Rebel Wolves’ debut action role-playing game is one of the most unique and ambitious games to come out in 2026. The team, which is led by The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt director Konrad Tomaszkiewicz, didn’t worry about biting off more than they could chew with their new vampire game, The Blood of Dawnwalker. Thrilling, rough around the edges, and full of fresh moments that show how special gaming can be, it’s one of the year’s best releases and your next gaming obsession.
What immediately sucks you into The Blood of Dawnwalker is how fully realized its fantasy world is. Set in an alternate-history 14th-century Europe, vampires (called vrakhiri) have taken control of the world following the plague. Featuring other unique creatures, including horned mountain folk and cave dwellers, it’s an interesting spin on the time period that allows the game to explore class systems, racism, and other major topics while also telling a character-first story at the same time. They’ve crafted a world with plenty more stories to tell, and it’s that attention to detail that makes this such a grand beginning point.
However, The Blood of Dawnwalker also brings a lot of great ideas to its gameplay systems as well. All of its combat is directional-based, meaning to attack the right side of an enemy, you’ll hold the analog stick to the right and so on. Blocking attacks goes the same way, so you can pull off perfect blocks if you pay attention and block in the correct direction. It’s a really satisfying way to make something as basic as swordplay feel rewarding and fresh.
Of course, you also get turned into a vampire hybrid, albeit one that can venture out during the day (thus dawnwalker), so there’s plenty of fun abilities that play on that as well. Sucking blood is important to boost your health, while you can also unleash damaging vampiric abilities while fighting as well. This goes beyond combat, as you can also use witchcraft to speak with the dead, walk on vertical surfaces by plane shifting, and unlock other cool skills as the game continues.
One of the most interesting elements is that there is an inherent 30-day structure to the story. That ticking deadline means that you’ll have to prioritize your build and what you want to really accomplish. Doing every side quest simply isn’t feasible, so choosing who to help out and who to ignore is key in managing your time. Every quest moves time forward, with nighttime bringing out your full vampire side (for example, if you’re low on blood, you can lose control during conversations). It’s a brilliant way to use a time limit and one of the coolest features in the game.
While there’s plenty of praise to be had for The Blood of Dawnwalker, it’s impossible not to mention the amount of jank in the game. While a frame rate patch is coming for consoles at launch, there’s still a lot of rough animations and odd moments of characters transporting or traversal being awkward sometimes. It’s more charming than annoying, a sign of a small team really trying to get the most out of their game, and it’s rarely distracting from key moments.
The Blood of Dawnwalker Review: Final Verdict
It’s easy to point out small flaws in The Blood of Dawnwalker, but it’s so interesting and flowing with unique ideas that it deserves to be experienced right away. A true passion project by a team wanting to iterate and innovate rather than just doing more of the same, Rebel Wolves has made a debut project they should be incredibly proud of. Any fan of vampires or action RPGs will want to pick this up.
SCORE: 9/10
As ComingSoon’s review policy explains, a score of 9.5 equates to “Excellent.” Entertainment that reaches this level is at the top of its type. The gold standard that every creator aims to reach.
Disclosure: The publisher provided a PlayStation 5 copy for our The Blood of Dawnwalker review.
