I have been trying out the newly released RPG The Blood of Dawnwalker, and the lack of any kind of stealth in this game is an incredibly missed opportunity that would have added an excellent thematic gameplay mechanic. Instead, if it’s scripted not to do so, you will have to fight your way in or out of a situation every time.
While this is clearly a skill issue from my part, I find the combat incredibly awkward. This is mostly due to a spastic camera and the brutal action‑based combat, where you are supposed to block, dodge, and kill multiple opponents on a regular basis. And well, it’s just too hard for an old fella like me, yet I can play Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord without trouble using manual blocks. I’m not sure what is going on here, outside of having a difficult time focusing on what’s happening in a skirmish, visually. Anyhow…
Dungeon rescue massacre
So, an example of when the lack of a stealth system and the painful forced fighting intermix to create suffering for me is a mission fairly early in the game. The quest has you springing a poor sod from the dungeons of an outpost—and nicely enough, you can “roleplay” your way into the dungeon to see the prisoner. But then, the dungeon guard become pissed off for whatever reason, and you are forced to kill him. And guess what—with that action, you have angered the whole fortress, if you want to save the man, that is.
You can leave him there to rot and play nice with the guard. It’s a fine roleplaying choice, considering the fight is just too much, so you essentially have no other choice but to leave him there to his fate. Even if this probably comes after a reload, as you can’t know killing this isolated guard would trigger every soldier within a 200-meter radius, like they are connected by a powerful hive mind.
What about being a sneaky boy?
But here comes the option the devs didn’t think about at all—what about sneaking out? It’s a vampire game for crying out loud, with you playing as a fledgling vampire! Stealth is fundamental for a vampire and it especially makes sense that this novice would sneak, instead of drawing a sword at every opportunity he gets. The game even has a crouch button, where you move like you are sneaking, but apparently it does nothing.
It does not completely ruin the game, but from both a narrative perspective and gameplay, it’s an absolutely baffling decision. And sure, it would require extra development, but having just a rudimentary stealth system would have been a plus, as we got nothing now.
Oh well, nothing that can be done now, but it would probably have elevated The Blood of Dawnwalker to a classic, instead of frustrate and annoy me, because the story and world seems great. Until next time.
– Thomas