Lots of games try to capture the feel of the ‘Souls’ series, and many get the fighting and character development right. However, a lot of them miss a key ingredient: making exploration feel worthwhile. Truly great ‘Souls-like’ games aren’t just about challenging combat—they also reward players for venturing off the beaten path.
Fortunately, many excellent Soulslike games reward players for exploring beyond the main story. You can venture off the beaten path to find useful upgrade materials, challenging secret bosses, or engaging side quests – there’s a Soulslike out there to suit your playstyle.
Looking for a challenging and satisfying game? We’ve got plenty of options! Here are 10 Soulslike games that encourage you to explore and aren’t afraid to let you wander off the beaten path.
10. Ashen
Explore Side Journeys
Ashen is a challenging game, and exploring the world is crucial for success. Taking the time to search thoroughly will help you find valuable resources like crafting materials, improved weapons and armor, helpful talismans, and upgrades – all of which make the difficult boss battles much more manageable.
The biggest reason to explore Ashen is the chance to unlock side quests that improve your character’s health and stamina, making them better at everything. Ignoring exploration and these side quests isn’t just a bad idea – it could really detract from your overall experience.
9. Kristala
Cat Souls
Kristala, a recently released action RPG inspired by the Souls series, has officially left early access. While it might not be the most groundbreaking game in the genre, Kristala successfully captures the core elements of Soulslikes. Its exploration is particularly enjoyable, especially in levels designed with a more open, free-roaming style.
As you explore the world of Kristala, you’ll discover helpful items, skills, and improvements that make you more effective in battle. Exploring also rewards you with shortcuts, making it much easier to get around the large areas. Plus, the beautiful music and atmosphere make exploring a truly relaxing experience.
8. Code Vein II
Discover Essential Upgrades
The first Code Vein received a mixed reaction from fans of challenging action games, and the sequel is similar in that regard. The biggest difference is that while the original game was fairly straightforward, Code Vein 2 features a huge open world to discover. While not every corner of the world is exciting, much of it is worth exploring thanks to the valuable rewards you can find.
Honestly, exploring the world in Code Vein 2 is totally worth it. I’ve found stuff that lets me heal more often, resources to power up my weapons, and even shops with rare gear you can’t get anywhere else. If you really want to become a powerhouse in this game, you have to get off the beaten path.
7. Remnant 2
A Randomized World
Remnant 2 stands out from other Soulslike games by combining challenging combat with third-person shooting and Roguelike features. This means every playthrough feels fresh, with randomized levels, unique bosses, secret characters, and new side quests to discover.
Every time you start a new game, the levels are rearranged, so you’ll never have the same experience twice. This keeps things interesting and encourages you to explore every path, because you might find powerful upgrades, awesome new weapons, or even a captivating side story that expands the game’s world.
6. Bleak Faith: Forsaken
Beautiful Art Direction
Bleak Faith: Forsaken features expansive environments filled with hidden secrets and valuable items. Like many similar games, the cool and interesting items you find aren’t just for show – they’re crucial for improving your character and making the game more manageable, and you’ll encounter tough enemies along the way.
What truly shines in Bleak Faith: Forsaken is its incredible art style and immersive world. Exploring feels genuinely rewarding, as you’ll discover stunning locations that stand out even in this genre. If you enjoy exploration and uncovering rich lore, this game is a must-play, offering diverse environments like forests, deserts, and ancient ruins.
5. Dark Souls Remastered
An Interconnected World of Secrets
Okay, so I’ve played all the Dark Souls games, and honestly, the first one just nails the world design. It feels so connected, like a huge, winding labyrinth. Seriously, exploring everywhere is so worth it. You can unlock shortcuts that loop you right back to the beginning – the Undead Asylum – and find some seriously powerful weapons and spells to help you build your character. It’s a game that really rewards you for getting lost!
Dark Souls excels at tucking its characters away in hidden spots throughout the game world, each with a unique backstory and contributing to the rich lore. A particularly rewarding aspect of exploring is discovering illusory walls – cleverly disguised passages you reveal by hitting them with your weapon. Uncovering these secrets feels incredibly satisfying, making the search well worth the effort.
4. Lords of The Fallen
A Hunt for the Best Weapons
The first Lords of the Fallen, which came out in 2014, wasn’t particularly well-received. While it tried to capture the challenging gameplay of the ‘Souls-like’ genre, it didn’t quite deliver the feeling of finding hidden secrets that players expect. Thankfully, the 2023 reboot of Lords of the Fallen does a much better job of rewarding players for exploring and taking on optional challenges.
As you explore the world of Lords of the Fallen, you’ll discover powerful spells and weapons strong enough for the late game. Exploring also helps you gain experience points to improve your character, and is even necessary to unlock a couple of the game’s three different endings.
3. Hollow Knight: Silksong
2D Exploration
The original Hollow Knight successfully translated the challenging ‘Soulslike’ gameplay style into a 2D adventure, establishing Team Cherry as a promising game developer. Its upcoming sequel, Hollow Knight: Silksong, expands on this success with a much larger world packed with even more hidden secrets and exploration opportunities.
While exploring the world of Hollow Knight: Silksong, be sure to talk to the characters you meet. They’ll often give you optional quests with great rewards, point you towards secret areas containing upgrades for your abilities, and help you find items to make your attacks stronger. Venturing off the main path is highly recommended to prepare for the game’s challenging bosses.
2. Nioh 3
A Step in the Right Direction
The Nioh series has always included some exploration, but Nioh 3 really expanded on this with a fully open world. It’s the most similar game to Elden Ring in the genre, featuring a large world to discover with plenty of optional things to do, helpful rewards to improve your character, and memorable characters with compelling stories.
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Many games add open worlds just to make them seem larger, but Nioh 3 goes further by creating one that’s truly rewarding to explore. The game actually wants you to venture off the beaten path, because doing so makes the main story easier by helping you gain valuable upgrades and experience.
1. Elden Ring
The Best Exploration of All Soulslikes
Elden Ring is a masterpiece of its genre, boasting a huge world, rich backstory, and tons of ways to customize your character, making it a game you can play again and again. What really sets it apart is its expansive open world – most of what you discover is optional, but always rewarding for those who explore beyond the main path.
In Elden Ring, players can discover powerful weapons, learn new spells, battle hidden bosses for great rewards, and uncover story details that deepen their understanding of the game’s world. Completing the main story takes around 40 hours, but fully exploring everything the game has to offer will likely take between 100 and 150 hours.
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2026-05-05 18:42