New Soulslike Game on Steam Throws Kratos’ Trauma Into the Trenches of WW1 With Brutal Dark Souls-Like Combat
Spoilers for 2005’s God of War ahead
The year is 2005. You’ve decided to play a brand new PlayStation exclusive called God of War. You get your first taste of Kratos at the-then earliest point of his journey. You soon learn that Kratos is tricked by the God Ares into killing his wife and daughter, Lysandra and Calliope, inside a village temple so he can become the “perfect warrior.” What followed in the original trilogy is a trauma-driven revenge story, one shaped by the pain and loss inflicted upon Kratos. An upcoming soulslike Steam game packages similar trauma into a story set in an alternate afterlife influenced by the real-world World War I, and while Steam players do not kill their wife and child, the pain of their deaths lingers.
Dark Dominion is that game, and it’s set to release in May 2026 on Steam. Not only does it combine an interesting, more straightforward narrative akin to God of War (and more straightforward than most Soulslike games), but it channels it into a setting defined by trauma and channels that into gameplay. Developed by a small team of five people called ZERO5GAMES, Dark Dominion is an interesting title that fans of the genre should not sleep on.
The Traumatic Story of Dark Dominion
The best Soulslike games make the protagonist, and by extension the player, feel small in a powerful world. Players begin with nothing, and through pure skill, determination, and self-improvement, they overcome the demigods, the gods, the Lovecraftian beings, or whatever is set before them. The protagonist of Dark Dominion is perhaps the weakest Soulslike protagonist to date—a simple man who has lost everything. His wife died giving birth to his daughter, who, seven years later, died of pneumonia. That trauma shapes the man who is left behind, and that broken vestige enlists in World War I to meet his death, too.
Drag weapons to fill the grid
Drag weapons to fill the grid
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However, death has other plans. The protagonist finds himself in a twisted afterworld bleeding into World War I, where the battlefields are distorted, where his enemies are monsters, where he is already dead and does not yet know it, where he has a chance to get it all back, to save the souls of his wife and child, or disappear entirely. Along the way, the protagonist must struggle with his own soul and descent into madness, as nightmarish visions and the ghost of one he lost (presumably akin to Melina in Elden Ring) both plague and guide him.
As this traumatic story unfolds, players will explore a twisted afterlife across 4 acts. While a lot of video games adopt a more traditional 3-act story structure, the extra act can go a long way in developing the trauma and horrors inflicted upon the protagonist. The story bits are already quite giving, in terms of what’s been revealed, but that’s even more terrifying for the protagonist’s ultimate fate.
The World of Dark Dominion is “Alive” in the Deadest Sense
At first glance, Dark Dominion looks very similar to Dark Souls or Demon’s Souls, but the unique premise—a Soulslike game focused on trauma and the personal demons with the backdrop of an accursed war—helps it stand out in an otherwise overstated genre. It also channels one of the key features of a true Soulslike game: environmental storytelling. While some Soulslike games sidestep this, it’s an important aspect of the genre that blends the horror of the story into the world around them. Whatever the afterlife created by World War I fully entails, players can expect to search for armor, weapons, locations, and more to understand the secrets, lore, and terrors hidden away in Dark Dominion.
Dark Dominion’s world also reacts to the protagonist’s mental state. There are dynamic interactions between his mental state and the environment, where areas shift and warp depending on his emotional stability. Hallucinations can manifest as both subtle clues and lethal threats. Such mechanics ensure that the protagonist’s trauma gives life to the game’s world, while being intimately connected to the narrative. Hidden passages, secret rooms, and cryptic messages scattered throughout the afterlife encourage players to piece together the story for themselves. Such a premise implies a level of player choice, perhaps meaning that Dark Dominion could have multiple endings depending on the protagonist’s mental state, as well as how he confronts or avoids the horrors of his own trauma.
Dark Dominion Gameplay is Inspired by FromSoftware’s Soulslike Formula
Fans can expect hardcore combat as difficult as the strongest enemies in Dark Souls and Demon’s Souls, with every twisted enemy taking from both this WW1-inspired afterlife and the protagonist’s own fears and guilt. In every aspect of the experience, his trauma over his wife and daughter bleeds into it, including the gameplay. Players need a way to fight back, of course, and that’s where the world of World War I gives way to the afterlife. There’s no mention of World War I-era weaponry, although there could be. Instead, players are weakened even further within these limitations:
- Dark Dominion boasts dozens of unique armor sets across the three iconic classifications: light, medium, and heavy. Each comes with unique bonuses that determine playstyle.
- Players will be able to use swords, spears, axes, blades, crossbows, artifacts, and much more to fight back enemies.
- Players can access magic influenced by fire, blood, lightning, and illusions. Every spell comes at a price for its power, however.
True to the Soulslike action RPG formula, players will have an expansive RPG and level-up system. Developers boast that every stat point is a choice and that building a character the wrong way means they will pay with their life. After all, Dark Dominion also boasts 100 “distinct” types of monsters, traps, and terrifying bosses. There’s still plenty to be shown in that regard, but one early standout is Fecaloid, the cursed Fecal Demon, who cannot be unlike Elden Ring‘s Dung Eater.
Dark Dominion Takes Players Through Hell and Out the Other Side
“If you’re going through hell, keep going” is a famous quote often attributed to Winston Churchill during World War 2. That might be ahead of the Dark Dominion protagonist’s time, but it ultimately reflects his own struggles. Hell existed when he was alive, and it still claimed him in death.
Ultimately, Dark Dominion is a journey through loss, guilt, and trauma, all wrapped in the punishing framework of a Soulslike. Fans of the genre and narrative-driven games alike may find themselves captivated by the haunting, unforgettable world ZERO5GAMES has created. At the very least, it’s an easy wish list addition ahead of its May 2026 release date.