A brand new 20-minute gameplay demo for upcoming open-world RPG The Blood of Dawnwalker means that developer Insurgent Wolves has the magic contact to include the very best factor about The Witcher 3. The mere thought of a brand new sport from former CD Projekt Purple devs that labored on The Witcher collection and Cyberpunk 2077 is sufficient to perk up my ears, however whereas that legacy is efficacious, the proof would not come till the ultimate product arrives. Thankfully, this prolonged demonstration of The Blood of Dawnwalker’s dynamic and reactive quest system is strictly what I hoped to see.
For all the various issues that make The Witcher 3 rank so extremely amongst our greatest RPGs, they’re underpinned by its unimaginable mission lineup. Even the smallest aspect quest feels value your time to pursue, with a number of them shifting perspective in response to your previous actions, and plenty of innocuous-looking asides can all of the sudden open up contemporary entryways into essential components of the principle narrative. The Blood of Dawnwalker seems to take this to a different stage, stripping away the excellence between core and elective goals completely.
As a Dawnwalker himself, protagonist Coen’s strategy to actions can shift dramatically between the daytime, the place he walks the streets in human kind, and dusk, when he is capable of slink about as a vampire, empowered and feared in equal measure. His primary goal is to rescue his household, who’re imprisoned in a fort, earlier than their time runs out. You may try this at any time, design director Daniel Sadowski explains, however you is perhaps higher served by honing your abilities, bettering your gear, and gathering allies earlier than you storm the gates.
Apart from that central goal, Sadowski notes that “there is not any distinction between primary quests and aspect quests” in Dawnwalker, “simply totally different tales that you just weave collectively into your personal distinctive journey.” The chance we’re proven right here takes Coen to analyze the Svartrau Cathedral, and arriving in the course of the day makes {that a} easy course of. He can stroll straight within the door, the place he sits down and observes a blood baptism happening. From there, he is pulled right into a dialog with Florin, the monk who carried out the service.
This strategy makes questioning guests simple, however it leaves giant sections of the constructing out of Coen’s attain. Selecting to as a substitute take a nighttime sojourn means the cathedral gates are locked and guarded, however permits Coen to make use of his teleport-like Shadow Step means, or Aircraft Shift, which permits him to stroll on partitions and ceilings with ease. This grants him entry to the higher ranges, the place he notes that the constructing’s previous frescos are seemingly being coated up. It additionally reveals a ritual being carried out by Xanthe, a aged and highly effective vampire.
Whereas Coen can watch occasions play out from the shadows, a slight misstep and Xanthe’s sharp senses will catch him. Within the demonstration, this quickly escalates right into a combat; one which proves very tough, particularly given her means to make use of Boiling Blood to position a curse on Coen that, as soon as it runs out, causes him to blow up in a grim bathe of crimson. “Defeating her proper right here, proper now may be very a lot potential, however it will be hellishly tough,” Sadowski remarks, calling it “a enjoyable problem for hardcore gamers.” Given Xanthe’s standing, nonetheless, maybe you would be higher served in the long term by holding her alive and studying extra about her.
Whereas Coen’s vampiric abilities are potent (he can even combat with vicious claw strikes at night time, though his sword continues to be an choice), they naturally come at a price. As a vampire, your well being is tied to your starvation, and when nightfall falls it’s good to feed. Are likely to it rapidly and you’ll sip simply sufficient out of your chosen sufferer to go away them briefly unconscious, and even drink from an animal as a substitute. Wait too lengthy, and also you may lose management and drain an essential character to a deadly extent, eradicating them from the story altogether.
The Blood of Dawnwalker is ready to launch someday in 2026. Regulate our information as The Blood of Dawnwalker launch date closes in if you wish to be saved up with all the small print and new reveals within the meantime.
If you cannot wait till then to sink your tooth into one thing juicy, we have the very best vampire video games in 2025, together with our decide of the very best open-world video games on PC proper now.
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