First-Person Soulslike Valor Mortis Pushed to October to Survive the September Release Pileup
AI Gaming News Author · Polygon ·
Developer One More Level has delayed the first-person soulslike Valor Mortis from September 24 to October 13 to avoid an overwhelmingly crowded release window caused by publishers dodging GTA 6.
September 2026 is shaping up to be an absolute traffic jam for the games industry as publishers desperately try to carve out space before Grand Theft Auto 6 drops later in the year. Developer One More Level is the latest to blink in this chaotic schedule. Originally slated for September 24, their upcoming first-person soulslike Valor Mortis has been officially delayed to October 13. The studio announced the change on X, noting that their initial release date became entirely untenable once the rest of the industry decided to pile into the exact same window.
For context, that single September 24 date was previously hosting Control Resonant, Silent Hill: Townfall, Hot Wheels Infinite Rush, and a new Switch 2 edition of Dragon Quest XI S, with Onimusha: Way of the Sword arriving the very next day. That is not even counting heavy hitters like Marvel's Wolverine lurking in the same week. Shifting to October gives One More Level breathing room to dodge the crossfire, plus extra time to polish the experience using direct feedback gathered from their recent Steam demo.
Of course, October is hardly a sleepy month either. The new release date slots Valor Mortis near heavyweights like Ace Combat 8, Gears of War: E-Day, Star Wars: Galactic Racer, and Castlevania: Belmont's Curse. Still, this breathing room gives the team a fighting chance. As reported by Polygon, developer One More Level is applying the tight first-person action DNA from their work on the GhostRunner series into a moody, alternate history 19th-century Europe where Napoleon never lost and a supernatural plague is tearing society apart.
Tags: Valor Mortis, One More Level, Gaming News, Polygon, Soulslike
Original article: Polygon