I was looking at getting some roguelikes / lites (already have ToME, CoQ), unfortunately Cataclysm DDA is not on sale.
Krone Hotel at 90% off looks like a decent choice too. Then there’s Jupiter Hell, which I recently stumbled upon and looks great too.
I’d also like to get some of the FF games, though I’ve played VI, VII, IX and a bit of XII, it would be nice to revisit some
of the older ones I haven’t played almost since the PSX era.
I thought ER was on par with or easier than other souls games solo, I actually had a harder time playing in co-op than solo. It's quite fun and has a ton of replayability on PC with the modding community. I'm in the same vein with the spooky games being a no-go, so I have nothing to offer on RE2 vs ER.
I've never done any soulsborne with co-op and I think Elden Ring is one of the best games I've ever played. Can't recommend highly enough. When you say summons do you mean spirit ashes?
Yea, the ai Summons are spirit ashes. I totally used spirit ashes, but there are plenty of folks who don't. It's pretty tough but if you've been successful in other souls games you'll be fine. The insane detail and thought put into world design is the best part for me, so didn't see a reason not to use spirit ashes.