Valor Mortis Doubles Down On Atmosphere And Challenge, As Napoleon’s Journey

What the report says

One More Level made its name with the Ghostrunner series, an intense first-person experience more akin to a puzzle game where a single mistake means defeat. Following the second entry in the series, the Polish development studio has decided to branch out into the Soulslike phenomenon with Valor Mortis, a first-person Soulslike starring none other than Napoleon Bonaparte. Despite not having a particular love for first-person games in general, I had tons of fun when I tried the beginning of the game during last year's gamescom, so much so that I ranked the game as one of the best titles I played during the show, if not the very best.While I was disappointed by Valor Mortis' delay to October 13 due to September's stacked release schedule, I cherished the opportunity to play the game again before its launch.

With gamescom 2026 filled to the brim with high-quality games like Castlevania: Belmont's Curse and Final Fantasy Resonance, the Soulslike by One More Level had a more challenging time ranking as high as it did last year, but ultimately, it still did, as the hands-on session One More Level invited me to only confirmed how Valor Mortis is set to become one of the best Soulslikes of the year.As opposed to last year's demo, which let me experience the beginning of the game, this year's demo was set a little further on in the adventure.

Thrown into a dilapidated village filled with crazed villagers and exploding cows (!), Napoleon had to make his way through fending off all sorts of dangers, armed only with a few weapons, which included a trusty saber, a few guns, and magical powers that let him unleash a powerful fireball, among other things.Despite the first-person view, Valor Mortis feels unmistakably Soulslike, with stamina dictating how often Napoleon can attack, block, and dodge attacks. Interestingly enough, the single melee attack button can feel a little limiting, but that is not exactly the case, as the variety of combat options are granted by the ranged attacks, which feel more central to the experience than in other Soulslikes.Like many other similar games, Valor Mortis also features parry mechanics that allow the player to open an enemy up by blocking an attack just before an attack connects.

Key details

Although this is nothing new for the genre, its implementation in the game is extremely good. Despite the far from optimal play conditions, I had no trouble parrying attacks based only on visual and sound cues, as it felt incredibly intuitive and natural. The parry window is just right, and this was something One More Level Games told me they put great focus on, due to the first-person view of the experience.Valor Mortis also delivers in terms of level design. Although it wasn't anything overly complex, the village felt intricate enough, with plenty of shortcuts and alternate paths, which also involved some light parkouring to get through, adding more variety to an experience that I believe more and more does everything right.With two hands-on sessions under my belt, I firmly believe Valor Mortis will become one of the best Soulslikes of the current generation, if not of all time.

With tight gameplay and a very unique setting, One More Level is crafting something special that I can't wait to experience in full when it launches on October 13 on PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, and Xbox Series S.About the author: Francesco De Meo has been covering video games and technology since 2012, starting his career at small outlets like Gamersyndrome and GeekSnack. 
 
 After joining Wccftech gaming section in 2015, he quickly expanded his video gaming coverage with in-depth reporting, interviews with iconic industry figures such as Grasshopper Manufacture founder and No More Heroes creator Goichi "Suda51" Suda, Resident Evil series creator Shinji Mikami, Team NINJA's president and Nioh series director Fumihiko Yasuda, and Silent Hill creator Keiichiro Toyama, reviews and on-the-ground coverage of major industry events such as Gamescom and E3.
 
 When he's not reporting or reviewing, Francesco can be found playing the genres he loves most, spending time with his six cats, reading, writing music, playing guitar and drumming for his progressive rock band.

Follow Wccftech on Google to get more of our news coverage in your feeds. Products mentionedValor MortisUSD 39.99 Buy from Amazon Read all comments on Valor Mortis Doubles Down On Atmosphere And Challenge, As Napoleon’s Journey Remains One Of The Most Promising Soulslikes Of 2026