I'm a big souls guy—and I generally make an effort to play a variety of soulslike spinoffs, especially since they've gotten pretty good, lately. Lies of P, Lords of the Fallen, Remnant 2, Nine Sols—we've had some rather solid offerings. Alas, I never got a chance to try out Mortal Shell. Luckily, there's a kickass sequel coming around the corner that's grabbed my heart by the nuts and glory killed it with a big, unrealistically-sized steel boot.
Announced today at the Summer Game Fest 2025, Mortal Shell 2 looks like it wandered straight out of a heavy metal album cover from the early 2000s, and the announcement trailer is—and I mean this as a compliment of the highest caliber—absolutely and joyously juvenile.
We're talking shotguns, we're talkin' dramatic, bloody finishers, we're talkin' boss designs that look like they could've wandered straight out of Resident Evil: Village. This thing looks like what you'd get if you gave Doom Guy a claymore and told him to go ham—and I cannot help but be on board.
While the irreverent nonsense of the trailer has me hooked, I'm actually curious about the mechanics, too. The Steam page describes a mix-and-match class-based system: "Once discovered, each Shell can be awakened and possessed, unlocking their innate strengths and unique abilities. Evolve your own style of combat by harnessing the diverse unique abilities of each Shell, and unravel their secrets through the discovery of lost memories."
The action-heavy trailer is more than just a vibe, though. The Steam page also promises a combat system "unrestricted by stamina"—which might put Mortal Shell 2 in the same category as Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty and the upcoming Phantom Blade Zero. More Ninja Gaiden than Elden Ring—a genre I'm secretly very happy to see grow and flourish.
I can only imagine that stance-breaking a difficult boss and putting a .357 through their smug face will be incredibly gratifying. We gave the previous game an 80 in our Mortal Shell review—contributor Rick Lane called it "A budget Soulslike that still packs a punch."
