Nioh
In the years since Demon’s Souls’ release, FromSoftware’s influence had been making waves throughout the industry. One of the most popular Souls-like series that has emerged is Nioh from Team Ninja and Koei Tecmo.
Like Sekiro, the Nioh franchise takes place in the midst of Sengoku-era Japan aka The Warring States Period. The original Nioh had players in the shoes of William Adams. Based on the historical figure of the same name, William was known as Japan’s first western samurai. Nioh 2 acts a prequel to the original and introduced customizable characters for the first time.
Many staples of the Souls-likes are here: difficult enemies, layered level design, and lots and lots of gear. Nioh is a very stat-heavy series, more so than any Souls game that came before it, and the amount of gear in the game can seem somewhat endless.
A core element of Nioh is the ability to switch between three combat stances that allow for greater versatility with your arsenal. The High Stance allows for increased damage with heavy attacks, Mid Stance is a balance between offensive and defensive abilities, and Low Stance offers quicker short range attacks.
The Nioh series can is certainly one of the more difficult titles on this list, but if players are looking to really test their Souls skills than the Nioh series is a great choice.
