2025's only DnD game is playable soon, and it's a new look for the franchise

I'm a DnD guy. Most guys are these days, it seems. Whether I'm playing my Grung Rogue or Fae Bard, I like to really get into the roleplaying aspect. It's not surprise then, that most DnD games appear in the form of RPGs. From Baldur's Gate 3 to Neverwinter Nights, it's RPGs all the way down. There are a couple of exceptions, but they prove the rule. That's why I'm glad that Demeo Dungeons and Dragons Battlemarked is trying something different, approaching the iconic setting with a focus on deft strategy.

Demeo Dungeons and Dragons Battlemarked (henceforth called Battlemarked because I'm already fed up of typing out all three names for this game) is a crossover with, you guessed it, Demeo. A hit turn-based strategy game, Demeo has 88% positive feedback on Steam, so fantasy fans are excited to see what developer Resolution Games does with the DnD license.

Battlemarked keeps the turn-based strategy of Demeo, but transplants it into the Forgotten Realms. With co-operative multiplayer, exploring the Neverwinter Wood with a friend could be the best way to experience DnD combat without rolling a physical die.

If you're not sure whether this sounds like your kind of thing, or if you'd prefer a heavier focus on the roleplaying side of things, Battlemarked will have a demo featuring two missions during Steam Next Fest. You'll be able to choose from four characters to face this goblin ambush - a dragonborn paladin, halfling sorcerer, human ranger, or tiefling rogue - with another two characters (a dwarf fighter and an elf bard) arriving at launch. Three guesses who will be the most popular character, but I'm picking the halfling until the dwarf arrives.

Damon Baker, VP of digital licensing for Wizards of the Coast, says the game is "taking the world's greatest role-playing game in exciting new directions," in a press release. With said new direction focusing on strategy, I'm excited to see how Resolution tackles the Dungeons and Dragons experience from a more tactical perspective.

Demeo Dungeons and Dragons Battlemarked will release on Thursday, November 20. Its Steam Next Fest demo will be available from Monday October 13, to Monday October 20. You can wishlist it on Steam here.

If you want to play something similar before then, check out the best fantasy games. It's never a bad time to upgrade to the best gaming monitor, either.

What class will you be picking in the Battlemarked demo? Let us know in our community Discord server, where readers and staff promise not to judge you for choosing the tiefling. You could be more original, though.