2025's Best Soulslike Wasn't Nightreign, It Was A Dlc For A Game We...

Lies of P: Overture is a game no longer held down by its own strings.

Look, I like Elden Ring: Nightreign—I actually like it quite a bit—but it wouldn't be accurate to call it a soulslike, now would it? Nightreign uses the Dark Souls formula for its combat, but might I call the jury to examine the thing: It's a multiplayer co-op action game based on short, semi-permadeath runs with limited outside progression. That's a roguelike, baby, no matter how many old habits FromSoftware plugged into it.

To me, a soulslike isn't about how chunky the dodge roll is or whether you have a stamina bar—it's about the slow, tense exploration of a dangerous world. It's about deliberate and hard-won mastery over mechanics and, more to the point: It's about the boss fights, baby. Big, satisfying walls to slam your head against, where the only thing between victory is you and your own personal skill, not whether you got Let Me Solo Her in your fireteam or lucked into a busted build.

But hey, you know what is a soulslike? Lies of P. You know what DID have a DLC come out this year? Lies of P. And while the competition wasn't too great (Wuchang: Fallen Feathers was a series of post-launch disasters), I not only think Lies of P: Overture stood on its own as my favourite DLC in the whole genre, but the DLC itself is my pick for best soulslike of the year, hands down.

Which is a funny feeling, given we at PC Gamer—okay, not me, but still—were pretty sceptical about Lies of P. Behold, our hubris: "Lies of P can't fool us: It's literally Bloodborne", written March 2022 by our very own Tyler Colp. "Lies of P is so blatantly Bloodborne that I feel bad for liking it," so sayeth Wes Fenlon.

Here's the awkward part where I break kayfabe to say that I completely understand why my co-workers made these assessments. Lies of P—especially how it starts—has the Bloodborne inspiration so thoroughly kept on its sleeve, it might as well have a PlayStation running the thing taped to its wrist.

Mechanically, it controls more like a slower-paced Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, but in terms of the environment and setting? There's a disease slowly claiming a ruined district, filled with both opportunistic hunters and half-corrupted dogs and shambling zombies. The only real difference is that there are puppets and a steampunk in it. You even get handed side-quests via wheezing patients silhouetted in windows.

However, the more you play the base Lies of P, the more it sloughs off its inspiration and sta

Source: PC Gamer