Over the last dozen years, the Warsaw‑based studio One More Level has quietly built a reputation for delivering AA‑level experiences that often rival the polish of full‑blown AAA releases. The studio first burst onto the global stage with Ghostrunner, a cyber‑punk action platformer that arrived in 2020 to glowing reviews and impressive sales—Video Game Insights estimates put its worldwide shipments at roughly 5.6 million copies.
The success was strong enough to merit a sequel in 2023, cementing the studio’s ability to produce high‑quality, fast‑paced titles on a mid‑range budget. Despite these achievements, the broader AA market is under pressure. In recent years, venture capital and publisher investment have dried up just as the competitive landscape has intensified.
Many smaller publishers now shy away from projects that cost more than $1 million, preferring low‑risk, low‑budget experiments, while the industry giants pour resources into evergreen franchises that promise blockbuster returns. Even titles that have demonstrated massive commercial potential—such as Clair Obscur: Expedition 33—still struggle to secure the kind of backing that would allow a comfortable development cycle. "Our hit with Expedition 33 proved the AA segment can deliver big numbers, yet publishers still view it as a gamble," explains Radek Ratusznik, game director at One More Level, in an interview with GamesIndustry.biz at Gamescom.
"One success isn’t enough to change the narrative; we probably need a handful of Expedition 33‑style hits before the skeptics are convinced. There are plenty of studios capable of producing high‑quality AA games without blowing hundreds of millions of dollars. "The tools we have today let us create better games faster and, to an extent, cheaper, but you can’t magically finish a polished product in a single year. Development still requires time for iteration, testing, and polishing.
I’m doubtful we can compress the schedule as aggressively as some publishers might like." One More Level’s latest project, Valor Mortis, has been a case study in the volatility of modern publishing. Originally, Ghostrunner and its sequel were released through 505 Games, an Italian label owned by Digital Bros. Digital Bros announced a 30 percent staff reduction in late 2023 as part of a restructuring plan, signaling a shift in its publishing priorities.
For Valor Mortis, the studio initially signed with Private Division, a boutique label under the Take‑Two umbrella. However, in 2024 Take‑Two’s leadership, led by Strauss Zelnick, decided to double down on AAA titles, stating, "We’re in the business of making great big hits," and began to scale back Private Division’s activities. When Private Division’s catalogue was sold and the label re‑emerged as Fictions in 2025—now the home of Game Freak’s Beast of Reincarnation—One More Level found itself without a publishing partner. Ratusznik admits the team briefly considered self‑publishing, but quickly realized that achieving the visual fidelity and production values they envisioned for Valor Mortis would be nearly impossible without external funding and distribution support.
Enter Lyrical Games, a newcomer that, like Annapurna Interactive, grew out of a film‑industry parent. Lyrical Media, the parent company, produced the Hugh Jackman vehicle The Death of Robin Hood and spun off Lyrical Games in 2025 under the leadership of former Private Division executives Blake Rochkind and Roger Kurtz. The new publisher has positioned itself as an oasis for mid‑tier projects, a niche that few others are willing to nurture. "When people tell us we’re an oasis in the desert, it’s both humbling and a little terrifying," Rochkind told GamesIndustry.biz last year.
"If we can champion a title like Clair Obscur, that would be a dream for our label." Ratusznik says the timing could not have been more fortuitous. "Blake and Roger remembered us and knew the project inside out," he recalls. "Their belief gave us the breathing room we needed." At the time the studio began courting publishers for Valor Mortis, One More Level employed roughly 40‑50 people.
Rather than resort to layoffs when funding slipped away, the team leaned on reserves saved from earlier successes. "We had some cash cushions from previous games, which allowed us to keep the whole crew intact," Ratusznik explains. "It was a leap of faith, but we trusted that the talent we’d built would eventually attract the right partner.
Losing a cohesive team is far easier than rebuilding one from scratch." Today, as the October 13 launch approaches, the studio has grown to over 70 staff members, though not all are assigned to Valor Mortis—some are already working on an undisclosed follow‑up title. Many AA studios augment their core teams with external contractors for art, programming, or QA. Sandfall Interactive, for instance, relied heavily on outside workers while developing Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.
One More Level, however, has purposefully kept most of the production pipeline in‑house. Lead designer Łukasz Wabik notes, "We outsource only QA and a few marketing assets; the majority of art, animation, and systems work is done by our internal team." Looking ahead, the studio says a strong commercial performance for Valor Mortis would justify further hiring, but they are wary of scaling too quickly.
"If the game does well, we’ll grow organically, but we don’t want to transform overnight into a AAA‑size operation," Ratusznik cautions. "Maintaining control over our creative process is essential." Valor Mortis is a first‑person action RPG that blends influences from several celebrated franchises.
Its combat system evokes the deliberate, punishing encounters of Dark Souls, while the game’s plasmid‑style abilities recall the biotech powers of BioShock. What truly sets it apart, however, is its historical backdrop: the Napoleonic Wars of the early 19th century. The developers deliberately chose an era that is rarely explored in video games, hoping the combination of period‑accurate weaponry, large‑scale battlefield aesthetics, and supernatural horror would differentiate the title in an increasingly crowded market.
Ratusznik describes the brainstorming process: "We first toyed with a very fantastical premise—Napoleon possessed by a demonic force—but eventually shifted toward a more grounded narrative. The final story focuses on the grim realities of war, with subtle horror elements and occasional mutations that hint at a darker undercurrent. It’s less about a demon‑riding emperor and more about the psychological terror of combat." The studio also emphasizes the unique feel of first‑person swordplay, which they consider a core selling point. "Our USP is the blend of a recognizable historical period with a fresh, horror‑tinged twist and visceral melee combat," Ratusznik says.
"Players get a familiar setting, but we deliver it through a lens they haven’t seen before, which we believe will resonate with both history buffs and action‑RPG fans." In summary, One More Level’s journey from a modest Polish studio to the creator of a high‑profile AA title illustrates both the challenges and opportunities present in today’s mid‑tier market. With the backing of a film‑company‑derived publisher, a resilient internal team, and a distinctive product in Valor Mortis, the studio hopes to prove that AA games can still capture large audiences without the massive budgets traditionally associated with AAA development.