u/AdMiserable6342

I'm sure this question has been asked a billion times by now, but I'm genuinely curious to know what exactly is the definition of a Souls-like since I feel this title has been slapped on any game that uses melee combat these days.

I'm a fairly new gamer and also primarily play fast paced hack'n slash games like NieR Automata, Ninja Gaiden, Stellar Blade, DMC5 and enjoy other story focused RPGs. But when I see the Souls-like tagged onto Stellar Blade or Hollow Knight on Steam it's quite puzzling.

I've only played Elden Ring for about 20h but couldn't get used to the combat, however I do plan on playing it sometime in the future as I love the dark medieval fantasy atmosphere. Also at the time, I didn't even know there was a Souls, Souls-like genre and just approached it like a hack 'n slash which was quite jarring, lol!

The only games I have played to completion that are considered to be in the genre are Nioh 1 & 2, but even this series don't seems to qualify as Souls-like for some (I've heard it described as Souls-adjacent). Took a while to get used to, but once it clicked I loved the combat system.

I get that the genre came from Fromsofts Dark Souls series, or even started with Demon Souls, which emphasize difficulty primarily by how hard the enemies hit, coupled with fairly basic and slowed down combat mechanics (at least in comparison to most hack 'n slash) that force you to play very precisely. But just as important is the dark atmosphere and lore scattered across the world.

Maybe at this point it's like splitting hairs, but I'm just curious to know what people here in the community think, and if there's a clear definition, or at least some specific points that can define the genre.

Thanks!