Blood of Dawnwalker Devs Rebalanced Time Mechanic Over Complaints

Rebel Wolves rebalanced The Blood of Dawnwalker's time restriction after fan feedback, says director Konrad Tomaszkiewicz. The mechanic was originally much stricter.

Ever felt like a game's timer was breathing down your neck? Well, The Blood of Dawnwalker's time mechanic almost made things way worse. According to director Konrad Tomaszkiewicz, the studio rebalanced it after fans voiced concerns that it was too challenging.

In an interview with Eurogamer, Tomaszkiewicz explained that the mechanic was far more strict during early development. "We had at first a more restricted time where it was harder to beat the game," he said. But after hearing feedback following the game's reveal, the team knew it could be a problem. "We rebalanced it this way to give the buffer for the people to not fear this."

The studio kept the opening mostly the same, but changed "the main game, besides the prologue" because they were afraid players would complain it was too restricted. So how much worse was the original? "Quite" a bit, according to Tomaszkiewicz. "You needed to think about everything even more carefully."

But the team didn't want to turn the mechanic into a mini-game. As Tomaszkiewicz put it, "We wanted to give the player the proper feeling and proper emotions in the main story." He added, "This is the purpose of the main story, not to create a challenge for it."

Even with the rebalance, the time restriction still stirs drama. The first and biggest mod for the game reworks it altogether, showing it's an uncomfortable feature for many. Tomaszkiewicz also mentioned that upcoming sequels might scrap it or change how it works.

With a new update coming next month, could we see more tweaks? Guess we'll have to wait and see. If you're curious about the game, check out our review. What do you think of time limits in RPGs? Let us know!