The Blood of Dawnwalker, the new game from Konrad Tomaszkiewicz, co-director of Wither 3 and Cyberpunk, was recently on the cover of Game Informer. Brian Shea saw the game’s early hours, but this was my chance to play it and make different choices.
My time with The Blood of Dawnwalker begins idyllically, with protagonist Coen and his family preparing supper atop a hill. But as the sun sets, that peace quickly fades when his sister, Kunka, runs off into the woods.
Coen goes after his sister, Kunka, and when he catches up, she reveals she’s been turned into a vampire before betraying Coen and turning him. At the end of the sequence, Coen is in a room, forced to watch the rest of his family be eaten by the same vampires who turned his sister.
Thankfully, it is revealed to be a dream, and Coen wakes up in a haze. Nothing has changed, and a sense of peace returns. He does, however, still live in a world where vampires rule as a threatening aspect of daily life. How much Coen values his family is clear, though. With his mother suffering from an illness, Coen took on responsibilities to ensure his family had all the help they needed while his dad took care of his mom.
I take control of Coen and, in hopes of treating his mom, make my way towards a woman named Anca to buy medicine. The world opens up for exploration, so I go into town. But I am limited in what I can do because the second I start a quest, a timer starts.
I choose to help my siblings fish and get food for the day. During this quest, I talk to them about our mother’s illness, the reality of living in a world with vampires, and how I, Coen, might not be around forever. The conversation endears me to my family.
I also decide the fate of a runaway pig trying to avoid being cooked and find a lost brother trapped in a cave with an eldritch monster that needs defeating. Combat moves fast and is comparable to Ubisoft’s For Honor. While swinging and blocking, you have the option to position your sword to best defend/attack. If you spam the same area, the NPC will quickly learn and block that direction. But if they block all your attacks, you can grab them to break their defensive stance and get the upper hand.
But time is running out, so I go to Anca’s to get the medicine. Annca gives instructions for the medicine, but I unfortunately forget the proper dose and give what I think is best – a catastrophic mistake. While at a vampiric mass with the family, the illness is noticed by the ruling vampires, and my mother is killed in front of everyone.
This prompts Coen’s father to lead a revolt. To prepare for the fight, the townspeople began mining silver. But the vampires catch wind of the plans and kill everyone in the mines. As blood is spilling, the vampire leader opts to turn me into a vampire. With no clue about what has happened to my family or the town, the only thing to do is run.
Which is when my hunger begins to kick in. I am forced to eat rats and other monsters in the mines, but the hunger only grows deeper. If it isn’t controlled, it will consume me, forcing Coen to eat whoever is in front of him, friends included.
After a tutorial detailing newfound vampiric powers, I am face-to-face with the vampire who had just turned me. We fight, but I am quickly beaten. As a final insult, Coen is impaled on a wall and left to die in the rising sun.
Surprisingly, I wake up in Anca’s house, my vampiric abilities gone. The village has been destroyed, and Anca reveals she is a witch and teaches me how to use magic to defend myself and speak with the dead. She also reveals that my family is alive, but will only remain so for the next 30 days. Coen is galvanized to save his family and cripple the vampiric empire, however he sees fit. But before I can start my rebellion, my time is up.
Despite playing the game for roughly three hours, I still missed out on so much content in the opening act. I’m excited to see how differently the story will play out for me at the game’s full release.
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