The team behind Ghostrunner is moving in a bold new direction. At Gamescom 2025, developer One More Level and publisher Lyrical Games unveiled Valor Mortis, a single-player, first-person Soulslike set in a twisted version of 19th-century Europe. The game is slated to launch in 2026 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.
A Dark Take on History
Instead of a fantasy kingdom or far-off realm, Valor Mortis reimagines the Napoleonic Wars through a nightmarish lens. Players step into the role of William, a French soldier who falls in battle and is resurrected through the influence of a strange, plague-born substance called Nephtoglobin. This mysterious power grants him supernatural abilities, but it also comes with a heavy cost.
The world he awakens to is one of corruption, conspiracy, and decay. Familiar landscapes of Eastern Europe are warped into something far more unsettling, drawing visual inspiration from gothic horror and historical intrigue alike.
Combat and Exploration
At its core, Valor Mortis promises the punishing precision fans expect from a Soulslike, but with a twist: everything is viewed through a first-person perspective. Combat emphasizes deliberate strikes, parries, and weapon mastery, while also weaving in the use of firearms and plague-fueled “Transmutations” that add a supernatural edge.
The level design leans into a Metroidvania structure, encouraging players to double back, discover hidden routes, and uncover secrets as new abilities are unlocked. It’s an approach that should make exploration as tense and rewarding as the battles themselves.
Atmosphere and Style
If the reveal trailer is anything to go by, Valor Mortis carries the unsettling tone of Bloodborne mixed with the atmospheric strangeness of BioShock. Candlelit corridors, plague-ridden towns, and grotesque enemies all reinforce the sense of unease. The shift to first-person aims to pull players deeper into this world, stripping away distance and forcing every clash to feel immediate and personal.
Valor Mortis doesn’t have a firm release date beyond “2026,” but One More Level is already teasing a closed playtest in the near future. For Soulslike fans who’ve been craving a fresh angle on the genre, this could be one of the most intriguing new projects on the horizon.
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