellOf A Good Time
Mortal Shell
In games like Dark Souls, the player moves like they are trudging through molasses a lot of the time, and your best friend is your shield to avoid becoming a fine paste at the hands of beasts and bosses. But what if the game took that shield away from you?
That’s something that Mortal Shell explores, not by making you a fast-moving striker akin to Bloodborne, but instead by making you the shield. As players will be able to explore this atmospheric world, gather various shells, and harden at will to defend from otherwise deadly attacks.
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Despite being a rather compact and short experience, Mortal Shell’s unique combat and build mechanics make for a standout and memorable Souls experience, which is punctuated by a cavalcade of tough bosses.
I will say, don’t expect a life-changing story here, as the game really succeeds on the back of the gameplay alone. But this is more than enough to justify playing this rock-solid Souls-like.
7Eldest Souls
A Non-Stop Boss Gauntlet
Eldest Souls
This one may be a little bit of a curveball for those traditional Souls fans out there, as Eldest Souls is a game that cuts all the fluff, effectively doing away with open-ended exploration and instead focusing on putting togetheran all-out boss rush.
The game uses a top-down perspective and has you take on a series of god-like bosses to save the world and stop the corruption that has plagued the world, which is about as predictable and dull as it sounds.
However, what this game lacks in story-telling chops, it makes up for with sublime boss design, varied build options that you can change on the fly with Boss Shards, and a steady difficulty curve that feels rewarding to climb slowly but surely.
It’s about as linear as it gets, and flirts with the idea of being less of a souls game and more of a challenging hack-and-slash title. But all in all, it’s a superb experience, and we would be remiss not to mention this one.
6Star Wars: Jedi Survivor
Souls and Sabers
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
While many at a glance wouldn’t assume that Jedi Survivor was anything other than a semi-open-world Star Wars RPG, it may surprise many to know that this series has a lot of Souls DNA, sitting comfortably in the Souls-lite category.
Of course, you have yourtypical open-world staples, like vast open spaces to explore, a wealth of collectibles to find, and a gripping story to enjoy centered around Cal Kestis. However, you also have plenty of punishing aspects to endure.
You have the tricky platforming challenges; you have the meticulously crafted Souls-adjacent combat that makes wielding a lightsaber feel about as good as it ever has in a Star Wars game. Plus, you have tough bosses, bonfires, and XP loss when you die, which are all Souls staples.
Sure, it’s a lot easier than any out-and-out Souls game, but this is a great way for curious players to break into the genre, and if you’re a Star Wars fan, even better.
5Remnant 2
Swapping Swords For Shotguns
When it comes to beginner-friendly Souls-likes, perhaps aside from Another Crab’s Treasure, the one that offers themost accessible experience for newcomersis definitely Remnant 2, partly because of the comparatively easier difficulty, but also because the player is given an arsenal of weapons and firepower.
This, along with the fact that this title is best played with others, and additional players only make progression faster and easier, makes it an action-packed but rather chill and enjoyable experience.
But that’s not to say it’s without its trials and tribulations, as players will need to serve as excellent marksmen and adapt on the fly to deal with the tough bosses in each procedurally generated world if you hope to contain and eradicate The Root.
It’s also a Souls-lite with a riveting story that actually feels guided and easy to follow, which is also a welcome bonus for newcomers and veterans alike. So, if you want to trade your sword for a shotgun, now is your chance.
Samurai Souls Action
Team Ninja has managed to create a truly epic Souls series in the form of Nioh, and even after two successful and thrilling outings, it’s still rather shocking just how few players give this Souls-lite hit its props. But, allow me to pull my weight and do that.
Nioh is effectively a fun middle ground between the all-out hack-and-slash madness of games like Bayonetta and DMC, but with the precision, difficulty, and humbling bosses akin to Sekiro.
Combat is fast-paced and fluid, exploration is fun and rewarding, and there’s also an ARPG feel to the action thanks to the focus on looting and enemy drops.
The mission-based format may be a bit odd for traditional Souls fans, but once you get your head around that, you’ll be hooked by Nioh’s incredible world, story, and buttery combat.
3Hollow Knight
Become The Hero Of Hallownest
Hollow Knight
Don’t let the cute and cartoonish visuals fool you; Hollow Knight is a punishing game that pulls no punches, forcing players to masterMetroidvania exploration and Souls-like combatin tandem to survive the perils of Hallownest.
The game is an absolute spectacle from start to end, thanks to the incredible audiovisual design, the wealth of memorable locales to explore, and the cast of colorful characters and bosses you’ll meet along the way.
It’s a tough game, but those who embrace the Metroidvania aspects of the game and explore thoroughly will find ways to gain more power, and possibly even sequence break to avoid tough encounters.
However, those who want to see all that Hollow Knight has to offer courtesy of the endgame content will need to have combat and platforming down to a fine art, as that’s when the true souls-like experience begins.
It’s a seminal Metroidvania, a competent Souls-like, and is very much in the conversation as one of the best indie games of all time. If that doesn’t sell you on this one, there’s nothing more I can do.
2Demon’s Souls Remake
The Grandfather of Souls
Demon’s Souls
While playing the 2009 version of this groundbreaking FromSoft game is a slog, to say the least, the incredible remake allows fans to experience Demon’s Souls in all its glory, with the caveat of modern-day visuals that make Boletaria and beyond look spectacular.
It’s a game with a selection of incredible bosses, a palpable atmosphere, a level-based world system that feels novel, and gameplay that culminates in one of the most beginner-friendly FromSoft outings, provided you don’t get hung up on some of the more dated, obtuse aspects of the design.
The game retains all the quirks of the original, for better or worse, with some super-gimmicky boss fights, a confusing World Tendency system, and much more. But this choice to keep the authentic Demon’s Souls experience intact is a positive one, as it allows you to see the shrub from which the Souls genre blossomed.
It’s a game that desperately needed a remake, as Demon’s Souls was far too good to be lost to time forever, and now, thankfully, PS Plus plays host to this epic souls title. So, do yourself a favor and dive into the game that spawned the Souls genre.
1Bloodborne
Night of the Hunter
Bloodborne
By a country mile, the best Souls game on the PS Plus Catalog today is the gothic-horror-fuelled epic that is, Bloodborne.
Bloodborne is, in my eyes, the crown jewel in the FromSoft crown, offering gameplay that feels dynamic, fast-paced, and rewarding and a world that is equally parts eerie, interesting, and grotesque.
Every boss, with the exception of the Witches of Hemwick, is a banger, and that extends to the incredible DLC as well. The game takes big swings with a risk-and-reward health replenishment system, the world-altering Insight system, and a gun-based parry system that all pay off.
Plus, I would say that the world of Yharnam is on par with Elden Ring’s The Lands Between in terms of quality, lore, and atmosphere, despite being a much more tight-knit and compact space.
For me, it’s the ultimate Souls experience, and nothing since has ever quite matched it. Sure, the Blood Vial system is annoying, but if that’s your only argument against this one, then I think that speaks volumes.
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