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Printed: July 15, 2026
The Blood of Dawnwalker made an surprising assertion at Summer time Recreation Fest by exhibiting what gave the impression to be a modern-day tackle its bloodthirsty protagonist, Coen. A far cry from the medieval setting of the upcoming RPG, it was as a substitute a glimpse of plans to come back. Within the studio’s latest teaser, Insurgent Wolves Narrative Director Jakub Szamałek describes The Blood of Dawnwalker as “the primary installment in what we hope will turn into an epic sequence,” one “the place you will note the world change” throughout dramatic time jumps. As its preliminary act nears, that daring ambition is without delay thrilling and terrifying.
I do not want any extra convincing to play The Blood of Dawnwalker; I used to be already all however offered from the preliminary pitch, and getting a number of hours of hands-on time solely additional cemented the vampire recreation’s spot atop my wishlist. Considered one of its nice strengths is in that 14th-century setting of Vale Sangora, which is itself a nebulous approximation of Slavic and Balkan influences positioned loosely among the many Carpathian Mountains. Throughout my time on the preview, Recreation Director Konrad Tomaszkiewicz and Surroundings Artist Adam Payet defined the foundations of that location to me, together with hinting in the direction of its future.
Payet tells me the staff wished to drag from a spread of nations to “combine it up somewhat bit,” leading to one thing that felt acquainted however authentic. “It has a really sturdy sense of place that you just take a look at and also you instantly know the place you’re geographically,” he remarks, “nevertheless it’s not precisely particular to ‘Oh I do know that that is this specific village.'” I used to be instantly taken by Vale Sangora, and the tantalizingly quick period of time I bought to spend there has left me craving the liberty to discover it in full.
For the long run, nonetheless, the plan is to depart the acquainted behind. As a substitute of merely persevering with Coen’s story into the subsequent yr, or the subsequent decade, Insurgent Wolves says his story can be one “spanning centuries and carrying him into numerous corners of the world, far past Vale Sangora.” Szamałek elaborates in a brand new developer diary: “With every recreation within the sequence we need to push the time ahead, take you to totally different locations, and discover totally different timelines. We would like you to see Coen altering as he positive factors expertise, as he ages, as he learns extra in regards to the hidden truths of the world.”
Once I requested Tomaskiewicz in regards to the post-launch plans for The Blood of Dawnwalker, he instructed me the present focus was on sharpening the present recreation and fixing any lingering bugs (the staff confirmed simply right now that it had ‘gone gold,’ that means the launch construct is prepared for manufacturing and distribution). Past that, the specifics of what comes subsequent are up within the air. “After we determine, we are going to discuss overtly about what we are going to do,” he teases, “however for certain we’ve the sequels in our minds, we all know what it is going to be about. Now we have this complete story arc for the saga – we have now proven the conclusion within the current occasions at Summer time Recreation Fest.”
There’s an apparent parallel right here – the early years of Murderer’s Creed. Again in these preliminary years, our time with Altaïr, Ezio, and Connor was all a part of an overarching promise: the gradual development of their shared modern-day ancestor, Desmond Miles. Like many followers, I all the time held out hope that the time-hopping sequence would find yourself within the modern-day, the place Desmond would convey the abilities he had inherited into an unfamiliar setting. What we bought was a far cry from that, and Ubisoft is now going so far as to strip its modern-day interludes out of latest remake, Black Flag Resynced.
The vampire mythos is an ideal match for the period and setting that The Blood of Dawnwalker begins in, and I do not suppose anybody would blame Insurgent Wolves for sticking to that interval for its successors. The method it is taking as a substitute is a dangerous one, filled with potential pitfalls in the whole lot from recreation design to viewers response. How do you convey its slick melee fight right into a extra fashionable setting, similar to one the place weapons exist? Does it have to alter gameplay model at a elementary stage because of this? Even for those who pull that shift off, will gamers that loved the unique need to come on that journey with you?
That is why, as somebody so smitten with what we have seen of The Blood of Dawnwalker thus far, I discover myself without delay intrigued and apprehensive about what the long run may maintain. Regardless of this, I all the time keep that one of the best video games are people who builders really need to make. If leaping boldly ahead within the timeline is what Insurgent Wolves has its coronary heart set on, I am keen to belief within the course of and discover out what awaits us.
