By Fletcher Wilkinson 
As many of you know, Souls-likes thrive on taking a familiar challenge but then giving it a fresh identity and Valor Mortis is that exact type of game. It places you and it’s grim combat in an alternate version of Napoleonic Europe where the Horrors of War have been joining by a quite disgusting supernatural plague. You will start your journey as William who is a soldier who wakes amongst the dead and must uncover why he has returned.
From it’s wide variety of interconnected environments to its fast, parry-focused battles, Valor Mortis makes several ambitious choices and there are a ton of weapons, abilities and mechanics available to you. Of course this is a change to first person for a souls-like and there has been some scepticism and rightly so. So, does Valor Mortis hit the highs of Ghost runner or does it flounder and get put back in the trenches. Well my name is Fletcher and this is Xbox Nation and lets delve right into it!
Now, William’s journey begins in a Europe devastated by Napoleon’s endless conflict and in this alternate history, the war has unleashed Nephtoglobin. This is a plague that infects soldiers and civilians alike and the result is a world where ruined streets, blood-soaked battlefields and abandoned institutions which all tell a story of lives caught in the conflict.
That setting gives Valor Mortis a distinctive tone and its rather gruesome and filled with dread. I was actually quite surprised as the game doesn’t treat war as a backdrop for increasingly large fights and instead its story and side quests dwell on the people left to endure it. William’s search for answers about his resurrection gradually develops into a tale of betrayal, death and the consequences of Napoleon’s actions but I wont spoil anything in this review today.
The main story becomes increasingly inventive as it unfolds and I was very surprised with how much I enjoyed this one. Then again i love the Napoleonic era so maybe i’m a bit biased. Its voice cast helps bring that journey to life too with Vincent Cassel voicing Napoleon and Jennifer English playing the mysterious Shrike. James Alexander is especially effective as William. His performance makes the main protagonist feel convincing with a sense of conflict, moving between grief, exhaustion, brief relief and determination as he tries to understand what has happened to him.
The side quests are another highlight and with more than a dozen to discover, they often focus on the ordinary people whose lives have been torn apart by the war. You might help orphans reclaim a small piece of their old lives or find a soldier’s written account of what he has done in Napoleon’s name. These moments give the world emotional weight and offer a welcome change from quests that exist only to send you after another monster or boss.
Across ten chapters, Valor Mortis moves through a varied collection of locations from decaying cities overrun by the infected to a university hiding grotesque experiments. Each area has its own character and the ruined architecture and plague-stricken inhabitants make the setting feel consistently unsettling.
The level design encourages you to investigate too as many routes branch into hidden rooms and new spaces, often rewarding exploration with useful items, chests or additional story details. I occasionally lost my bearings during my playthroughs especially upon a death but all the different paths generally connect back into the wider area rather than ending without purpose. Once you learn how the spaces fit together the world becomes satisfying to navigate and there is a ton to discover without feeling overbearing.
As many of you know, this Dev team is known for Ghostrunner so movement is a big part of that appeal. William can swing and run along walls and the fluid traversal gives exploration a pace that sets Valor Mortis apart from many other games in the genre. The influence of Ghostrunner is clear but the movement fits naturally into the game’s interconnected environments instead of feeling like a separate gimmick and you will unlock further abilities the more you progress within the game.
The most distinctive part of Valor Mortis is how it combines nimble movement with deliberate, parry-centred combat. William can dodge quickly from side to side, letting you shift position while staying engaged with your opponent. Success depends on reading enemy attacks, finding the right moment to parry and choosing when to press your advantage.
That rhythm makes fights feel active without removing the need for patience and each of the enemies have different attack patterns. Some can be staggered into a brutal finisher after you fill their posture gauge, whereas others use longer combinations designed to catch you out if you become too confident. I was often punished for misjudging how many strikes an enemy had left, which made learning each opponent’s timing an important part of progression.
I will note, there is a somewhat limited selection of equipment within Valor Mortis. You get three melee weapons, three ranged weapons and three supernatural abilities called transmutations. I relied most heavily on the cutlass, pistol and fire transmutation, which suited my preferred approach and worked well across a variety of encounters. The other options have their own uses, though some feel more specialised than the faster, more adaptable choices.
The Rapier is cool but having no block was something I found difficult especially as someone who isnt the most well versed in the souls space. The same is true of the transmutations and they do add variety to combat but I found myself returning to the first ability I unlocked more often than the others. Valor Mortis gives you enough options to build an effective style without overwhelming combat with equipment you may never need.
If you are also worried about the First Person combat system compared to third person of the traditional games in this genre, then you need to put your mind at ease as its incredibly well implemented. The devs have put their experience with Ghostrunner into this one and it is apparent and I found little to no issue of knowing what was around me at all time. Of course you need to have your head on a swivel but the indicators and sound effects always give you warning if you are being surrounded. Its easy to pick up and the most fun ive had in a souls-like.
As to be expected there are Upgrades and Levels and each are handled through materials found throughout the world. Weapons and transmutations each have their own upgrade paths, with passive bonuses that can support different playstyles. These include benefits such as gaining more stamina from a successful parry or having a chance to recover a pistol round after a hit. The system will feel familiar to soulslike fans and the resources I found gave me room to improve more than one piece of equipment.
The abilities are the same and these can be upgraded using Catalysts which can be found by defeating enemies, finding items and completing quests. These can then be used to upgrade William with better stats such as higher health, the ability to slow down time when in the air aiming a pistol and so much more. Its works well and the progression is at a steady pace which works well based on how far you get. There are instances where you can kind of cheese the game to get more Catalysts by just killing enemies and saving at the lantern to make them appear again but other than that, the system works very well.
Over the duration of the ten chapters, they will always end with a major boss and whilst there are optional minibosses scattered throughout the world, these will be the main draw for many. Their designs range from hulking, monstrous figures to human opponents who use combat skills similar to William’s. Rather than relying on raw damage alone, most fights ask you to recognise patterns and learn when you can safely parry.
The difficulty also varies between encounters and some bosses demand precise timing, while others give you more room to respond. What works well is how each fight feels connected to the area around it. Their moves and designs reflect the environments they inhabit and the encounters don’t feel like the same opponent repeated with a different appearance.
The game’s emphasis on parrying means there can be a steep learning curve especially if you’re unfamiliar with the genre. For me, that challenge felt fair and I would say this is one of the easier souls-likes on the market and a good point for beginners. Overall, the combat becomes more enjoyable as you recognise attack patterns and understand how movement can create openings and when in motion you do feel like a god when it all pays off. Ultimately Valor Mortis expects you to learn but it gives you a satisfying payoff when you do.
On the Xbox Series X, Valor Mortis ran at a very stable 60fps on Performance mode and it looked fantastic throughout my entire 15 hour playthrough. I didn’t encounter crashes, stutters or frame drops, which helped the fast movement and precise combat feel consistent throughout.
This is on performance by default and with the game being as fast as it is and needing split second decisions, the idea of a quality mode is quite pointless. I would avoid quality if you want to have a good chance and overall you arent losing too much in the visual department.
I will say I did come across a few bugs and glitches throughout my playthrough with one causing me to completely restart my game but the others were very minor gripes overall. The large issue basically caused my Xbox to bug out completely and the screen looked as though the GPU was dying. I could not see anything, it was crackly, had random bars and ultimately caused me to perish. I had to restart with this but that only happened once. The only other small issues were enemies getting caught on the environment and even myself becoming stuck on a couple occasions. Like I said, nothing inherently bad and it was easy to rectify but I hope the devs fix these issues down the line.
I have not yet tried the Xbox Series S but this will be coming in due course, so stick around for our Xbox Nation Video on Valor Mortis over the next 24 hours to learn more.
I think it is safe to say that Valor Mortis is an impressive soulslike that brings together a grim alternate history, rewarding exploration and a combat system built around movement and parrying. Its story is one of the game’s strongest elements and it is supported by a convincing cast and side quests that make the human cost of war difficult to ignore.
The limited selection of weapons and transmutations means not every option will suit every player and I found myself relying on a small number of favourites. Having said that the combat gives you enough flexibility to shape your approach, while its interconnected areas make exploration feel worthwhile and really fun to experience.
Yes Performance is good albeit with a few bugs here and there but I suspect this might be improved in time and it is not egregious or off-putting if you want to delve in right now.
For soulslike fans looking for a fresh setting and a fast, demanding combat system, Valor Mortis is well worth experiencing. It’s an ambitious game that delivers on its most important ideas and leaves a strong impression and its an easy recommendation from me here at Xbox Nation. With it being available on Xbox Game Pass too Day One, there is no better time to try out this cracking new IP!
Valor Mortis Xbox Review – A Bold Soulslike That Finds Its Own Path
+ What works
- Gripping story set in a striking alternate version of Napoleonic Europe
- Fluid movement and satisfying parry-based combat
- Interconnected levels reward exploration
- Memorable bosses and strong voice performances
− What holds it back
- Limited weapon selection
- Some transmutations feel less useful than others
- A Few Bugs & Glitches on Xbox
- Available on
- Xbox Series X|S · Xbox PC · Cloud Gaming
- Developer
- One More Level
- Publisher
- Lyrical Games
- Release date
- 13 October 0026
- Age rating
- PEGI 18
- Price
- $39.99 / £34.99 / FREE with Xbox Game Pass
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