During Gamescom 2026, we had the opportunity to learn more about Wardens of Avalon, an action RPG that combines Arthurian mythology with exploration, survival, combat and settlement building. We spoke with Romain Taupin, Producer at Runes Studio, who shared more about the world of Avalon, the role of the Warden, the tactical combat system, character progression, exploration, player feedback and what players can expect from the upcoming playtest.
Could you introduce Wardens of Avalon to our readers and explain what makes the game stand out from other games in the genre?
Romain Taupin, Runes Studio:
Wardens of Avalon is an action RPG inspired by the Arthurian myth. It blends together base-building, exploration, survival and combat in a loop where every action you take will help you along the next step of your adventure. It’s this blend that makes Wardens unique: rebuilding your fiefdom gives you new crafts, which makes exploration and combat easier up to the next boss, and by then you’ll have enough resources to upgrade your fiefdom again! I’m simplifying a bit of course, there’s a lot to do in the game.
The game combines tactical gameplay with a strong fantasy setting. What were the main inspirations behind the world and its design?
Romain Taupin, Runes Studio:
The main inspirations are works of Dark Fantasy, but it’s a lot more than that. The Environment and Level Design teams’ research mixed inspiration from real world places like French and German castles, celtic cliffs and the forest of Brocéliande, but also from series, movies, games and comics – a lot of it deeply rooted in celtic culture. Some of it is anachronistic, but it looks good. Our artists and designers did an amazing job at hunting down the right references and transforming them into a world that is beautiful yet grim. It’s hard to instill moments of wonder between scenes of violence and I’m still in awe of their work every time I start the game.
Can you tell us more about the player’s role in the world of Avalon and what it means to become a Warden?
Romain Taupin, Runes Studio:
Sure! So when you arrive, you have no idea what’s up and everything looking pretty bad. The survivors eagerly recruit you and you start helping with what they’ve given up on: understanding why Avalon is corrupted, what you can do about it… and then do it! Gameplay wise, being a Warden means you need to rebuild the survivors’ fortified town, and fight back the forces of corruption that would destroy it again.
How does the tactical combat system work, and what kind of strategic choices do you want players to make during battles?
Romain Taupin, Runes Studio:
Every move you make in Wardens has to be a choice, because you don’t want to end up out of breath when a knight is swinging a humongous mace at your face. So Stamina is important, it’s what allows you to fight, dodge and block.
Then, how you fight will impact how much Sacred Light you have. You need that to cast Spells, which are very powerful tools in a fight: you can inflict damage of course, or stun enemies, or heal yourself and your friends, and even reposition. Sacred Light is also tied to your knightly Oath, which gives you a very powerful ability if you have the right moves.
Finally, you need to keep an eye on Corruption, especially at night. If your Corruption maxes out, you start losing health over time, faster and faster. But you also get more and more damage! At that point you need to figure out how greedy you are: do you want to do everything to mitigate the effects of Corruption to survive, or really lean into it and absolutely wreck your enemies? There’s gear and potions for both gameplay styles, but one is more dangerous!
How important are character progression and customization? Will players be able to develop their characters in significantly different ways?
Romain Taupin, Runes Studio:
So in Wardens of Avalon, your progression IS your gear. There’s no skill tree, no perks, no experience. Craft a better weapon: you now deal more damage and you’ve unlocked its skill. If you find a helmet on a boss you just killed, it’s probably powerful, but it can be made even stronger in your fiefdom: refine it, give it an enchantment (we call them Seals), find the right combo with other pieces of gear, and build your own playstyle. What I really like is also that almost every piece of gear that you see on enemies can be looted or crafted for yourself.
The name Avalon immediately brings to mind Arthurian legends. How much does the game draw from those legends, and how much of the world is your own interpretation?
Romain Taupin, Runes Studio:
The game happens after the legends end. Lorewise, we kept most of the original stories, rewrote a few things with a contemporary eye, and then wrote what the next chapter would be, for us. We drew on the original texts as well as contemporary rewritings, comment and analysis. And that drove what the key themes of the story are. One essential thing we did was to give more credit and presence to Morgan Pendragon. She’s the character that will guide your journey in Avalon.
How does exploration fit into the overall experience? Will players be encouraged to explore the world beyond the main story?
Romain Taupin, Runes Studio:
Exploration is essential. You’re guided a bit at the start, to get you started on how the game works, and during the first hours you’re taught to go out and find what you need by yourself. Key resources are scattered throughout the world: what’s the logic behind it? That’s for you to find out. Key items are kept safe deep in a dungeon or high in a ruined tower, for you to find if you want to get that new building that you really want. Maybe try following that side path over there and you’ll find a quest waiting for you. The world is not so huge that those players who can’t help but look under every single rock will get exhausted, but big enough to keep you wandering for hours and hours.
Will player choices have an impact on the story, characters, or the world of Avalon?
Romain Taupin, Runes Studio:
Wardens has a linear story. There’s one beginning and one end, and you can choose to do every single quest or to focus on the main story. And yes, you do have an impact on Avalon: every time you improve your fiefdom, you can rebuild part of the town, and put your own buildings in there.
What has been the biggest challenge for the team during the development of Wardens of Avalon so far?
Romain Taupin, Runes Studio:
Ourselves? I’m joking but yeah, I think our biggest challenge has been to really nail down the gameplay loop. The game one year ago absolutely did not look like what we have now and honestly, the gameplay was a bit messy. We sat down with everyone, our teams and the publisher’s teams, and some really good external reviewers, and we scrapped a LOT of content and ideas to focus on what really made sense. It was painful but necessary, and when I think back on it now I think we really took the best decisions we could. Our gameplay loop plays very well and makes you feel like a knight getting their hands dirty.
What have you learned from player feedback during development, and has any feedback significantly changed the game?
Romain Taupin, Runes Studio:
Oh yeah. Player feedback was at the core of many decisions: we scrapped durability, we changed how you place buildings, how you manage villagers… We improved the early game a lot, especially after looking at streamers wandering aimlessly, coming ten pixels away from the most important glowing portal that they just wouldn’t see or interact with. And we asked for a lot of feedback on combat, which helped tremendously.
You have a playtest planned for September. What are you hoping to learn from players during this playtest?
Romain Taupin, Runes Studio:
The playtest is in October! We’ll be looking at how players understand the early game now that we made some much needed improvements. We’re curious about their opinion on combat after our last tweaks (maybe it’s a little more than tweaks actually), and there are a few surprises in there that we can’t wait to see people interacting with.
Are there any features or aspects of the game that you haven’t shown yet that you are particularly excited for players to discover?
Romain Taupin, Runes Studio:
Yes! I don’t want to spoil anything but there’s a lot: items, buildings, enemies, bosses… Some of it is in the playtest, but most of it will only be available on release.
What kind of experience do you ultimately want players to have when they finish Wardens of Avalon?
Romain Taupin, Runes Studio:
That’s an interesting question. I would say, we want players to feel like they accomplished something. We want them to be proud of their town; we want them to feel like their gear is definitely the best gear ever, no discussion; and we want them to pause and think, “hey, did I really explore that one place or did I miss something?”
Finally, what would you say to players who are discovering Wardens of Avalon for the first time and are considering adding it to their wishlist?
Romain Taupin, Runes Studio:
Get your friends on board, rebuild your town together, equip yourselves, smash the corrupted hordes together, and try that boss again, this time you’ll get it. Or do it alone! That works too. It’s not easy being a Warden, but I promise you, it is rewarding. For the night shall never fall!
