Valor Mortis sits at 77 on Metacritic, with scores from 5 to 9

Valor Mortis, from Ghostrunner studio One More Level, launches on 13 October. It is a first-person soulslike set on a battlefield overtaken by plague, and the first reviews already disagree. Critics on PlayStation 5 have been warmer so far than the PC write-ups.

At the time of the roundup, Metacritic showed 77 for PC and 83 for PS5. No Xbox Series review had been published. The shared 77 sits in mixed territory because the scores are far apart: nines and sixes side by side.

Outlet scores: TheGamer, Destructoid, and GamingTrend gave 9; CGM and DualShockers 8.5; Gfinity, Eurogamer, Shacknews, Push Square, and GAMINGbible 8; PC Nation, IGN, Gameliner, and Game Informer 7; DayOne 6.5; GameSpot and GamesRadar 6; Gamekult 5.

Destructoid (9/10) says a perfect soulslike does not exist, but the smooth combat and the world of Valor Mortis get closer than most. Push Square (8/10) points to the first-person view and the Napoleonic setting, praises the combat and the levels, and calls the lower price fair, while finding the ending weaker than the opening. IGN (7/10) describes a blend of BioShock atmosphere and Dark Souls, notes a saber in one hand and fire in the other, and more than 20 hours played, but flags bugs and a story that carries mood more than depth. GameSpot (6/10) says the second half does not hold the early standard: too few enemy types, weapons and abilities left underused, difficulty that wobbles, and short scenes about the cost of war instead of a large plot.