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If you want a game with a similar feel to Valor Mortis, start with Dark Souls III for the closest match in Soulslike structure, or Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice for demanding combat that rewards learning enemy patterns. Neither is a direct substitute for Valor Mortis’s first-person viewpoint, Napoleonic setting, or announced mix of swords, firearms, and magic.
Valor Mortis, from One More Level, is scheduled to release October 13, 2026. The comparisons below are based on the game’s announced features and developer comments—not a verdict on the unreleased full game.
| # | Preview | Product | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
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Dark Souls 3 The Fire Fades (PS4) | $24.40 | Buy on Amazon |
| 2 |
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Dark Souls III: The Fire Fades Edition - PlayStation 4 | $21.88 | Buy on Amazon |
| 3 |
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Dark Souls Trilogy (PS4) | $38.80 | Buy on Amazon |
| 4 |
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Dark Souls III: The Fire Fades Edition - Xbox One | $24.80 | Buy on Amazon |
What makes a game feel like Valor Mortis?
The closest match depends on which part of Valor Mortis interests you. Its announced design combines several elements that are unusual together: a first-person Soulslike, melee and ranged weapons, magic, movement abilities, platforming, and a plague-corrupted alternate history during Napoleon’s campaigns.
The official Steam listing describes exploration, secrets, shortcuts, sidequests, and leveling swords, firearms, and magic. Developer announcements also describe parries, dashes, finishers, and challenging boss fights. That makes it useful to compare games across separate axes rather than look for one title that duplicates the whole package.
#1 Best Overall
- Atmospheric Visuals: Dynamic lighting and particle effects immerse players into a dark fantasy world of ruin.
- Interconnected World: Expertly crafted world encourages players to explore vast and breath-taking landscapes.
- Sword Action: Diversifies combat action allowing players to craft their own unique play style.
- Unique Online System: Evolution of trademark online multiplayer functionality that seamlessly integrates online interactions into single-player story.
- Format: checkpoints, boss encounters, backtracking, and recovering lost currency.
- Combat: timing, difficulty, and learning enemy patterns.
- Perspective and movement: first-person action, firearms, and platforming.
- Setting: supernatural threats in a historical or otherwise distinctive world.
Best games like Valor Mortis
Dark Souls III: closest for the Soulslike format
Choose Dark Souls III if you want the strongest match for the structure behind Valor Mortis. A developer community manager described Valor Mortis as much closer to Dark Souls than to Dishonored, citing a Soulslike loop built around recovering lost souls, lighting bonfire-like checkpoints, fighting bosses, and backtracking to uncover secrets. That supports Dark Souls as the comparison; naming Dark Souls III here is a recommendation within that series, not a claim that the developer singled out this installment.
The key difference is perspective and combat identity. Dark Souls III is not the announced first-person blend of swords, firearms, and magic found in Valor Mortis. It is the best pick when you chiefly want checkpoints, exploration, and boss-focused Soulslike progression.
Rank #2
- The Complete Dark Souls III Experience All on One Disc: Includes the award-winning base game, PLUS both complete DLC expansion chapters: Ashes of Ariandel and The Ringed City.
- Intense Combat Action: Challenging, genre-defining gameplay. Diversified combat action allows players to craft their own unique style.
- Team up for some jolly good cooperation or test your ability in PvP battle: All PvP maps unlocked and accessible. Improved online matchmaking functionality.
- Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) Content Description: Blood and gore, violence
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice: best for combat mastery
Choose Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice if the appeal is a steep combat challenge that asks you to read opponents and improve through practice. In a game director AMA, the director named Sekiro among their favorite Soulslikes and described the appeal of learning enemy patterns and overcoming difficult encounters. That makes it a useful comparison for mastery and difficulty, not evidence that Valor Mortis copies Sekiro’s specific combat systems.
Expect a different game rather than a stand-in for Valor Mortis’s announced weapon mix or setting. Its relevance is the emphasis on timing, enemy behavior, and player improvement.
Rank #3
- DARK SOULS REMASTERED - Then, there was fire. Re-experience the genre-defining game that started it all. Return to Lordran in the beautifully remastered game in high definition, 60 fps with single-player or online multiplayer with dedicated servers. Includes the Artorias of the Abyss DLC.
- DARK SOULS II: SCHOLAR OF THE FIRST SIN - Prepare to Die again. The second installment of the series includes the base Dark Souls II plus all three DLCs: Crown of the Sunken King, Crown of the Old Iron King, and Crown of the Ivory King.
- DARK SOULS III: THE FIRE FADES - Now only embers remain… Dark Souls III is the final journey in the series where players can fight through intense combat solo or team up for in co-op or PvP multiplayer. Includes the award-winning game and both DLC chapters: Ashes of Ariandel and The Ringed City.
- ALL ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACKS - Visit the EP!C corner to download the music of the Dark Souls saga composed by Motoi Sakaraba and Yuka Kitamura. 110 tracks and more than 6 hours to listen and take back any Dark Souls fan to the intense boss fights and the best moments of their deadly journeys.
Bloodborne: another dark, challenging action pick
Bloodborne is worth considering if you want another dark, demanding action game. The Valor Mortis director included it among their personal top three Soulslikes, but the available developer comments do not establish it as a close match for Valor Mortis’s mechanics or Napoleonic-inspired world. Treat it as a related genre recommendation rather than a close substitute.
Ghostrunner: for first-person action and movement lineage
Ghostrunner is relevant for a different reason: it is part of One More Level’s first-person action lineage. The developer says platforming and finishers carry over from its earlier franchise into Valor Mortis. That makes Ghostrunner a useful pick if movement and execution are what interest you, but it is less suitable than Dark Souls III as a Soulslike alternative.
Rank #4
- The Complete Dark Souls III Experience All on One Disc: Includes the award-winning base game, PLUS both complete DLC expansion chapters: Ashes of Ariandel and The Ringed City.
- Intense Combat Action: Challenging, genre-defining gameplay. Diversified combat action allows players to craft their own unique style.
- Team up for some jolly good cooperation or test your ability in PvP battle: All PvP maps unlocked and accessible. Improved online matchmaking functionality.
Dishonored: an influence, not a stealth substitute
The developer has said Dishonored influenced Valor Mortis, while also clarifying that Valor Mortis is not really a stealth game and is closer to Dark Souls in format. Consider Dishonored for context about one influence, not as the best match if you are looking for Soulslike progression or boss fights.
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| Choose | Best match for | Important difference |
|---|---|---|
| Dark Souls III | Soulslike structure, checkpoints, exploration, and bosses | It is a series-based editorial pick; the developer comparison was to Dark Souls generally, and it does not match Valor Mortis’s announced first-person weapon mix. |
| Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice | Learning enemy patterns and mastering difficult combat | The comparison is about combat challenge, not shared systems. |
| Bloodborne | Dark, challenging action | The director named it a favorite, but close mechanical or setting similarity is not established. |
| Ghostrunner | First-person action, platforming, and finishers | It is useful for studio lineage, not as the closest Soulslike substitute. |
| Dishonored | Understanding a stated influence | The developer says Valor Mortis is not really a stealth game and is closer to Dark Souls in format. |
What is known about Valor Mortis before release?
Valor Mortis is scheduled for October 13, 2026, according to its Steam listing and PlayStation page. The official pages identify One More Level as the developer and Lyrical Games as publisher. Its premise follows William, a soldier of Napoleon’s Grande Armée who returns from death in a plague-corrupted alternate history.
The advertised combination of first-person combat, swords, firearms, magic, parries, dashes, finishers, platforming, and Soulslike exploration is the reason none of these older games is a perfect one-to-one comparison. They are useful alternatives for individual parts of the pitch, not proof of how the full game plays.
Why demo impressions may not predict the final game
The developer says the demo went offline September 8 and used selected chapters recreated as bespoke versions for a Steam event. It also said carrying later optimization, balance changes, and bug fixes into those demo versions was not straightforward. The developer reported feedback on combat readability, boss difficulty and variety, performance, and the balance between platforming and combat. As a result, demo impressions should not be treated as a review of the final release.
Quick Recap
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