Ah, yes, another Souls-like. That’s the apathetic reaction I expected to have towards the Mortal Shell‘s announcement trailer, but its dark fantasy world has my interest.

The imagery isn’t fully arresting, but its brooding warriors, creepy creatures, and gloomy atmosphere are not unappealing. Having a gravelly-sounding narrator who says lines like “Untouched by false truths, will you pry these gifts from the unwilling, or will you let them rot?” with immense gravitas helps too.

Mortal Shell‘s title comes from the fact that its player character can inhabit the remains of defeated warriors that lie around the world. “Awaken these Mortal Shells, occupy their bodies and significantly open your understanding to diverse masteries of combat,” reads the Steam description.

The player can cover their Mortal Shell in stone for defensive purposes, or use the stone-form to strengthen their attacks. The trailer also shows the player character – who looks humanoid rather than human – exiting their Mortal Shell to launch an attack on enemies, though I’m a bigger fan of the “stab blade into ground to summon stone spikes” ability.

There’s also a moment in the trailer where the player character falls out of their Mortal Shell after being struck by an attack. Given how I can’t even handle Code Vein‘s demo, I’ll probably continue to stay away from Souls-likes.

Still, Mortal Shell looks like it has the potential to leave an impressive mark on the Souls-like landscape. The game will be available in Q3 2020 on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.