Next Generation Zombie Slicer.
A friend reminded me 1 day before it's release that "Dying Light" was coming out... I had to google it to refresh my memory on what it was again exactly. Oh right, makers of Dead Island making "yet another zombie game", but with parkour. I did like what I saw and heard from people who had hands-on so I decided to buy it, mostly also because I love co-op games. (you can play up to 4 people in co-op)
I went into this game with hardly any expectations from the combat, Dead Island was meh after all. But once I started playing I could hardly stop playing. The atmosphere, voice acting, combat but most of all the parkour in this game are excellent. If you can look past the somewhat dodgy mouth animations in cut-scenes, then this game is just gorgeous to look at.
I'm not gonna get into the story because it is, at least the main story, a rather short game. With a somewhat underwhelming ending (not the end itself, but the way you have to play it). If you just follow the main story, you are probably done within 4-6 hours of playing. However if you play this game like a proper open-world game, then you will have spend at least 20 hours before you get there. The shear amount of side-missions, rescue missions, mini-events and quarantine zones to explore are immense.
As I said, the game looks amazing, the models are "pretty" and combat animations are solid. The combat is sort of similar to Dead Island, but I find it much more satisfying. You can pick up any weapon and modify it to fit your own play style, if that's not enough there are talents that give you extra moves and environmental hazards to use against your enemies. You can slice of specific body parts, or just chop zombies in half, at least when you get better weapons. It is extremely satisfying.
The running, or parkour in this game is outstanding. If you are familiar with Mirror's Edge, then you will feel very familiar. You can pretty much jump on, hang on, slide under any object you want. That combined with some awesome talents to choose from to boost your performance makes you a running, zombie killing athlete. Also, there is a grappling hook. It, is, fantastic.
There is not much more to say, the atmosphere this game creates just sucks you into the world. The environment is very interactive, the sound effects very well done and the music really setting the mood. The zombies are easy to kill 1 on 1 but there are many different types and the way they can just jump out on you is intense. Especially at night. When the game goes dark, there is a new zombie type that is (in the start) impossible to kill and you have to run your ass off to get rid off. The first couple of times especially, night is super intense and one of the most amazing video game experiences I've ever had.
Anyone who remotely likes video-games should play this. It is in one word "fantastic". It feels truly next-gen.