The Blood of Dawnwalker can be rushed in minutes, but players would miss most of its story

The Blood of Dawnwalker will let players head straight for the main objective almost immediately, in a structure that sounds similar to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Developer Rebel Wolves says players can technically storm the antagonist’s castle and attempt to rescue Coen’s family right away, but doing so would mean skipping most of the game’s quests, world building, and character driven content.

The upcoming third person action RPG is scheduled to launch on September 3 for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series S and X. Rebel Wolves is made up of several developers who previously worked on The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, and the studio is building The Blood of Dawnwalker around a darker fantasy setting with a strong focus on player choice.

Coen’s vampire hunger is designed to shape the story, not just combat

The game follows Coen, a rare vampire known as a Dawnwalker. Unlike most vampires, he can walk in sunlight after being turned, but that power comes with a serious cost. Players must manage his hunger, because losing control can cause him to drain even friendly NPCs. That system is meant to make the vampire side feel dangerous rather than purely empowering.

Creative Director Mateusz Tomaszkiewicz said Rebel Wolves wanted vampirism to feel like something the player must constantly deal with. If hunger is ignored, players may cut off quests, kill characters they care about, or change the shape of Coen’s journey. The idea is to make choices feel heavier, especially when deciding whether Coen should stay close to his human side or give in more deeply to vampire corruption.

The studio is also avoiding a strict split between main quests and side quests. Instead, The Blood of Dawnwalker uses what Rebel Wolves calls a narrative sandbox structure. Players receive a main goal, but the world contains many connected quests and activities that can branch, chain together, or be missed depending on decisions and timing.

The ability to finish the game quickly gives players freedom, but Rebel Wolves clearly expects most people to take the longer route. Exploring the world, completing quests, and unlocking more options should make Coen’s mission easier and more meaningful. Rushing to the end may be possible, but it sounds more like a challenge run than the intended first experience.

That design could help The Blood of Dawnwalker stand apart from other fantasy RPGs. Many games promise choice, but fewer allow players to skip large parts of the story or permanently affect characters through systems such as hunger. If Rebel Wolves can make those consequences feel fair, the game could offer strong replay value.

For now, the key message is that The Blood of Dawnwalker is not only about reaching the ending. It is about how much of Coen’s world players choose to see before they face it.