Grounded

"We probably need a few more Expedition 33s to just prove them wrong" – the maker of Valor Mortis on why publishers should have faith in AA

"We probably need a few more Expedition 33s to just prove them wrong" – the maker of Valor Mortis on why publishers should have faith in AA Polish studio One More Level struggled on after losing its funding, but found a saviour in the form of a film company spin-off Over the past 12 years, Polish studio One More Level has carved out a niche in the world of AA games with projects whose production values often approach those of AAA titles. Its eye-catching 2020 cyberpunk action platformer Ghostrunner launched to critical acclaim and commercial success, selling 5.6 million units according to Video Game Insights estimates, and it was followed by a sequel in 2023. Over the past few years, investment has dried up at the same time as competition has increased, so smaller publishers have tended to prefer betting on games with smaller budgets of $1 million or less, while the big players have gone all in on evergreen titles. But for Valor Mortis, One More Level initially signed up with the indie label Private Division, only for parent Take-Two to begin scaling back the publisher in 2024, with Take-Two head Strauss Zelnick saying that the firm wanted to focus on AAA: "We're in the business of making great big hits." (Private Division's catalogue was sold and the company reemerged as Fictions in 2025; the publisher is behind the recently released Beast of Reincarnation from Pokémon studio Game Freak.) Ratusznik says One More Level was considering self-publishing Valor Mortis after the Private Division deal fell through.

GamesIndustry.biz9/9/2026release

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