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Mortal Shell 2 Review – A Bigger, Better Sequel, Clearly Inspired by Elden Ring
Mortal Shell 2 offers a refined Soulslike experience, drawing clear inspiration from Elden Ring's open-world design and progression systems while maintaining its own identity. The game features a more interconnected world, expanded Shell mechanics, and a satisfying combat system that blends traditional weaponry with firearms and status effects. Despite some noticeable bugs and a less impactful narrative, Mortal Shell 2 is a strong sequel that builds upon its predecessor's foundation.
Mortal Shell 2 review - falls short of Elden Ring's greatness
Mortal Shell 2 attempts to emulate Elden Ring's open-world success but falls short in navigation, though its combat and shell system offer a thrilling Soulslike experience. The game features interconnected areas, a dark-fantasy setting, and a unique shell mechanic where players embody fallen individuals, each with distinct backstories and skills. While the boss fights are challenging and enjoyable, and the combat offers flexibility, the open world can feel hollow and frustrating to explore, leading the reviewer to prefer Elden Ring.
Mortal Shell 2 review: "The best Soulslike I've played since Elden Ring thanks to brilliant death-dealing toys and speedy combat"
Mortal Shell 2 is a superior and more accessible sequel to the original, offering faster combat and a world dense with ideas. While it doesn't dethrone Elden Ring, it stands as a strong Soulslike with its own merits, featuring unique "mortal shells" with distinct abilities and a satisfying combat system. Despite minor issues with camera control and difficulty balance, the game is a visually impressive and fun experience available on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X.
Mortal Shell 2 Might Finally Give Bloodborne Fans What They Want
This article draws parallels between Bloodborne and the upcoming Mortal Shell 2, suggesting the latter may offer a similar aggressive combat experience. It highlights mechanics like Bloodborne's regen system and Mortal Shell 2's Harden and firearm usage as key elements that cater to fans seeking a challenging, offensive-minded Soulslike. The piece concludes that while not a direct sequel, Mortal Shell 2 captures the spirit of Bloodborne's combat philosophy.
The Sunday Papers
This article discusses several recent gaming news items and industry reflections. It covers Brenda Romero's autofiction, The Guardian's summer game previews featuring Wrong Organ's Carcass Clad, differing opinions on Game Freak's Beast of Reincarnation, and Sean Murray's perspective on No Man's Sky's decade-long development. Additionally, it investigates sexual harassment allegations against indie horror publishers like Critical Reflex and Black Lantern Collective, and touches on the worsening wildfire situation in France.
Beast of Reincarnation is a Pokemon soulslike minus the souls, and all the better for it
Beast of Reincarnation offers a challenging action-RPG experience inspired by soulslike games but with a unique twist: players retain their inventory upon defeat, removing the typical penalty of losing currency. This approach, running on PlayStation 5, provides a more accessible yet still demanding combat system, drawing comparisons to titles like Elden Ring and Dark Souls 3, while diverging from the typical Game Freak formula seen in Pokémon games.
2023 PS5 Hidden Gem Action RPG Under $5 on PlayStation Store
Achilles: Legends Untold, an action RPG developed by Dark Point Games, is currently on sale for under $5 on PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4, marking an 80% discount. The game, which features combat inspired by FromSoftware's Souls-like titles, has received positive player reception despite mixed critical reviews. This limited-time deal on the PlayStation Store ends on August 27.
I love the Dark Soulful architecture of The Canon of Balls, a rolling open world game inspired by Sega, Fumito Ueda and Minecraft parkour
The Canon of Balls is a new open-world platformer inspired by Dark Souls, Super Monkey Ball, Shadow of the Colossus, and Minecraft parkour. Players control a statue's face with a tongue inside a rolling cage, navigating intricate, unforgiving environments. Developed by Helios Monk, the game aims for a unique, abrasive aesthetic and a non-modular open world, launching on PC via Steam.
Mortal Shell 2 Is Proof Open Worlds Don’t Need to Be Massive
Mortal Shell 2's open world design prioritizes a compact, interconnected experience over massive scale, aiming to respect player time and deliver a focused narrative. This approach contrasts with games like Elden Ring, with developers Cold Symmetry emphasizing deliberate exploration and unique environments. The game is set to launch on August 20th for Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC.
Memoirium Review - Restless Dreams
Memoirium is a Souls-like game that draws heavily from earlier titles in the genre, focusing on methodical combat and a dreamlike world. While it doesn't reach the heights of its inspirations, it offers a unique experience with its defensive playstyle, extensive weapon and magic options, and beautiful low-poly art. Despite some issues with progression, enemy variety, and occasional combat frustrations, Memoirium provides a compelling and memorable challenge for fans of the genre.
Mortal Shell 2 – Everything That’s Changing From the Original
Mortal Shell 2 aims to significantly expand upon its predecessor with a longer campaign, new combat mechanics, and numerous dungeons. While it offers a standalone experience, concerns from the open beta regarding camera, lighting, and accessibility are noted, though the developers are reportedly addressing some issues for a day-one patch. The game is set to release on August 20th for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC, featuring enhancements like DLSS and ray tracing for PC players.
Lies of P: Complete Edition Switch 2 Review
This review covers Lies of P: Complete Edition on the Nintendo Switch 2, which includes the base game and the Overture DLC. The game is praised for its Soulslike combat, gothic aesthetic, and engaging narrative, drawing comparisons to Bloodborne and Sekiro. The Nintendo Switch 2 port offers a stable 60 FPS in Performance Mode, though visual fidelity is reduced compared to other platforms.
Someone's head is killing me in Memoirium, a PSX-styled soulslike about battling through bizarre dreamscapes and decorating your bedroom
Memoirium is a new PlayStation-styled soulslike game that features challenging combat, bizarre dreamscapes, and a unique bedroom decoration mechanic. The game's demo is available now on Steam, with the full release scheduled for this Thursday. Combat mechanics focus on stamina management and weapon art skills, with a system for dealing 'stress' damage to enemies through timed dodges and parries.
You can now check if you've been selected for The Duskbloods network test - here's how
Players can now check if they have been selected for the upcoming network test of The Duskbloods, the new game from FromSoftware. Those who registered in July can log in to the official website using their Nintendo account to see their selection status. The network test will run from August 21st to 24th, with codes becoming available on August 18th.
Ranked: The 10 Most Punishing Games the ’90s Ever Produced
This article ranks the 10 most punishing games released in the 1990s, highlighting titles that were intentionally designed to be extremely difficult. Games like Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts, Contra: Hard Corps, and Battletoads are discussed for their brutal challenges, with some difficulty attributed to business models rather than pure design.
Elden Ring Finally Lands on Switch 2 August 28 — Here's What Fixed the 15fps Disaster | Gamedoper
Elden Ring: Tarnished Edition is launching on Nintendo Switch 2 on August 28, 2026, for $79.99. This version includes the base game and the Shadow of the Erdtree expansion, along with new classes, armor, and weapons. The port faced significant performance issues initially, but has since seen improvements, targeting 30-40fps in handheld and 30fps docked.
Soulslike prince Lies of P added difficulty settings after its own developers struggled to beat it: "Most…
Nough Studio, the developers behind the soulslike game Lies of P, have discussed the addition of difficulty settings to the game. Initially, the developers themselves struggled to beat the game on its standard difficulty, leading them to implement easier options. This decision, though controversial in the soulslike community, was made after internal playtests revealed that many developers were unable to complete the game, and positive feedback from those who used the easier settings convinced the team of its benefit to players.
Newly discovered Demon's Souls prototype footage reveals a scrapped first-person mode
Newly discovered footage from a 2007 developer presentation reveals that Demon's Souls originally had a selectable first-person mode. Dataminer Lance McDonald found the prototype gameplay, which also showed differences in the third-person camera controls and cut content like snake-headed enemies.
FromSoftware sleuth unearths earliest footage of Demon's Souls to date: A prototype with a first person camera mode
Investigator Lance McDonald has uncovered early internal footage of FromSoftware's Demon's Souls, dating back to a 2007 Sony event. This prototype features a first-person camera mode, a locked player model camera, and enemies not present in the final release. The footage provides a fascinating glimpse into the game's development and its potential to be a very different experience.
3 years after the best Soulslike not by FromSoftware, Lies of P leads feel "pressure" to make the sequel even…
Nough Studio developers discuss the pressure and excitement surrounding the sequel to their acclaimed Soulslike, Lies of P. They aim to surpass the original's success by building upon its foundation while pushing creative boundaries, acknowledging the high bar set by FromSoftware and other titles in the genre.
