Lyrical Games and One More Level used Gamescom Opening Night Live to debut the story trailer for Valor Mortis, the upcoming first-person Soulslike from the creators of Ghostrunner. The trailer marks the first clear look at The Shrike, a rebel leader opposing Napoleon’s forces in occupied Eastern Europe, and provides new context for the rest of the main cast.
Valor Mortis launches on October 13, 2026, for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC via Steam. It will also arrive day one on Xbox Game Pass. A demo is already available on Steam for players who want an early look at the combat.
The game is set in a dark reimagining of 19th-century Europe. After Napoleon’s victory at Waterloo, the French army pushes east only to stall as a mysterious plague spreads in its wake. The same affliction courses through the veins of the protagonist, William Dowsett, granting him power while allowing the voice of Emperor Napoleon to speak directly into his mind.
William wakes on a battlefield as one of the few soldiers who still appears to have his mind intact. With fragmented memories, he must decide whether to trust the survivors who claim to know him and whether to remain loyal to the Emperor or turn toward the resistance.
William Dowsett is a young English volunteer who joined Napoleon’s cause out of disillusionment with the monarchy and a belief in a unified Europe. Players will shape his path as the competing voices of Napoleon and The Shrike pull him in different directions.
Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, voiced by Vincent Cassel, appears primarily as a guiding presence inside William’s head. He frames their relationship in paternal terms while struggling to maintain control of a war that has taken an unnatural turn.
The Shrike is a powerful rebel fighter operating in occupied territory. She answers to no formal authority and fights for the people living under the Empire’s rule. At a later point in the story her voice joins Napoleon’s inside William’s mind, raising the stakes of his internal conflict.
James Stewart, a blacksmith’s son from the Scottish Highlands, is William’s closest friend in the Legion and a skilled weaponsmith. He presents himself as fully devoted to the Emperor, though the supernatural events of the campaign may test that loyalty.
Lucjan Skawiński is a Polish craftsman and veteran who has stepped away from direct combat. He travels the ruined countryside marking safe havens with a hand-crafted lamp that never seems to run out of oil. Calm and well-read, he offers help to survivors while carrying an air of quiet unease.
One More Level is applying the first-person expertise developed on the Ghostrunner series to a Soulslike structure built around stamina management, high-mobility movement, and precise melee combat. William wields both period weaponry and supernatural abilities granted by the plague, creating a mix of grounded Napoleonic tools and more fantastical powers. The Kraków-based studio has positioned Valor Mortis as a more narrative-driven experience than its previous work while retaining the focus on skillful, kinetic gameplay that defined Ghostrunner.
With the story trailer now public and a demo available, players have a clearer picture of the tone and characters that will define the game. Valor Mortis is scheduled to launch on October 13 across PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC, with day-one availability on Xbox Game Pass.