Dawnwalker studio Rebel Wolves says it won't chase trends in its RPGs

Darlings, every so often a debut studio steps into the spotlight and announces it has no interest in the trend parade. Rebel Wolves, the Warsaw team behind The Blood of Dawnwalker, did exactly that during a recent visit to its headquarters.

The studio’s stated creed is blunt: “We are rebels.” Its leaders say they want to make games they themselves want to play and enjoy, rather than follow whatever is fashionable. ¹

A studio representative said Rebel Wolves was founded to create an environment where the team could focus entirely on the project, without stock market pressure or tight deadlines. ¹

That independence has limits worth knowing. Rebel Wolves has outside backers, including minority stakeholder NetEase and The Blood of Dawnwalker publisher Bandai Namco, yet it remains an independent studio with full creative control over its games. ¹

The pedigree is no secret. Co-founder and CEO Konrad Tomaszkiewicz directed The Witcher 3, and other former CDPR developers work at the studio, so Witcher influences are plain to see. Still, the game carries its own identity, and a sequel is expected to expand it. ¹

What that philosophy looks like in practice is not yet clear. One possibility is The Blood of Dawnwalker’s somewhat controversial time limit mechanic, which could carry over. ¹ The reporter behind the original piece called the timed quests a clever way to add stakes and consequence to missions, while acknowledging that some players have felt FOMO. ¹

Our read: A studio vowing not to chase trends is easy to say and hard to prove, but Rebel Wolves has two things going for it: creative control and a veteran team with a clear point of view. The timed quests are the real test. Keeping a divisive idea because the team believes in it is exactly what a self-declared rebel should do, and I would rather see that than a sanded-down compromise.

Footnotes

1. GamesRadar, “The Blood of Dawnwalker devs want to make RPGs that “we ourselves want to play” and not chase trends”. Retrieved October 31, 2026. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶