In a world where we have hundreds of thousands of games at our fingertips, the genre you love can easily get stale. Somehow, even with the dire need for something fresh in games, if the latest game isn’t a sequel, prequel, remaster or remake, the hype isn’t anywhere near what it could be for fear of the unknown. For me, RPGs and action-RPGs are my genre of choice, and new versions just haven’t spoken to me…until now.
I was able to watch an hour-long preview of The Blood of Dawnwalker from the new studio, Rebel Wolves and Bandai Namco. I can confidently tell you that they are bringing a fresh take on the action-RPG, and I am both excited and nervous to jump in hands-on.
During our session, we were able to see what I believe is the game’s opening cutscene, and then we jumped into a quest line a bit further in the game, when you would be familiar with the unique gameplay cycle and your abilities. That opening cutscene had me on the edge of my seat. I want to save spoilers so players can feel what I felt, but in just those first few moments, there was fear, sadness, horror, and rage setting the tone for your time with The Blood of Dawnwalker.
“Detective skills will be very important in The Blood of Dawnwalker, with investigating gaining you access to new information, dialogue options or the next part of a quest.”
The game is built in Unreal Engine 5, and the cutscene was absolutely beautiful. Sweat glistening on the character’s face, breath in the cold air. Not to mention the sound and voice acting. If this keeps up throughout, there is something really special here.
What I can tell you about the story is that you are Coen, a man in 14th-century Europe, and the Black Plague is taking over. The Vrakhiri—which is their version of a vampire (vaguely reminding me of the Volturi, Twilight, anyone?)—aimed to change you into one of them. However, you turned into something else. You are a Dawnwalker—though you only find this out later on. Thankfully, some story beats were left out for me, too, and I am very interested in putting the puzzle pieces together when I play the game myself. Because you are a Dawnwalker, you are able to…well, walk at dawn. You can be in the sun and the dark.
This introduces one of several unique mechanics in The Blood of Dawnwalker. Though you can exist in the day and night, your set of skills is different for each. To show us how this works, Rebel Wolves walked us through the same quest twice, once during the day and once at night, to show us some advantages and disadvantages of each. At night, you have access to a teleport ability which allows easier access to places than during the day. There are also fewer people around, which helps with that as well. You fight with sharp claws and abilities, though I don’t believe we saw any combat abilities in the demo.
During the day, more people are around to engage and investigate, for starters. You have access to magic and a sword when it comes to battle. One unique skill you have as a human is the ability to speak to the dead and learn about what happened, and further your investigations. From what I can tell, detective skills will be very important in The Blood of Dawnwalker, with investigating gaining you access to new information, possibly giving you new dialogue options or leading the way to the next part of a quest.
Questing is another tricky mechanic in itself in The Blood of Dawnwalker. Some quests will need to be done by your Vrakhiri self, others in your human form, more specifically, during the day or at night. Quests can also be done at any point and aren’t linear, meaning you could start with one in your first playthrough and do it last in another, or not at all. Which leads me to the next mechanic: You won’t be able to do every quest.
Again, being a part of a story beat that I don’t know yet, you have a set limit of time to save your family. This is not the RPG that never ends. You must pick and choose who to help and which quests to follow. Some will progress the time forward, in days or units, and you only have 30 days. Part of the story seems to be walking the line between good and evil, human and Vrakhiri.
“You won’t be able to do every quest — you only have 30 days to save your family.”
The steam page itself says, “Fight for your humanity or embrace the cursed powers to save your family. Whatever your choice, the question stands: is your soul worth the lives of those you love?” and that is some damn good marketing. I’m in!
These mechanics combined give The Blood of Dawnwalker endless playthrough opportunities: doing quests as a human or vampire, being good or evil, and choosing which quests you want to complete. I can’t wait to see how things change with your choices. This kind of complicated storyline is ambitious for a new studio, and though it is still early, it looks extremely well thought out. It’s something new and I am looking forward to seeing how it all works.
Gameplay itself features three skill trees, some for your human side, some for the Vrakhiri and some shared abilities. The game will also feature difficulty levels for those who want them. Rebel Wolves have also tweaked the cameras, allowing you to have a closer or further away view, and you can have a different option for both in battle and out.
Voice acting is also a win so far in The Blood of Dawnwalker. Part of my notes was “I want Coen to read me a bedtime story.” So clearly, something is going well. I noticed the scale of the open world while they walked us around the city. I have seen some gorgeous buildings in games like Skyrim, etc., but the size of the Cathedral in The Blood of Dawnwalker was surprising. It was incredibly detailed. Books were filled with designs, you could see people walking by outside the windows, and the world felt full.
That being said, something feels off with the eyes during dialogue. Though they move, it feels like there is a disconnect. Bodies and voices show emotion, but the eyes stay empty. Hair is also not perfect. It seems fine anywhere except where it touches the body, so hairlines and beards, but it is still a ways away from being released. It feels strange to have so much detail everywhere else, but find the eyes just empty. Otherwise, the game looks stunning.
The Blood of Dawnwalker releases in 2026, and if they keep up with what I have seen so far, Rebel Wolves is going to have a hit on their hands. They are calling this the beginning of a saga, so it looks like they are planning a future with the game, and I am happy to have a new franchise to look forward to.
