FromSoftware pioneered a new video game subgenre with its dark fantasy classic Demon’s Souls, and the subsequent stylistically similar Dark Souls further popularized the category. However, Aggro Crab—the developer behind the climbing game Going Under and the role-playing game Another Crab’s Treasure—argues that the “Soulslike” label has “trapped many developers in a cycle of replication,” fixated on emulating Dark Souls’ imperfect yet iconic framework.
In an interview with foreign media, Aggro Crab Creative Director Caelan Pollock discussed the subgenre: “I think the term ‘Soulslike’ has boxed a lot of developers into just copying Dark Souls. And in my opinion, the best Dark Souls game has already been made—it’s Dark Souls itself.”
Debates over “what defines a Soulslike” have persisted for years: stamina-based combat, slow movement, challenging enemies, boss fights that require attack pattern recognition, and recoverable soul-like mechanics? Is it a combination of these elements? Beyond the vague concept of “games that feel like Dark Souls,” there is no clear definition.
Pollock further elaborated: “Dark Souls is itself an imperfect game, and that’s precisely why players love it—and why it resonates so deeply with both the gaming community and the industry as a whole. When you try to replicate every aspect of that experience, what you end up with is ultimately unremarkable.”
He revealed that the team’s decision to venture into the Soulslike genre with Another Crab’s Treasure stemmed from “our firm belief that there’s so much more potential in this space.” In the game, players take on the role of a hermit crab fighting in a polluted kingdom, collecting various pieces of plastic waste to use as shells—a clear metaphor for climate change issues. “We’re betting that the player base is ready for this kind of innovation,” he said.
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