Valor Mortis Feels Like King's Field Wearing a Napoleonic Hat and Ghostrunner Sneakers

Souls fans will argue until their Estus flasks run dry about which game truly birthed the genre. Some point at Dark Souls, others bow to Demon's Souls, and a few dusty scholars whisper that without King's Field, there would be no bonfire to sit at today. So when I heard the team behind Ghostrunner was making a first-person, Napoleonic Soulslike named Valor Mortis, I had to see if they were resurrecting that old dungeon-crawler spirit or just shoving a fancy hat onto a parry simulator.

I went in bracing for Ghostrunner speed. You know the feeling: heart pounding, fingers doing gymnastics, death screen burned into your retinas. Instead, I got something slower, more deliberate, and surprisingly readable. The first-person perspective doesn't just work—it makes combat feel like a messy close-up duel rather than a rhythm game.

A Matter of Perspective

Let's rip the bandage off: yes, the first-person approach feels great. As someone who liked Ghostrunner but regularly got turned into cyberpunk confetti, I was relieved. Valor Mortis trades reaction-speed panic for methodical spacing, baiting attacks, and looking for openings. The parry mechanic politely taps you on the shoulder instead of screaming in your ear, which, frankly, is a relief.

You also have more than one trick up your sleeve:

• 🗡️ Backstabs for the patient stalker.

• 🔮 Occult magic that feels like BioShock plasmids got drunk on revolution-era wine.

• 🔫 A flintlock pistol for popping weak points from a safe distance.

It's a toolbox, not a one-button dance contest.

That said, you still need to engage with parrying. But the game never demands Sekiro levels of perfection. It's one tool among several, and the whole loadout clicks together beautifully.

Then came the boss: a hulking general with the posture of a cathedral and the patience to punish your greed. Here, the first-person camera shines. Watching his sword arc toward your face while you learn his choreography feels properly immersive—like being inside a very violent waltz. The demo held my hand just enough, and I walked away convinced the Souls crowd will take to this one quickly.

The Hardships of War

If you missed the memos, the setting is Napoleonic, but smeared with corruption and occult rot. The fancy hats are present. The monsters are worse. The central theme is clearly war and the inhuman things it can make us become.

Where I get a little nervous is the story delivery. Traditional Souls games love to hide their lore in item descriptions and ruined architecture, letting players play detective. Valor Mortis seems more interested in flashbacks, NPC exposition, and a fairly guided path. It's not bad—again, it feels close to Ghostrunner's cinematic style—but I personally love piecing a world together myself. I suspect this one will show me its cards rather than letting me shuffle them.

Finding Middle Ground

Mashing Mirror's Edge-style parkour DNA together with a Soulslike blueprint means aiming for a comfortable middle ground. For the most part, Valor Mortis finds it. The combat options are varied, the parry window is generous, and boss tells are clear enough to reward reaction without demanding superhuman reflexes.

The world design also plays nice. Each level is just open enough to invite exploration, but there's always an obvious route forward. The developers assured me the structure leans Metroidvania: new powers and traversal tricks will send you back through old areas to crack open previously blocked paths.

Here's my main concern, though. The demo seemed determined to hold my hand like a worried Napoleonic nurse. I consider myself a competent Souls player—not the no-hit, first-try type, but not hopeless either. Yet I didn't die once. Not once! The boss health bar folded faster than a cheap tent, resources rained from the sky, and the abundance of combat options meant I could steamroll almost everything.

To be fair, convention demos sometimes lower the difficulty so journalists don't leave crying into their press badges. But it did raise an alarm bell. If the final game stays this gentle, veteran Soulslike fans looking for their next sadistic fix might be left wanting more bite.

Our Verdict

At this early juncture, Valor Mortis looks the part and plays even better than it looks. The first-person camera isn't a gimmick; it elevates the combat and makes every duel feel personal. The generous combat toolkit has me excited for the later game, especially if the Metroidvania backtracking lives up to the pitch. The big question mark remains difficulty. As 2026 unfolds, I want the full game to reveal a meaner side—one that isn't afraid to knock me flat, laugh softly through my earpiece, and make me earn the victory.