8 Best Souls-Like Games With Co-op

When Dark Souls was released it immediately captivated players with its challenging combat and intricate dark world-building.



Some played because of the hype and some because it was a personal challenge to beat the game.


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Now an entire genre of games has emerged using similar mechanics as the Demon and Dark Souls games – the Souls-like genre. Unfortunately, most Souls-like games offer a solitary journey.

If you’re looking to share an adventure while fighting against relentless enemies, we’ve got you covered. Here are some of the best Souls-like games that offer co-op experiences.


8 Salt & Sanctuary

2D Souls-like With Brutal Combat

Salt and Sanctuary - 1

Top Critic Rating:83/100 Critics Recommend:85%

ESRB
M For Mature 17+ // Blood and Gore, Violence

How Long To Beat
16 Hours

Aside from being 2D, Salt & Sanctuary clearly takes a lot of inspiration from Dark Souls which shows in its brutal, challenging combat.

However, the game does have its own identity and deep RPG mechanics, making it different enough to avoid being called a 2D Dark Souls clone.

The game also sets itself apart by having over 600 weapons, armor, and spells, allowing you to deeply customize your build.


Despite being 2D, the world is non-linear with interconnected areas to explore and bosses to defeat.

The game has online co-op via Steam Remote play – if it had integrated online co-op it would have been higher up on the list.

7 The Last Oricru

Bizarre, Choice-Driven Souls-like

The Last Oricru Official Gameplay Trailer Rat Monster

You’ll either love or hate The Last Oricru. It features a semi-open world with Souls-like combat and a heavy focus on choices and consequences.

And oh dear, your choices alter the world around you, sometimes in ways you might not expect.

Your choices change NPC behavior, available quests, and faction wars – oh, and there’s no real manual save, so you can’t load up the game to change anything.

Plus, there’s a weirdly voice-acted protagonist, an odd UI, and no quest markers, so the mechanics can be as rage-inducing as the unforgiving combat.


However, it features a full drop-in and drop-out co-op experience, so you and a friend can explore this social experiment, accidental psychological horror experience together.

If you want a co-op Souls-like with unintentionally hilarious jank, this game is for you.

6 Hellpoint

Sci-Fi Horror Souls-like

Hellpoint Official Gameplay Trailer Monster and Main Character

Action RPG

Fighting

Shooter

Top Critic Rating:61/100

Released
July 30, 2020

ESRB
t

How Long To Beat
16 hours

Hellpoint is another somewhat janky game (definitely less janky than the entry above) and has you playing on a derelict space station. To be honest, the somewhat clunkiness adds to the game’s charm.

You can use a variety of weapons, including ranged, and features true Souls-like combat complete with dodge, roll, and parry.

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The level design and atmosphere are amazing, really making you feel lost in space.

The black hole system is what makes this game stand out – the station changes depending on the cosmic cycle, altering enemy spawns and encounters.


This means you never know what enemies to expect as you fight through the entire game with a friend, thanks to the seamless online co-op experience.

5 Ashen

Minimalist Souls-like Co-op Experience

Ashen Official Gameplay Trailer Main Character Looking Over Cliff

Top Critic Rating:80/100 Critics Recommend:83%

Released
December 7, 2018

ESRB
T For Teen Due To Blood, Violence

Developer(s)
A44 Games

How Long To Beat
16 Hours

Playing Souls-like games can be emotionally and mentally taxing – this is where Ashen steps in. It’s similar enough to feel familiar, yet unique enough to be its own game.

The game focuses heavily on stamina management and dodging, making it methodical but still accessible. Unlike most Souls-like games, it doesn’t have an intricate parry system.

The open world the game offers makes it unique in the genre. There are dungeons to explore, secrets to find, and settlements to rebuild.

Even though it doesn’t have a complex upgrade, crafting, or skill progression system, those features are still present.


In terms of online co-op, you can have random players dropping into your world, or you could invite a friend for a more traditional experience.

Consider it a simplified, minimalist, art-styled Dark Souls with an open world and RPG elements.

4 Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty

Fast-Paced Soulsborne Combat

Boss In Wo Long Fallen Dynasty

Systems

Top Critic Rating:81/100 Critics Recommend:77%

Released
March 3, 2023

ESRB
Rated M for Mature for Blood & Gore and Violence.

How Long To Beat
27 Hours

In Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty, you aren’t anyone special – just a nameless soldier fighting both humans and monstrous creatures.

The game uses a deflection-based system. Sure, you can dodge attacks, but parrying is the name of the game, giving you the chance to stagger enemies.

There’s also an interesting morale system. If you don’t defeat enemies quickly, they grow stronger – but defeating them gives you morale, making you stronger.

You can fight with anything, from polearms to dual swords, and can even use magic.


You’ll need to upgrade your gear (the game uses loot-driven RPG progression) to take on the many demon bosses.

The game features a somewhat seamless co-op – you can’t join mid-mission (the mission will start over again), but other than that, both you and your friends can level up and complete missions together.

3 Lords of the Fallen (2023)

Souls-Like With Two Interwoven Realities

Lords Of The Fallen Cover Image

Systems

Top Critic Rating:69/100

Released
October 28, 2014

ESRB
m

At first glance, Lords of the Fallen may look like a Dark Souls clone, but dual-world exploration sets it apart.

Throughout the game you’ll be fighting in two realities at once, switching between the two from time to time to get past obstacles.

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There are nine starting classes to choose from, along with many weapons and magic, similar to that of your regular RPG progression system.

While the combat system isn’t as fast-paced as Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty, it is weighty and each fight feels significant.


Plus, it offers a drop-in and drop-out co-op system and full progression, which ranks it higher than Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty.

2 Nioh 2

Fast-Paced Samurai Souls-like

Nioh 2 Official Gameplay Trailer Character Looking Into Sunset

Systems

Top Critic Rating:85/100 Critics Recommend:93%

Released
March 13, 2020

ESRB
M For Mature 17+ due to Blood and Gore, Suggestive Themes, Violence

How Long To Beat
45 Hours

Nioh 2 is what you would get if Dark Souls combat had a lovechild with Ninja Gaiden – the combat is fast and fluid, but still weighty and complex.

The game uses a stance-based system from which you can use High, Mid, or Low for different attacks depending on the enemy you’re fighting.

The bosses are incredibly tough, similar to those we all love and hate in Dark Souls games. You’ll need to block, dodge, and counter to make it out alive.

The loot-driven progression system sets it apart from regular Souls-like games, making it similar to games like Diablo. Plus, you can highly customize your build with deep skill trees.


Nioh 2 is one of the best Souls-like games, but it might be frustrating for most players as it uses one of the most mechanically complex combat systems. So, keep that in mind if you’re new to the genre.

In terms of co-op, there are two ways to go about it. You can either summon a friend or random (you’ll part ways if the mission is completed or if they die), and through a lobby (they’ll stay with you throughout the game so you can complete missions together).

1 Remnant 2

Randomly Generated Worlds

Remnant 2 Co Op GamePlay Trailer 3 Characters With Guns

Soulslike

Third-Person Shooter

Systems

Top Critic Rating:82/100 Critics Recommend:86%

Released
July 25, 2023

ESRB
M for Mature 17+ due to Blood and Gore, Partial Nudity, Strong Language, Violence

How Long To Beat
20 Hours

I know what you’re thinking – how can a Souls-like game with guns be top of the list? Well, it takes the challenging combat of Souls-likes and combines it with world randomization and deep character customization.


Remnant 2 pulls things like bosses, dungeons, and quests from sets within pools – you never get the same playthrough twice. This makes replayability perhaps the best in the genre.

You’ll also have to memorize enemy attack patterns, dodge roll at the right time, and aim precisely to win your fights, similar to Souls-like mechanics.

The game also features upgrades to your gear (there’s a lot to choose from), the mixing and matching of classes (a tanky medic for example), and skills, which adds a strategic element to build customization.

Plus, it uses a seamless drop-in and drop-out co-op system, with some challenges and fights being co-op exclusive. Meaning the game was built with co-op in mind.

Remnant 2 doesn’t just use the same old Souls-like formula, it builds on it. Try it out, you won’t be disappointed.

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