From Academia to RPG Master: Jakub Kuba Szamalek’s Next Dark Adventure
On September 3, 2026, Rebel Wolves Studio will unleash The Blood of Dawnwalker into the world, which promises to deliver havoc and death, adventure and heroism. In the world of role-play gaming (RPG), The Blood of Dawnwalker, already a subject of much online buzz and acclaim, is among the most anticipated releases this year.
For novelist and video game writer, Gates Cambridge Scholar Jakub Kuba Szamalek (Clare 2009), Dawnwalker marks the first release from Rebel Wolves, the company he co-founded and co-owns. And it is also another chance for Szamalek to bring his deeply studied scholarship into a storytelling realm he never expected to enter. Szamalek pivoted into inventing worlds, beasts, and their quests, after studying for his PhD in classical archeology at Cambridge as a Gates Cambridge Scholar. The Polish immigrant veered off his path to becoming a career academic after a kind of epiphany.
“I was sitting in the library, just paging musty volumes, and suddenly realized I just don’t have it in me to spend my life as an academic. It was kind of scary because I was half-way through the PhD program,” said Szamalek, who completed his degree before he made a seismic change in direction, first writing fiction, publishing a novel, and then becoming a video game writer.
“I sometimes joke with my friends that I might be the most overqualified person in the industry because you certainly do not need a PhD from one of the best academic institutions in the world, but it does come in handy,” said Szamalek. “I know how to write and how to structure my arguments. And you can't put a price tag on that. It's extremely helpful no matter where you end up.” He has also brought his passions for ancient Greece and for connecting the work of Eastern European archeologists to Western culture into his game and fiction writing.
His first foray as a novelist was an award-winning series of crime stories set in ancient Greece. But he wanted a more consistent income. That’s when he joined CD Projekt RED, a Polish studio producing video games. He dove into the new world of interactive stories. His first game, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, was an astounding hit. According to industry experts, it sold more than 65 million copies, won over 200 Game of the Year awards and is considered one of the most successful and acclaimed video games in history.
Jakub Szamalek and Maria Pawlowska
Szamalek; his wife Maria Pawlowska (Clare 2007), also a Gates Cambridge scholar; and their child moved to Wolfville, Nova Scotia in 2021. They chose the location because of its coastal beauty but fell in love with the sense of community.
“The Canadians are very kind; they have been fantastic. We came to Wolfville because we really liked the place. But the reason we stayed there is the people that we met. I am in awe of the kindness, respect, and openness to us as immigrants,” said Szamalek.
Last July, Szamalek published his first novel in English, Inner Space, to critical success.
Now, as his new company is preparing to launch Dawnwalker, he already has plans for his next novel. Looking back to that moment at the library when he knew he needed a course correction, Szamalek doesn’t regret any of the steps he’s taken to get where he is today.
“The time that I had in Cambridge to hone my mind and explore intellectually is priceless. Part of my work as a video game writer is world building. The archeology and anthropology I studied at Cambridge have been instrumental to my process and part of why I've been so successful. Understanding how cultures develop helps me imagine new worlds.”
How to get heard in an increasingly noisy world
Three Gates Cambridge Scholars discuss their innovative solutions in the second episode of So, now what? podcast. Jakub Szamalek (Clare 2009), Ragnhild Freng Dale (Hughes Hall 2013) and Cansu Karabiyik (Pembroke 2016) discuss the different ways they have innovated, through video games, theatre and stand-up comedy.
So, now what?, a podcast from Gates Cambridge, features conversations with members of this cadre of outstanding international Cambridge postgraduates, the big thinkers from a range of different backgrounds and disciplines out there finding solutions to some of the world’s most challenging problems, from the global economy and the environment to technology, politics and universal healthcare.