| The Blood of Dawnwalker | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Release Date | Gameplay & Story | Pre-Order & DLC | Review |
Guard the balance between both of your identities as Coen in The Blood of Dawnwalker! Read on to learn how it plays, what it's about, and everything else we know so far.
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The Blood of Dawnwalker Gameplay
The Blood of Dawnwalker is an open-world action RPG. Players assume the role of Coen, a Dawnwalker, caught between two worlds. By day, Coen retains his human form and focuses on ritualistic magic. By night, he transforms into a vampire and unlocks supernatural abilities such as increased agility and strength. This dichotomy fundamentally alters how individual quests unfold and enable radically different approaches within a single mission, depending on whether the player engages in the day or the night.
Time is a finite resource, but players can progress at their own pace. Although the narrative revolves around a 30-day cycle, during which Coen must rescue his family or face his vampire creator, there’s no pressure to complete objectives quickly. Exploration itself does not advance the in-game clock; however, completing quests does. Every quest undertaken contributes to the passage of time within the game world. The developers have clarified that players will always be notified of whether an action will advance the time and by how much. Moreover, the developers have also indicated that the game doesn’t necessarily end when the time elapses. However, they have yet to provide further details on the consequences of reaching the 30-day mark.
However, according to Game Director and Co-Founder of Rebel Wolves Konrad Tomaszkiewicz, this design choice means that it is impossible to experience all story arcs and content within a single playthrough before the in-game deadline. This limitation is intentional, contributing to what the developers term a "narrative sandbox." Moreover, Romanceable characters have been confirmed.
Combat is third-person and reminiscent of The Witcher 3. Early footage from the Gameplay Reveal Event shows fast-paced melee combat interwoven with vampiric abilities like acrobatic movement and supernatural attacks. Players can toggle between stealth and direct combat, particularly at night, using vampiric traits such as scaling walls and feeding on NPCs or choose a more subtle human approach during the day.
Supporting progression systems include factions, dialogue outcomes, and vampiric resource management. Players may choose to ally or oppose various factions, such as the human rebellion or the vampire elite. Additionally, Coen must manage his bloodlust; refusing to feed or mismanaging his vampiric urges can negatively affect his physical and mental state, and may even compromise key narrative relationships.
The Blood of Dawnwalker Story Plot
The Blood of Dawnwalker takes place in Vale Sangora, a medieval European-inspired world now under the control of vampires. The story focuses on Coen, who becomes the Dawnwalker after surviving silver poisoning. This poisoning had a unique effect on him—it prevented his full transformation into a vampire, leaving him in a state where he can shift between human and vampire forms with the cycle of day and night.
Two years have passed since Brencis and his vampires seized control of Vale Sangora. Isolating the valley from the outside world, Brencis manipulated deeply held religious beliefs to sway many of the human populace to his cause. However, resistance brewed among those who rejected his rule, leading them to explore occult practices as a means of countering his influence.
During this takeover, Brencis saved Coen’s sister, Lunka, from both execution and the plague. But this act of mercy came at a steep price: his family’s freedom. Now subject under vampiric rule, Coen is driven by a single purpose—to liberate his family from Brencis’ grasp. However, he only has thirty days and nights to achieve this desperate goal.
According to Game Director Konrad Tomaszkiewicz, the game can go many ways. Players are given the option to form alliances with various factions that oppose the vampires. However, these factions may have conflicting agendas. Some humans also actually support the vampires due to the safety and the cure for the plague that they provide, further complicating the political landscape of Vale Sangora.
Loss, family, resistance against tyranny, and the complexities of coexistence with unfamiliar creatures were said to be key themes during the game’s reveal. How these themes will be implemented in the game remains to be seen.
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