Is Stellar Blade a Souls-like? How it compares to Sekiro, Stars Wars Jedi & more

Stellar Blade shares quite a few similarities to a Souls-like title, but is it just surface-level? Here’s how much Stellar Blade is a Souls-like.

After spending some time with the stunning Stellar Blade demo, one thing became clear, Shift Up’s new action-adventure game definitely takes inspiration from Souls games.

Some Souls-likes are created by FromSoftware themselves, so it’s only natural for them to be similar. These include titles such as Elden Ring and Sekiro. Other Souls-likes are obvious, such as Lies of P and Nioh, while a less obvious comparison has also been drawn for games like God of War and Star Wars Jedi, so where does Stellar Blade stand?

Is Stellar Blade a Souls-like?

Stellar Blade can be considered a Souls-like as it has very similar methodical combat to FromSoftware’s titles, specifically Sekiro, and also features similar mechanics and boss difficulty level.

Stellar Blade being a Souls-like is comparable to Star Wars Jedi and God of War, two games that are also considered to be Souls-lite in their gameplay.

In my experience, Stellar Blade features methodical combat, difficult bosses, a semi-open world, and rest points where you can refresh your heals and the world, including its enemies. These are all elements of Stellar Blade that are similar to Souls games, making it worth the subgenre.

Stellar Blade features combat that’s immediately comparable to Sekiro, with an emphasis on parrying and using abilities to break down your enemies. The gameplay is far from hack and slash, as you actually need to think about your attacks and when to block while in combat. This is especially true when fighting bosses, which can have a difficult learning curve comparable to what you can experience in a Souls game.

That said, Souls titles are much harder than what I experienced in Stellar Blade’s demo, as taking damage is much more forgiving in Shift Up’s action-adventure title, even if there are limited healing items similar to Estus Flasks in Souls games.

Further, Stellar Blade is a much more linear and guided experience than FromSoftware’s Dark Souls games. Souls games often leave you in the dark, having to use some brain power to figure out the next step. This isn’t the case in Stellar Blade, as you are given a task with a clear idea of where you need to get to and there’s even a mission list in the menu to help you stay on track.

If you’re interested in more on Stellar Blade, be sure to check out:

How to fast travel in Stellar Blade |  Stellar Blade difficulty settings explained | Does Stellar Blade have photo mode? | Is Stellar Blade coming to PC & Xbox Series X|S? | Does Stellar Blade have New Game Plus? | How long is Stellar Blade?