It’s been a while since we’ve spoken about Nighthawks, the vampire RPG from the mind of Richard Cobbett. The narrative driven journey through a world where vampires are known in the wider world was successfully Kickstarted a couple of years ago, but most recently the Steam page went live ready for you to wishlist ahead of its 2021 release. But that’s not the only Nighthawks related shenanigans that have happened recently as the game was featured during The Escapist’s mega indie showcase this past weekend.

Having stayed up deep into the vampire hours, when I saw Richard talk the Escapist team through combat against a rat, I had to find out more. Could you, a mighty vampire, fall at the feet of a rat? The answer might surprise, hit the break to find out about that rat, and watch Nighthawks on the indie showcase.

I mentioned to Richard that I was secretly hoping The Escapist’s Nick Calandra would have fallen to the powerful (it is so very weak -Ed) and fearsome rat (it isn’t at all fearsome -Ed), and Richard came back to tell me that while you have to work hard at it, you can actually be beaten by the rat.

Haha. You *really* have to try to be beaten by the rat. It has literally 1HP, hits back with the least powerful attack in the game, and you get the first blow. I just liked the idea of parodying the classic RPG trope of fighting something you could beat with a good foot-stomp.

— Richard Cobbett (@richardcobbett) June 13, 2020

I had to know more, how many rats could you find yourself fighting in Nighthawks? What happens if it does kill you? I was already planning on doing a Q&A with Richard, but after learning more, I hastily reviewed my questions and asked straight up, what happens if you fall at the feet of the rat?

There is exactly one point in the game where you fight a rat in a sewer, and it’s definitely one of those ‘things I’ve always wanted to see’ moments. It’s a small, angry rat. You’re a vampire. The fight goes about as well for the rat as you’d expect. It has one single solitary hitpoint, it attacks with the lowest damage attack in the game, and you have the first turn. If you lose, there’s a special secret death where your character is so ashamed that they leave the city entirely to contemplate their failure.

There you have it, in the world of Nighthawks there is a special ending if you allow a rat to kill you. I certainly know what I’ll be doing when I get my hands on Nighthawks, it’s a temptation that I just can’t resist.

The full walkthrough and interview that Richard did with the team at The Escapist is well worth checking out in the video above (from 08:14 onwards), but the best news is that we’ll have a massive two-part Q&A with Richard all about Nighthawks (there are no more rat questions coming, honest) and his vampiric influences coming soon.

In the meantime, you can wishlist Nighthawks on Steam or check it out on GOG.com.