Entertainment news and discussion on TalkFuse.
The Blood of Dawnwalker review
Developed over time first seen 3 months ago
Eurogamer's review finds The Blood of Dawnwalker, a dark fantasy RPG from Rebel Wolves, deliberately and heavily reminiscent of The Witcher 3, which is unsurprising given it is directed by Konrad Tomaszkiewicz and made largely by former CD Projekt Red staff. The review judges the game largely successful in meeting that high benchmark, matching The Witcher 3's earthy tone, brutal world and folk-inflected atmosphere, while introducing bold ideas of its own rather than simply imitating its predecessor, and concludes it meets, if not quite raises, that bar.
The central new mechanic is protagonist Coen, a young man in the 14th-century Carpathian Mountains who is partially turned into a vampire, giving him two forms that switch automatically between day and night. By night he becomes an agile, wall-climbing vampire able to teleport across rooftops, notably in the densely packed city of Svartrau, while by day he remains human but wields powerful witch-like abilities, including time-slowing spells, communing with the dead and performing rituals; the two forms' skill trees are joined by a shared swordsmanship tree, and the review praises this day/night duality for adding much-needed variety to a lengthy open-world RPG.
- Sources
- 4
- Outlets
- 4
- Left · Centre · Right
- 0 · 0 · 0
In short
- Eurogamer reviews The Blood of Dawnwalker, a Witcher 3-esque RPG from ex-CDPR staff.
- The game largely succeeds despite heavy comparisons to The Witcher 3.
- Hero Coen switches between human and vampire forms by day and night.
How this story developed
- 2 months ago Eurogamer's review of The Blood of Dawnwalker concludes that the dark fantasy RPG from Rebel Wolves is deliberately and heavily reminiscent of The Witcher 3, unsurprising given it is directed by Konrad Tomaszkiewicz and made largely by former CD Projekt Red staff.
- 3 months ago Eurogamer's review of The Blood of Dawnwalker finds the dark fantasy RPG deliberately and heavily reminiscent of The Witcher 3, unsurprising given it comes from Rebel Wolves, a studio founded by CD Projekt Red alumni including director Konrad Tomaszkiewicz.
- 3 months ago Eurogamer's review finds The Blood of Dawnwalker, a dark fantasy RPG from Rebel Wolves, deliberately and heavily reminiscent of The Witcher 3, which is unsurprising given it is directed by Konrad Tomaszkiewicz and made largely by former CD Projekt Red staff.
- 3 months ago Eurogamer's review of The Blood of Dawnwalker, made by Rebel Wolves (a studio founded by CD Projekt Red alumni including director Konrad Tomaszkiewicz), finds it deliberately and heavily reminiscent of The Witcher 3 in tone, world design and gameplay, yet largely successful at meeting that high benchmark while introducing its own distinctive mechanics.
- GamesRadar+ The Blood of Dawnwalker review: "Despite clear Witcher 3 DNA, I wish this vampire RPG was messier"
- GameSpot The Blood Of Dawnwalker Makes You Want To Do Everything–And Tantalizingly Won’t Let You – Review
- Eurogamer The Blood of Dawnwalker review
- Rock Paper Shotgun The Blood of Dawnwalker review – worthy to sip blood at the top RPGs' table
Explained simply
The Blood of Dawnwalker is a dark fantasy role-playing game made by Rebel Wolves, a studio set up by former CD Projekt Red staff, including director Konrad Tomaszkiewicz, who previously worked on The Witcher 3. That background means the new game is being closely compared to The Witcher 3 and judged against the high standard it set, particularly for its tone, setting and atmosphere.
The game follows Coen, a young man living in the Carpathian Mountains in the 14th century, who is partly turned into a vampire. This gives him two distinct forms that alternate between day and night: a human form with special abilities during the day, and a vampire form with different powers, such as climbing and fast movement, at night.
This duel-form system is presented as the game's main new idea, intended to add variety to combat and exploration across its large open world. Because of the studio's pedigree and close ties to The Witcher 3, the game has attracted significant attention and scrutiny ahead of, and following, its release.
Coverage · 4 sources
- EurogamerThe Blood of Dawnwalker review
- GamesRadar+The Blood of Dawnwalker review: "Despite clear Witcher 3 DNA, I wish this vampire RPG was messier"
- GameSpotThe Blood Of Dawnwalker Makes You Want To Do Everything–And Tantalizingly Won’t Let You – Review
- Rock Paper ShotgunThe Blood of Dawnwalker review – worthy to sip blood at the top RPGs' table