Baldur's Gate 3's Dark Urge trades scheming for slaying in new Diablo-style ARPG

There aren’t many games where you can play as a little lizard dude. Baldur’s Gate 3 has the Dragonborn, and those of you who have recently returned to Larian’s previous hit Divinity: Original Sin 2 will know that a version of the popular DnD class exists in that universe, too. You’ve got The Elder Scrolls’ Argonians (of lusty maid fame), the Seraphon in Total War: Warhammer 3, and Dragon Khan‘s draconate. Not familiar with the latter? Let me show you a Diablo-style gameplay trailer that’s going to blow your fantasy socks off.

What I’m saying is, all the best fantasy games have some kind of reptilian representation. Whether part-dragon or part-dinosaur, a sapient, scaled soul is practically foundational to building a fun D&D-eqsue world. Sure, they might not fit into the grimdark medieval vibes of Elden Ring, but they’re the perfect creatures for any high fantasy romp.

Dragon Khan blesses those Dark Urge players who didn’t realize you could customize the character with another cold-blooded protagonist. As violent as Baldur’s Gate 3’s afflicted ally, you play as Botu, a draconate with the unusual ability to control elemental powers. Oh, and he has fully-fledged wings. That’s not normal in the world of Ithannar.

While it has the fantasy trapping of BG3 (or, more accurately, Dungeons and Dragons) nailed down, the gameplay is more reminiscent of action titles like Diablo. The quick combat and elemental attacks will surely lend themselves to finding the most broken builds, and punching enemies off cliff faces will never get old.

Developer Evolution Game Studio promises RPG mechanics amid all the action, and while the game doesn’t have a release date just yet, it does have a demo. If you want a slice of action-packed dragon-on-dragon action, then get stuck in to save your forest and topple the hierarchical government. Presumably you won’t get to that point in the demo, but overthrowing the scaled overlords seems like an important part of the plot.

The Dragon Khan demo is available now. You can download it on Steam here.

If you’ve ever wanted to swap skin for scales, or if you’re just after a fresh take on the Diablo formula that switches the morbidness of Sanctuary for lush rainforest vibes, Dragon Khan could be worth a spin. If nothing else, you can make draconic roaring noises as you play to keep yourself entertained.