Steam gamers can jump into a brand-new Soulslike right now, named Grim Axiom, which comes as the first commercial release from developer Rare Soup. Grim Axiom takes inspiration from the Dark Souls formula, blending it with elements of Diablo to create a completely fresh experience on Steam.
At this point, the Soulslike formula is pretty well-defined. Fans know exactly what they want from the genre, which can make it more difficult for developers to innovate. That’s the advantage a smaller game like Grim Axiom has, though – it can take those chances that perhaps a game with a higher budget (and thus more risk) can’t. It’s often the case that the most innovative games come from indie developers, with ideas that work later being adopted by AAA releases. There are exceptions to this, of course.
Grim Axiom Blends the Dark Souls Formula With Diablo’s Isometric Gameplay
Check Out Grim Axiom on Steam Now
Available as a brand-new release on Steam right now, Grim Axiom is a Soulslike adventure-horror game with Diablo-style dungeon crawling elements, an unforgiving combat system where players must balance stamina and spacing to prevail, stealth mechanics, and puzzles to solve along the way. Like most Soulslikes, players can only save their progress and heal at checkpoints, and the Dark Souls influence here is clear. However, it’s unique among games in the genre in that it features an isometric camera view, offering something far more akin to Blizzard’s Diablo series than what Soulslike fans are used to. The combat is definitely slower-paced than Diablo, but the way it blends together these influences is very interesting.
Balance the critic averages
Balance the critic averages
Easy (6)Medium (8)Hard (10)
Grim Axiom‘s Steam reviews are “Mixed” in the wake of its release. Some praise how it resembles old-school action RPGs of the 90s, and its weighty combat was also a positive point for many. However, others felt it sorely missed the lack of a lock-on mechanic during combat, and the lack of environmental variety came in for some criticism, too.
Grim Axiom Key Features
- Dungeon crawling
- Unforgiving Soulslike combat
- Stealth mechanics – choose when to fight and when to hide from enemies
- Solve difficult puzzles
- Side quests unlock new items and areas
- Find new weapons and armor to vary the combat style
Gamers who are looking to pick up Grim Axiom should probably do so during its initial launch period. The game currently has an introductory discount of 10%, bringing the price down to $7.19 for a limited time. It’s obviously not the steepest price reduction, but every little helps, and with it expiring on August 16, it’s worth picking up before then.
It’s always cool to see new Steam Soulslikes come to the table with fresh ideas on how to iterate on the formula. Whether Grim Axiom is eventually a hit remains to be seen, but regardless, it’s an interesting take on a very familiar genre. Player counts for the game have yet to significantly pick up, but hopefully they will in the coming days and weeks.
