One More Level’s Ghostrunner was a high-octane cyberpunk adventure that was as much about speed and precision as it was about corporate oversight. Now, the studio’s next title is a first-person Soulslike that’s set in a bizarre, Napoleonic Europe. It’s a setting we’ve never seen before but one that’s honestly exciting to see flesh out.
As a resurrected French soldier who served Napoleon. You rose for Napoleon; now you must use the corrupting power of a plague-like substance to save humanity. How does it play, and should you consider it? From the time I’ve spent in this world, I’m eager to learn more about it and where it’ll lead us.
Stop Napoleon
You play as William, a soldier of the Grande Armée, brought back to life from his grave on the battlefield. Awakened in a plague-ridden Europe, he finds former allies corrupted by the Nephtoglobin, a substance that provides him supernatural powers. William must use his new powers to take on Napoleon’s Eternal Guard.
It all sounds very European, doesn’t it? Well, in the build I’ve been playing, Valor Mortis proves it’s got some great bones. Leaning into being a first-person Soulslike is a great idea because there are very few titles like it (if there are any).
Valor Mortis Shows So Much Potential
The preview build doesn’t pull any punches, dropping you right into the thick of things. You wake in a battlefield covered in hundreds of bodies, being chided by Napoleon himself to get up before being let loose in a forest filled with dead and decaying soldiers. The battlefield is covered not only with bodies but also with a corruption that permeates everything. A weird, otherworldly element encapsulates the trees and rocks, conveying how corrupt this world has become.
Valor Mortis has many elements Soulslike fans will recognize, like how attacks work and the endurance needed for actions like attack, dodge, and block. William wields a sabre to perform a light attack by pressing the attack button, or a heavy attack by holding it. Combat is familiar: you can attack, dodge, parry, and block, and each costs stamina.
