"New RPG Combines Witcher and Persona Elements"

Summary

• Former CDPR devs at Rebel Wolves unveiled their debut game, The Blood of Dawnwalker, with a cinematic reveal trailer.
• The Blood of Dawnwalker echoes The Witcher with its open-world RPG format, dark fantasy setting, morally gray choices, and an outcast protagonist.
• The game also incorporates Persona-like time management mechanics.

The Blood of Dawnwalker has finally debuted its much-anticipated reveal trailer, blending pre-rendered visuals with brief gameplay snippets. The promotional video highlights the game's similarities to The Witcher while introducing new elements inspired by Persona.

Developed by Rebel Wolves, a Polish studio founded by former CD Projekt Red developers who contributed to The Witcher series and Cyberpunk 2077, The Blood of Dawnwalker was first announced as Dawnwalker in January 2024. Initially described as a narrative-driven open-world RPG set in a dark fantasy world, the game has now been fully unveiled.

On January 13, exactly one year after its initial announcement, Rebel Wolves and publisher Bandai Namco hosted a reveal stream for The Blood of Dawnwalker. The event culminated in a cinematic trailer lasting over four and a half minutes, which introduced the game's setting and the titular Dawnwalkers—powerful beings akin to vampires in the game's lore. The trailer also introduced Coen, the protagonist who becomes a Dawnwalker at the game's outset.

The Blood of Dawnwalker Reveal Trailer Is Reminiscent of The Witcher

With its dark fantasy atmosphere, monstrous creatures, and open-world RPG mechanics featuring morally gray choices, The Blood of Dawnwalker strongly evokes The Witcher. The game's tagline, "the world needs what it fears," further reinforces these parallels. Fans of The Witcher 3's Blood and Wine expansion, with its vampires and challenging decisions, will likely find The Blood of Dawnwalker intriguing. The game's morality system allows Coen to choose between embracing his Dawnwalker nature to save his family or maintaining his humanity.

The Blood of Dawnwalker Also Takes a Page From Persona's Book

While reminiscent of The Witcher, The Blood of Dawnwalker introduces innovative elements, including Persona-like time management mechanics. Every quest in the game consumes time, and players must decide how to allocate it. "There are multiple approaches to saving Coen’s family with no clear division between main and side quests; you decide on how you spend the time," explained Rebel Wolves co-founder and game director Konrad Tomaszkiewicz. This design encourages replayability, as completing all quests and story arcs in one playthrough is impossible. Rebel Wolves describes this approach as a "narrative sandbox."

The Blood of Dawnwalker is currently in development for PC and current-gen PlayStation and Xbox consoles. Envisioned as the first installment in a trilogy, it will be published by Bandai Namco. Although no specific release date has been set, given its 2022 start and triple-A budget, a launch before 2027 seems unlikely. Rebel Wolves plans to showcase the game's gameplay in summer 2025.