2025’s Best Soulslike Is Free For PS Plus Subscribers This Month

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PlayStation Plus regularly adds new games across many different genres, but it can be challenging to find titles that cater to more specific tastes. Although there are a lot of ‘Souls-like’ games available, the selection on PS Plus is somewhat limited, particularly if you’ve already played popular options such as Bloodborne, Demon’s Souls, and Nioh.

PlayStation Plus subscribers have a great selection of games to look forward to in May, especially fans of challenging action games like the Souls series. There’s Nine Sols, a game inspired by Sekiro, and another free game that clearly takes its cues from the popular style established by FromSoftware, even if you’re strict about genre labels.

Wuchang: Fallen Feathers Is Free Through PS Plus

PlayStation Plus is adding three free games in May: Nine Sols, EA Sports FC 26, and Wuchang: Fallen Feathers, available starting May 5th. Wuchang had a rocky start with performance problems and some changes players didn’t like, but it quickly became one of my favorite games of 2025 and a standout Soulslike title.

It’s true that Wuchang: Fallen Feathers doesn’t break a lot of new ground in the Soulslike genre. While its setting in China’s Ming Dynasty is unique compared to games like those from FromSoftware, the core gameplay and style are very similar to existing titles. If you’re familiar with Dark Souls, Bloodborne, or Sekiro, you’ll quickly feel at home with Wuchang.

It’s still hard to copy the style of FromSoftware games well, but Wuchang: Fallen Feathers pulls it off with ease. Its intricate levels clearly understand what makes FromSoftware’s level design so good, unlike the clunky invisible walls in Black Myth: Wukong. While the game had a lot of traps and ambushes at first, even then, carefully exploring each area was genuinely fun.

The game is visually striking, standing out even among other titles built with Unreal Engine 5 thanks to its deliberate artistic style, which rivals that of FromSoftware’s games. Its cleverly designed levels are enhanced by a vibrant color palette and rich details, making simply exploring a pleasure, even without finding loot. Combined with bosses that are both beautifully and disturbingly designed – sometimes all at once – this game is incredibly picturesque and begs to have screenshots taken.

Wuchang’s Combat Is Intensely Satisfying

Sometimes, Wuchang feels a lot like Sekiro in how it plays. While you don’t have to perfectly time parries for every boss, certain fights really push you to be aggressively precise with your timing, just like in Sekiro. Beating those bosses feels just as rewarding as defeating a tough enemy like Genichiro Ashina. Wuchang isn’t quite as brutally difficult as the hardest parts of Sekiro, but it still provides a solid challenge that fans of Soulslike games will appreciate.

I don’t usually focus much on character customization, but I was pleasantly surprised by how Wuchang handles skills and abilities. Being able to easily change my build let me adapt to difficult fights, and the game offers fun weapon abilities that reward aggressive play or give you clever ways to control the battle. After spending almost all of my time in Elden Ring using just the Bloodhound’s Fang because I didn’t want to gather Smithing Stones, Wuchang was a refreshing experience.

Controversy Shouldn’t Keep You Away From This Soulslike

I’m still really enjoying Wuchang: Fallen Feathers, but honestly, the biggest issue after playing for a while now is the changes they made to the story. It’s kind of frustrating that you can’t fight certain characters who are important figures in Chinese history anymore. It feels like it weakens some of the original story and ideas the game was trying to get across. I don’t know enough about the historical details to fully understand why they did it, but it’s a bit disappointing.

Honestly, I kinda wish the developers hadn’t changed things so much after launch. People complained about some of the tough spots and all the traps, so they nerfed stuff in patches. But playing before the updates, I didn’t really think anything was unfair. If anything, it reminded me of the original Dark Souls – you know, that game that didn’t pull any punches! Sometimes I actually prefer that kind of challenge spread throughout the whole game, instead of just making the bosses super hard.

Even with the recent changes to Wuchang, the game is still enjoyable. Don’t let any criticism discourage you from trying it, especially since it’s currently available to PlayStation Plus subscribers – they can play it without any cost!

If you don’t have PlayStation Plus, you can also play it through Xbox Game Pass Ultimate or on PC. And if you prefer to avoid subscriptions altogether, Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is currently 30% off on Steam. No matter how you choose to play, now is the perfect time to try what many are calling the best Soulslike game of 2025, and put any doubts aside.

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2026-05-04 05:08