Warlock has the bones of a terrific Dungeons & Dragons RPG, it simply wants somewhat polish

Printed: September 9, 2026

Are you able to resist the attract of energy? Might you ignore the voice in your head, whispering candy nothings? It might probably provide the means to bend actuality to your will; to warp and twist forgotten magics into strange new types. But, with that energy comes an inherent darkness: an acknowledgement that you will have to interrupt some guidelines to get what you need. That is the eldritch drama that Warlock, Wizards of the Coast’s upcoming D&D-set RPG, duties you with exploring – and I watched Kaatri grapple with it in my hands-off Gamescom preview.

Warlock is the primary huge Dungeons and Dragons sport we have seen post-Baldur’s Gate 3. The brainchild of Invoke Studios, with assist from Wizards of the Coast, it seems to be very totally different from Larian’s CRPG epic. Buying and selling out the turn-based fight for extra action-heavy, RPG-style gameplay, you play as Kaatri, a newly pacted Warlock that is chosen the mysterious Tasha (of Tasha’s Hideous Laughter and Tasha’s Cauldron of The whole lot fame) as her patron. Or, maybe extra precisely, Tasha has chosen her.

Whereas the precise particulars of our grisly quest stay a thriller, Gamescom gave us our first deep dive into Warlock’s gameplay, with a concentrate on fight and traversal. What I noticed was a barely prolonged model of the Opening Evening Stay trailer, and whereas I feel a number of components want somewhat little bit of tuning up, I see the foundations of a strong Dungeons and Dragons expertise lurking beneath the floor.

Let me begin with the demo’s major focus: fight. One of many issues Baldur’s Gate 3 did so nicely was its translation of the TTRPG’s spells and cantrips into tangible, genuinely thrilling in-game skills. Provided that spells like Eldritch Blast and Misty Step are iconic in their very own proper, I used to be to see how Invoke reimagined them in its personal model. Would we see Larian’s iconic inexperienced lightning bolt once more? Or would the studio do one thing new?

I used to be pleasantly stunned by simply how readable every spell was, and by the truth that they are not simply straight copies of Larian’s. Misty Step is accompanied by an eerie violet mist and a few silver sparkles (given Warlock’s whole model is purple, this makes lots of sense), whereas Eldritch Blast is a wispy, spiraling beam of blue and black vitality which you can cost up for further harm. It is a refreshing, new tackle the spells we all know and love, and I am glad Invoke has taken the time to actually make them their very own. 

You may also use your spells and rituals to work together with the atmosphere. As she ventures out into the open world, Kaatri summons a Downpour that places out fires and drenches her enemies – and she or he does it through ritual solid, which pulls up a display screen the place she provides grisly spell elements to a ouija-esque board. She makes use of her telekinetic skills to raise up a lamp, utilizing the oil to burn away numerous picket packing containers which can be blocking her path, earlier than dousing stated flames with water. I am knowledgeable there are myriad different methods the participant may have approached that latter scenario, too: Tasha’s Leash may have come in useful right here, or a blast of Gust of Wind.

Whereas Warlock is a extra linear expertise than Baldur’s Gate 3, it is clear the crew has thought-about find out how to greatest encapsulate D&D’s sense of countless risk into its RPG. I doubt we’ll see the identical scope as BG3, the place the sky really was the restrict, however there’s nonetheless lots of flexibility right here.

Spells are only a single a part of Kaatri’s arsenal, nevertheless. Simply as with the tabletop sport, you possibly can take a extra melee method to fight, though Invoke warns that this in all probability is not one of the best route. On this demo, Kaatri is armed with a sword (I am not sure whether or not this can be a conjured weapon or a typical one), and you’ll improve your weapons and armor as you progress by means of the sport. 

It is all comparatively customary stuff right here; you possibly can hack away at your enemies if you happen to can rise up shut and private, after which interweave your spells to do harm from afar. As soon as once more there is a stage of flexibility to this, and I am excited to start out chaining my spells in with the melee fight for a satisfying fusion of magic and melee.

Alternatively, I do assume the fight seems to be somewhat tough. As I discussed, this demo was hands-off, so I did not actively play the sport myself. Whereas the spells and sword swooshes all look good, there is a lack of fluidity when Kaatri switches from sword to magic, and there are little pauses earlier than she dodges, the place it seems to be just like the animation takes a second to wind up. For the time being, it appears like there’s lots of useless time throughout fight sequences – the ultimate, ogre-esque boss is a transparent instance of that, with a big portion of the battle spent darting round and circling him versus precise thwacking.

It is price noting, although, that this sequence is a part of a gameplay demo; to essentially showcase Kaatri’s skills, Invoke could have intentionally taken a slower, demonstrative method to the fight, versus chaining off dozens of assaults whereas gamers look on, vaguely confused. Moreover, Warlock remains to be very a lot within the growth part, so there’s loads of time to tidy up these animations and streamline the move of battle.

I additionally received a sneak peek at Darkon, Warlock’s expansive open world setting. Invoke’s Vice President and Normal Supervisor, Dominic Guay, confirmed that, whereas Darkon is not a Forgotten Realms setting (it is a part of Ravenloft, WoTC’s beautiful gothic horror universe), Kaatri does the truth is hail from Faerûn – the land the place Baldur’s Gate 3 takes place. “She will get thrown into Darkon within the Domains of Dread,” he tells me, noting that Darkon has existed for a very long time, however is “a bit off a deep minimize and is much less identified. It is a bit of a candy spot for us, as a result of we had all the lore, however we weren’t essentially doing a world the place followers of [D&D] would have a bonus; the place they’d are available in and go ‘okay, I must go there, I do know all the pieces.'”

As somebody who does know her fair proportion of Ravenloft lore (what can I say, I am a vampire individual), I am genuinely excited by Invoke’s interpretation of Darkon. It is vaguely paying homage to the grit and dirt of the early Dragon Age video games, with the ruined village space reminding me somewhat little bit of the Darkspawn-ravaged Ferelden that we see in Origins.

I am to see simply how expansive Darkon is – it’s its personal area, just like that of the Forgotten Realms, however provided that Warlock is a extra linear story, I wish to see how Invoke chooses to utilize the setting and environments. You may decide up sidequests and wander away the overwhelmed path, and I am hopeful that Invoke embraces the pleasant, palate cleaning weirdness that D&D sidequests typically generate. In spite of everything, why do the principle storyline when you possibly can battle a random door that checked out you humorous?

With somewhat little bit of polish, I genuinely consider that Warlock may be one more nice installment within the D&D videogame saga. Invoke has picked the proper class, and crafted a world that has sufficient grit to really feel uniquely Ravenloft, with out falling into the lure of being generic. Furthermore, I am simply excited for one more excessive fantasy, narrative-driven, single-player RPG. I did not get on with Dragon Age: The Veilguard, and whereas The Blood of Dawnwalker could be very a lot my sort of sport, I wrestle to search out the time to plow hours and hours into new adventures. Warlock actually appears like it could lastly sate my fantasy woes, even when I am going to want to attend till 2027, and promote my soul to take action.