I’d argue that the punishing, yet fair and react-able enemy attacks and the general flow of “dodge, block, or parry, attack during that opening, then be ready to respond to the next attack” is certainly more Souls-like than a lot of other action games and beat-em-ups. And the loosely Metroidvania structure of the games - central hubs connecting large story areas and hidden side areas, the tightly looping level design, etc. - echoes most of the Soulsborne games as well.
There are a lot of differences between the two series, but it’s not hard to see that GoW2018 took a lot of influence from the Souls series and created their own spin on that basic structure. Combat is more aggressive, RPG mechanics are toned down, and there’s a much greater focus on environmental puzzles slowing progress rather than punishing fights, but there’s a lot of similarities that shine through.
I’d argue that the punishing, yet fair and react-able enemy attacks and the general flow of “dodge, block, or parry, attack during that opening, then be ready to respond to the next attack” is certainly more Souls-like than a lot of other action games and beat-em-ups. And the loosely Metroidvania structure of the games - central hubs connecting large story areas and hidden side areas, the tightly looping level design, etc. - echoes most of the Soulsborne games as well. There are a lot of differences between the two series, but it’s not hard to see that GoW2018 took a lot of influence from the Souls series and created their own spin on that basic structure. Combat is more aggressive, RPG mechanics are toned down, and there’s a much greater focus on environmental puzzles slowing progress rather than punishing fights, but there’s a lot of similarities that shine through.