August Is Packed Full of 2018’s Best Indie Games

Salt and Sanctuary (Switch | Aug. 2)

Switch owners are finally getting to learn what PS4, Vita, and PC owners have known for more than two years now. The term “Souls-like” is very nearly a derogatory term in 2018, but this side-scrolling slice-em-up was a cut above the rest when it debuted back in 2016. And though a sea of Souls-likes have flooded the industry in the two years since, very few have done so as capably as Salt & Sanctuary did. As a love letter to From Software’s work —estus flasks, an action economy based on stamina management, an austere presentation, environmental traps and even the fonts and enemy health bars— Salt and Sanctuary  is a condensed Souls-adjacent experience all lovingly transcribed onto a 2D plane.