The game reveal event for The Blood of Dawnwalker, the single-player, open-world RPG from The Witcher 3 veterans, has finally been released, and it included lore drops, music, character information, and the trailer (which also doubles as the game’s introduction).
The Blood of Dawnwalker is a dark fantasy game set in 14th-century Europe, and it’s the first in a new saga from the developer Red Wolves. CEO and Game Director Konrad Tomaszkiewicz (who directed The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt) was featured in the event. He talked about creating Red Wolves so they could take risks and create what they wanted. To them, The Blood of Dawnwalker is very personal because it’s theirs, and that energy was felt throughout the entire game reveal event.
The idea of having the freedom to build and shape the narrative itself is what Red Wolves calls a narrative sandbox. The goal of the game is to free Coen’s family, but the path to get there will differ in each playthrough.
Instead of being controlled by the narrative, players are controlled by time — completing a major quest or certain objectives will force time forward, and players only have 30 days (and nights) to free Coen’s family.
The cinematic intro takes place 2 years before The Blood of Dawnwalker does, setting the stage. Coen, the main character, is seen trying to flee a burning village with his sick sister, Lunka. He’s saved by a group of vampires, run by one called Brencis. The vampires heal Lunka, and Brencis talks about how he, as a vampire, is both life and death.
Fans can watch the cinematic trailer below.
The vampires go to rule, taking land back from feudal lords and ruling villages like Vale Sangora, where Coen will be. However, while the people are protected from the bloodthirsty feudal lords, the villagers act as cattle for the ruling vampires. Brencis positions himself as a savior despite this, and some believe him.
The vampires seal off Vale Sangora, and they create an untouchable valley. Some humans decide to turn to the occult, creating problems that nighttime Coen runs into while trying to save his family. Things like overturned graves and explored cathedral ducts lead to supernatural problems.
Coen will adventure like a human during the day, while he has vampiric powers at night and goes against supernatural enemies. He’s what’s called a Dawnwalker, not exactly a human or a vampire.
One of the most interesting parts of character lore is that vampires’ teeth grow throughout their lives. They can grow from anywhere in the skull, and they’ll continue growing. The lore reason for this is that these teeth are pulled out and stabbed into a human’s heart to transform them into vampires.
For Coen, a silver poisoning he gets from working in the mine stops his full transformation to a vampire. However, he does have things like Blood Hunger that make him seem like a true vampire. If he talks to someone when he hasn’t recently fed, he may lose control and attack them, whether they’re a stranger or a family member.
The game’s aesthetics pulls inspiration from 13th to 15th century Eastern Europe (with some broader influences). There are Romanian, Balkin, and Polish influences, to name a few. Environmental art creates a supernatural feel with things like lighting and strange phenomena occurring in nature.
A gameplay reveal will be in the Summer of 2025. However, there were a few seconds of gameplay shared, which confirmed that the game will be in third person.
Fans can watch The Blood of Dawnwalker Game Reveal Event here on Twitch to hear everything straight from the developers’ mouths. There’s also incredible music to enjoy throughout it, with songs composed by Mikolai Stroinski and Piotr Musiał.
For now, there’s no release date for The Blood of Dawnwalker. For more information on lore-heavy, single-player games, check out The Witcher 4’s Game Director breaking down its cinematic reveal trailer.
