Gaming Critics Shared Their Thoughts on Valor Mortis

Tomorrow, October 13, marks the release of Valor Mortis—a new game from One More Level, the developers behind the Ghostrunner game series. It’s a first-person action RPG with soulslike elements that has already begun receiving its first reviews from the gaming press.

Critics have generally responded positively to Valor Mortis, though without overwhelming acclaim. They praise the game’s truly well-executed take on the soulslike genre, its unique setting, combat system, and level design. However, they criticize the average storyline and technical aspects. Currently, Valor Mortis has a score of 77 on Metacritic and 80 on OpenCritic, with 84% of critics recommending the game. Some of the brief reviews are available below:

Destructoid – 90/100:

The perfect soulslike doesn't exist. There's no such thing, and after so many years of playing them, I'm absolutely sure of it. All of them are bound by shared metroidvania design philosophies and incapacitating issues, and no matter how hard they try, they can never truly surmount them. But Valor Mortis certainly comes dangerously close to doing so, and with gameplay so fluid and a world so fascinating, it's basically as good as they come.

TheGamer – 90/100:

Although there is some room for improvement when it comes to refining a few of the technical aspects of the game, Valor Mortis is still a thoroughly engaging experience that left me more than satisfied with my time going through its story and learning about its world. I’m absolutely ecstatic to see what else One More Level has in store for Valor Mortis, and I will definitely be one of the first in line to return for its promised story expansion and New Game+ mode.

CGMagazine – 85/100:

Valor Mortis is a well-realised Soulslike FPS with a 19th-century coat of paint that enthusiasts of the genre will surely enjoy.

Eurogamer – 80/100:

Ghostrunner studio One More Level returns with a Napoleonic alternative history Soulslike that fuses fluid sword- and gunplay with exhilarating parkour, and it's a delight.

Game Rant – 80/100:

While Valor Mortis has its storytelling and performance struggles, its gameplay makes it too good to pass up, especially for fans of Ghostrunner and soulslikes. While it's important to judge games on their own merits, it's worth mentioning that Valor Mortis retails for just $40 USD, a price that makes it feel like audiences are getting away with highway robbery.

GamesRadar+ - 60/100:

A Soulslike with parry-focused combat has to do far more than shift the camera to first person to stand out from such an overcrowded pack. Valor Morris is relatively well-executed and has moments of real character and charm, but the gameplay's more familiar than my own shadow.

• GamingTrend – 9/10
• Dualshockers – 8.5/10
• Gfinity – 8/10
• Shacknews – 8/10
• Push Square – 8/10
• GAMINGbible – 8/10
• IGN – 7/10
• Gameliner – 7/10
• Game Informer – 7/10
• DayOne – 6.5/10
• Gamespot – 6/10
• Gamekult – 5/10

The release of Valor Mortis was originally scheduled for mid-September, but the developers decided to postpone it due to a packed schedule. You can also check the exact release date, as the studio recently announced.

Valor Mortis launches tomorrow, on October 13, for PC, Xbox Series X/S, and PlayStation 5. The same day game will also be available on Xbox Game Pass.