Time for a new review on Gamersyde. Valor Mortis, the new game from the creators of the challenging Ghostrunner series, is about to be released on PC, PS5 and XBOX Series consoles. After completing the adventure in about thirty hours, it’s time to deliver the verdict on this new title that rewrites French history in its own unique way.
The fact that One More Level turned its attention to the Soulslike genre should come as no surprise to anyone familiar with even a little of their previous work. In a way, you could even say this is a logical continuation of their original vision, with a direct connection to their decision to choose a first-person experience rather than a third-person one. Ghostrunner was committed to delivering an experience that was as visceral as it was demanding, where the slightest mistake resulted in death (a single hit from an enemy could kill the main character), which required mastering a very precise sequence of moves for each gameplay situation, while still allowing players the freedom to approach them however they wished. If you had the chance to try the Valor Mortis demo a few months ago, you likely noticed just how well the legacy of From Software’s games had been translated into a first-person title—and thus, that the Polish studio seemed to be heading toward a challenge that could potentially be off-putting to some. We can imagine that player feedback has been very instructive since then, as the final version has clearly undergone numerous balance adjustments to compensate for the challenges that inevitably arise for players due to the choice to impose a first-person perspective. The result is a game that doesn’t rely on forced grinding or the need to demonstrate unwavering patience by trying to defeat a boss for hours on end. Valor Mortis certainly isn't an easy game, but it's nowhere near as difficult as the demo led us to believe. In fact, the progression remains very smooth, with no excessive spikes in difficulty that could potentially discourage players who get stressed out by a challenge. To be honest, it never took us more than two or three tries to defeat each boss—four at most when we weren’t at our best or had lost the reflexes we’d previously developed. Of course, if you’re part of that group of players who can only enjoy games when they are extremely hard, you might not find what you’re looking for here, but quite honestly, we found that the game struck the perfect balance to keep us engaged in the experience from start to finish. A game that’s too easy often runs the risk of boring the player, and that’s clearly not the case here. It's a game that allows you to get better in time, a game in which you need to understand enemy attacks to avoid taking damage, but at the same time, it’s entirely possible to handle a foe correctly from the very first encounter. Set in a fairly similar narrative and historical context, Valor Mortis is, for example, more challenging than Steelrising, but it never falls into the trap of sadomasochism. Clearly, the studio hopes that everyone will be able to see it through to the end and we think this is an excellent approach, as it doesn’t prevent the adventure from being sufficiently rich and long.
Now that we've made that clear, let us give you a brief overview of what you can expect in terms of story. In Valor Mortis, you play as William Dowsett, a soldier who belongs to Napoleon’s army and who fell in battle and finds himself waking up in the middle of a pile of corpses. It quickly becomes clear that the hero has returned from the dead and that his resurrection is linked to the plague that seems to be affecting all of Europe. Without giving too much away, this mysterious evil stems from a substance called Nephtoglobine, which people regard as a contagious disease similar to the plague, except that those affected by it can, if they don’t die from it, transform into bloodthirsty creatures. There’s clearly a hint of Resident Evil 4 in Valor Mortis, particularly in what the environment conveys when you arrive in a village overrun by infected inhabitants, and this survival horror atmosphere remains a recurring theme throughout the adventure, with sequences that are as visually striking as they are atmospheric. Given the war-torn setting, we also traverse devastated battlefields and cities in the grip of chaos, but William will also cross paths with a few survivors, some he may distrust and others he may trust—though this has no impact on the game’s single, predetermined storyline. Our hapless hero has also been endowed with a strange ability since waking up: he regularly hears the voices of Napoleon, played by Vincent Cassel, and another key character, the Shrike, in his head, and can also witness scenes from the past through the lingering echoes of certain memories left behind. This comes in handy in an era when cell phones hadn’t yet been invented and audio logs would have been just as anachronistic. Still, One More Level’s historical reinterpretation inevitably veers into pure fantasy and that’s an excellent idea, as the combination of this genre with the chosen realistic backdrop gives the game a unique and distinctive atmosphere. While some room for interpretation is left to the player once the game is finished, the plot is much less vague than in most games of this genre, something we’re not complaining about. Be warned, however: the adventure’s conclusion isn’t as definitive as we’d hoped—perhaps due to the substantial DLC already planned (and included in the Deluxe Edition) by the studio. While some might cringe a bit upon hearing this, the game offers enough content at launch to keep you busy for quite a while, including a good number of side missions that flesh out the lore and are generally interesting to follow from a narrative standpoint. For older players, rest assured, you won’t have to relive the trauma of the abrupt ending of the very first Soul Reaver, which left many players frustrated (and rightly so). To those who might still see this as a reason to complain, we’d like to remind you that the standard edition of the game will sell for just €/$39.99.
That detail aside, our experience with Valor Mortis proved to be particularly satisfying. As we mentioned at the beginning of this article, the game draws heavily on the Soulslike formula, adapting it to gameplay designed for a first-person perspective, and the expertise One More Level gained with Ghostrunner is fully evident here. There’s also a platforming element here that’s reminiscent of their previous titles, effectively complementing the skillful blend of From Software’s legacy and the studio’s own DNA. As the adventure progresses, William will gain new traversal skills, such as the ability to run along certain walls or use a grappling hook, but from the very start, he’ll be able to jump from platform to platform and grab onto tree branches to swing across and reach solid ground a little further on. This adds a welcome vertical dimension to the level design and, incidentally, a bit of variety to the overall experience. The good news is that movement is never hindered by the first-person perspective, and it’s clear here that One More Level knows its stuff. There are a few potential hiccups, however, once you gain the ability to make certain platforms appear during an acrobatic maneuver, the game requires you to move the character’s gaze mid-jump so that the interaction button appears on screen, allowing you to make the platform appear. Unfortunately, unless you have a controller with customizable paddles, none of the controller layouts allow you to use the shoulder buttons for such interactions. Otherwise, the experience revolves around combat and exploration, and both are a lot of fun. Since this is a Souls-inspired game, progression is regularly punctuated by stops at lanterns (Valor Mortis’s campfires) to allow the hero to fully restore his health and healing vials. It’s also at these lanterns that he can spend his catalysts (the equivalents of souls/runes) to upgrade his abilities. The skill tree offers a range of choices for which skills to improve, but as William gains experience, he’ll unlock new ones along the way. It’s also possible to equip Ambers (which can be found while exploring) to grant the hero additional advantages, such as a wider parry window, for example, or faster healing that cannot be interrupted by an enemy attack. The system lets you fine-tune your character creation to tailor it to your liking based on your playstyle, and just like with skills, you’ll unlock new inventory slots to equip them as you level up. In total, you’ll be able to choose five, with of course the possibility to change them as often as you like whenever you stop at a lantern.
Combat obviously places great emphasis on managing your stamina and your opponent’s posture bar, and unsurprisingly relies on the smart use of blocking, which doesn’t prevent you from taking damage, but borrows from Bloodborne’s health regeneration system (forcing you to attack immediately after blocking a strike), perfect parries, and dodging. Quite logically, the entire combat system revolves around the need to thoroughly understand enemy attack timings, and thus the importance of closely observing their behavior. Considering the smaller budget here, the roster of enemies is reasonably varied to keep things feeling fresh for much of the adventure, and it prepares the player for boss fights by forcing them to master all their defensive options. For the most fragile creatures, a single perfect parry is enough to put them in a vulnerable position and trigger a kill that’s as brutal as it is decisive and this delivers immense satisfaction every time thanks to excellent feedback (both visual and auditory). William has three melee weapons (saber, rapier, and claymore), three firearms (pistol, blunderbuss, and musket), and three magical abilities (fire transmutation, stasis, and shield). Of course, you don’t start the adventure with this entire arsenal, so it’ll take a little patience before you can collect it all. This actually gives the game a bit of a Metroidvania feel, as certain powers or abilities allow the hero to access new areas, either to find interesting rewards or to continue progressing through the main campaign. Weapons and powers can be upgraded multiple times provided you find the necessary resources, which is why it’s important to thoroughly explore your surroundings. To use his magical powers, William will need to draw from his Nephtoglobine supply, which the player can increase via the skill tree while also improving its power if desired; specific vials allow you to refill his gauge once it’s empty. By targeting certain red protrusions on enemies, you can also replenish your Nephtoglobine bar by collecting residues of the substance, all while dealing significant damage in the process. Despite the first-person perspective, we found the dodging and parrying mechanics to feel very natural, and even when facing multiple enemies, we never found the combat to be confusing or hard to handle. The well-balanced difficulty certainly plays a big part in this. Some might criticize the game for feeling slightly stiff overall, particularly in movement, but honestly, One More Level has done an excellent job of ensuring the experience isn’t neither confusing nor frustrating. The bosses are a perfect example of this, with styles varied enough to avoid any sense of repetition, and as we mentioned earlier, a perfectly balanced level of challenge. Even though most of them have two health bars and are undeniably aggressive toward William, it’s never discouraging to have to learn from your mistakes, since victory is never too far off in the end. Some bosses even offer a healthy dose of originality: for example, one of them forces you to engage in platforming sections at regular intervals throughout the battle. We won’t say any more so as to preserve as many surprises as possible, but rest assured that, for us, the fun never waned throughout the entire adventure. We truly loved exploring every nook and cranny of this devastated world and taking on all the hostile creatures that inhabited it.
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