Rebel Wolves has unveiled the first trailer for The Blood of Dawnwalker. The studio is made up of various veterans from the video game industry and is being led by The Witcher 3 game director Konrad Tomaszkiewicz and Cyberpunk 2077 quest director Mateusz Tomaszkiewicz.
According to the game details, The Blood of Dawnwalker is an open-world, narrative sandbox that encourages multiple playthroughs to experience it all. It takes place in Vale Sangora in 14th-century medieval Europe, where the world has been ravaged by a plague, famine, and social disorder.
Vampires have been waiting in the shadows for humanity to reach its weakest point, and with the ongoing crisis, they now decide to take advantage of the weakness.
Players take on the role of Coen, a “Dawnwalker” who is a breed of human and vampire. As a Dawnwalker, Coen can explore the world during the day without being affected by the sunlight. During the day, players can fight off enemies using swords and other melee weapons, but during the night, their vampire abilities awaken, giving them access to new mechanics.
These vampire abilities come with both combat and exploration perks, meaning players will often have to take on specific tasks at night which require a different approach.
The game’s experience is timed. Players have 30 in-game days and 30 nights to save their family before the game ends. While players are exploring the world, time does not progress. However, when players complete certain objectives and quests, time moves forward. So, you’ll need to plan what quests you’re taking on and how to best manage the time you have available.
NPCs can become friends and comrades by helping them with their own set goals. However, let them down, and they could become enemies. Players also can’t control their hunger for blood. If the player gets too hungry, they could often lash out at NPCs and kill them in order to feed. Players can even kill and feed on their best companions by accident.
The game’s antagonist is a vampire named Brencis. He is an old vampire that wants to control the world and change it for the “better” of the vampires. He uses ancient religion to lead his vampire cult and believes he is some sort of god meant to bring change to the world.
The studio describes Brencis as an active antagonist. Depending on how the player approaches the game and its quests, the leader will alter the vampire cult’s approach to the decisions. For example, if the player takes on a more violent approach, he will send more enemies after them and even erect checkpoints that are constantly surveying the area for them.
The vampires are also not labeled as “bad”, more as survivors and fighters for their own kind. In the past, the vampires have overthrown corrupt feudal lords in order to bring calm to the region. However, they also have some twisted ways such as killing humans for food and conducting blood rituals. Whether these rituals and deaths are a “must” is unclear but it will be interesting to see the lore behind their actions.
The Blood of Dawnwalker is in development for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC. The game’s full reveal is set for “June – August 2025”. It is being published by Bandai Namco. The trailer below is a mix of cinematic and includes a few gameplay shots.