Rebel Wolves, a studio co-founded by The Witcher 3 director Konrad Tomaszkiewicz, is taking player choice to new heights with its upcoming debut game, The Blood of Dawnwalker. Situated in Warsaw, Poland, the studio aims to build upon the impactful decision-making found in titles like The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt and Cyberpunk 2077, potentially surpassing them in scope and consequence.
Tomaszkiewicz, who left CD Projekt Red after Cyberpunk 2077's release to found Rebel Wolves in 2021, drew inspiration from his passion for vampire media. He envisioned a saga spanning different time periods, with player choice as a central pillar. Reflecting on his past work, Tomaszkiewicz recognized the profound impact of seemingly optional content. While The Witcher 3 masterfully wove sidequests into its main narrative, The Blood of Dawnwalker seeks to evolve this structure.
"We don't have the main story, which is quest after quest leading us to the end; we created it differently," Tomaszkiewicz explained. "We call it narrative samples. What it means is you have one goal, and all the quests around it are satellites, and you can do them in any order you want to, and you can build you own idea of how you want to beat the game and achieve the main goal." This approach means nearly every quest is designed to be meaningful, akin to sidequests in other games, creating a cohesive experience for the player. The developers liken their approach to pen-and-paper RPGs, where the player, rather than a Game Master, crafts their own path to achieving objectives.
The game's narrative unfolds over 30 days and nights, and players have the option to bypass all quests and directly confront the antagonist. However, this direct approach comes with significant challenges, especially without allies and when under-leveled. Lead quest designer Rafał Jankowski noted that while storming the castle is the ultimate objective, the prepared narrative threads and optional stories are designed to make this final confrontation more approachable.
Rebel Wolves' design philosophy is heavily influenced by pen-and-paper RPGs and classic CRPGs like the original Fallout games. Players assume the role of Coen during a critical juncture as he transitions from human to Dawnwalker. Creative director Mateusz Tomaszkiewicz highlighted the extensive player agency in shaping Coen's identity, including his progression of vampire corruption and his moral alignment, whether he embraces violence or strives for good.
Beyond character development, the game tracks player interactions through an "infamy" system and individual relationships. Actions like rampages, theft, and even specific quest choices can affect Coen's reputation with the vampiric court and the inhabitants of Vale Sangora. Mateusz Tomaszkiewicz elaborated that this infamy system tracks negative actions, but individual choices and dialogue also have a detailed impact, leading to NPCs remembering player actions and reacting accordingly in various situations. In extreme cases, players can cause NPCs to die, either intentionally or accidentally through inaction or loss of control due to Coen's vampiric hunger, potentially cutting off entire questlines.
"We have this narrative sandbox structure of the game where we let you out into the world, you have the main goal, and then you have all these different quests and activities," Mateusz Tomaszkiewicz stated. The inclusion of Coen's ever-present vampiric hunger adds another layer of weight and darkness, preventing the player from feeling like a mere superhero and forcing them to contend with the inherent nature of their character.
Despite the ambitious scope for a debut title, the pedigree of Rebel Wolves' talent and the seen gameplay suggest the studio is poised to deliver. Konrad Tomaszkiewicz emphasized that the philosophy of consequences and choices is integral to the studio's design, a process that requires careful consideration for each decision to avoid feeling artificial. He believes that surprising players with unforeseen outcomes is crucial, mirroring the unpredictability of real-life choices.
The Blood of Dawnwalker is set to release on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC on September 3, 2026. The game's extensive focus on player agency and consequential decision-making promises a deeply personal vampire saga crafted by each player.