Mortal Shell
A recent Souls-like to emerge over the past few months is Mortal Shell, from a young indie studio, Cold Symmetry. Mortal Shell inherits its dark fantasy atmosphere directly from the Souls series.
The twist of Mortal Shell is that there are no classes to choose from nor characters to create. Players take on the role of an empty vessel, a being able to inhabit Shells, the empty husks of fallen warriors. As your experience with each Shell grows, you are able to gain new special abilities specific for each.
Mortal Shell offers players the ability to “harden” which encases the Shell in stone and can block all incoming attacks. It is a unique approach but it does force you to monitor another meter on top of your health and stamina. Ripostes are present in the game, so if your strategy in Demon’s Souls was to stun and go in for some critical damage, you’ll feel right at home.
Mortal Shell takes on a far more linear approach than its predecessors. There are only four Shells in the entire game and they can only be discovered as you make your way through the world. So if class customization is your bread and butter, this one may not be for you.
However, Mortal Shell is the first game from Cold Symmetry and is relatively short by comparison to its peers.
