The former Witcher 3 director reveals The Blood of Dawnwalker’s protagonist lives a double life: human by day, vampire by night, with power waxing and waning accordingly. This unique mechanic is detailed below.
The Blood of Dawnwalker: A Novel Game Mechanic
Day and Night Abilities: A Former Witcher 3 Director's Vision
Konrad Tomaszkiewicz, former Witcher 3 director and founder of Rebel Wolves, the studio behind The Blood of Dawnwalker, unveils a fresh game mechanic drawing inspiration from pop culture but never before seen in video games. Several members of the Rebel Wolves team hail from the Witcher 3 development team.
In a PC Gamer interview, Tomaszkiewicz explains his desire to avoid the typical superhero power creep seen in Marvel films and similar media. “It’s hard to do those stories because you are just stronger and stronger and stronger,” he explains. “So I searched for an idea for the hero, which would be near the ground—or grounded—and needed to solve things in a different way. But, also, I wanted to give some kind of superhero element to the players.”
This led to the creation of a protagonist who embodies the true duality of a half-human, half-vampire existence. Coen, the protagonist, will experience the vulnerabilities of a human during the day, gaining supernatural abilities and enhanced power only at night.
“It’s somehow interesting, this duality of the hero, which we know from Doctor Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, for example. It’s something in pop culture that is well known and wasn’t explored yet in games,” Tomaszkiewicz shares. “It gives you a different layer to those non-realities, and I think it would be quite interesting because nobody yet has done that. And we will see how people will like it.”
This mechanic introduces both exciting opportunities and significant limitations. Nighttime combat, particularly against non-vampiric foes, promises to be far more advantageous. Conversely, daylight hours will demand more strategic thinking and problem-solving, relying on wit rather than vampiric powers.
Time as a Resource: Another Unique Mechanic
Daniel Sadowski, former design director of The Witcher 3, revealed in a January 16, 2025, PC Gamer interview that The Blood of Dawnwalker will also feature a “time-as-a-resource” mechanic.
This mechanic significantly restricts player agency, tying quest completion to a strict time system. “It will definitely force you to make choices at some points, like what to do, and what to ignore, because you will also have to choose which content you want to do, and which content you want to ignore, in order to maximise your chances of defeating the main enemy,” Sadowski shared. “But you will be able to choose between different ways to approach the problem, and that all ties into the narrative sandbox again.”
Players must carefully consider quest priorities, evaluating the potential impact on future missions and relationships. While restrictive, Sadowski believes that “knowing that the time you have is limited could really help crystallise what you're going to do, and why your version of the game's protagonist, Coen, is doing it.”
The interplay of these two mechanics ensures that every choice, and inaction, profoundly shapes the narrative, elevating the weight of every decision.
