Dying Light

Disclaimer: My review was posted elsewhere but I really enjoyed this game, not perfect but it truly does enhance the experience of an already very solid game and adds some interesting if not necessary components.

Dying Light was a bit of a surprise to many. We all knew it was coming, but weren't sure if Techland had learned lessons gone by or if the slight jank present inDead Island would rear it's ugly head, and the novelty would wear off with the team's new effort. Most, including myself were not only pleasantly surprised byDying Light but enamored with the game's solid movement and combat, incredible visual fidelity, and overall top-notch execution. Techland could've easily resorted to a "more of the same" approach with their next add-on, The Following, but instead Techland has done right by players. They've put together an incredible expansion to an already great game, expanding on the core concept in ways that seemed far flung or a bit out there, but all pay off in great ways.

Dying Light saw the light of day January of 2015, so fitting it might be that the huge expansion of The Following and simultaneous release of the Enhanced Edition come roughly one year after the game took January by storm and turned a lot of heads. The Following is but a part of the larger enhancements made to the game, but serves as a great introduction to the enhancements made to the base game.

We find our hero Kyle Crane up to his old hijinks of saving people and making life in Harran bearable. Upon running low on Antizen, the drug citizens use to stay not dead and not undead, he begins following a lead that there's life beyond the city, and in open, sprawling areas. Shortly thereafter Crane emerges outside the city and this is when the player gets the first real sense that this expansion is sizable and quite a bit lies before the player to roam and explore. The first glimpse of the new play space is pretty impressive, showcasing some tall mountains, open fields, and beaches for Crane to run, hop, and dropkick his way across.

After running around the world to your first quest marker, it becomes clear that things are...off. The citizens don't get sick and don't turn like those in the city. There are still plenty of infected to take out, from the basic through to the special spitters and tank-like brutes. You run into a camp on a farm with new friends Jasir and crew, who need your help. As is par for the course to move the story forward Crane is tasked with finding things, exploring areas, retrieving keepsakes and the like in order to win favor with the locals. This favor earns Crane trust and respect among them and the religious and titular "Following". As Crane needs to gain their favor in order to get whatever it is they have that makes them immune to the infection, we are somewhat tied into this weird cult and go along with it.

The story itself doesn't take too many risks, and the weird notions or twists you might expect, and probably will, show up throughout the journey and make for a somewhat interesting, albeit fairly safe story. The characters are interesting, and perhaps more fascinating are the stories told throughout the side missions. These are people that have humanity written into them, some with less than others. One moment that sticks out in particular takes place in a warehouse where some kids essentially trick Crane into fighting a brute in close quarters. At first you think you're helping the kids, but then realize you're trapped and the kids were trying to stay amused. The mission wasn't necessarily impactful, didn't change much, but overall left an impression. The memory of thinking I was helping them, when I had to help myself then chase down the little jerks. They made their escape after I dealt with the brute and were never seen again. Would they continue their weird gladiator sport somewhere else? As long as it isn't with my little Kyle I didn't care.

Throughout the adventure you're also granted a not-so-shiny buggy. At first glance I was personally not seeing the connection, or how the buggy, and namely driving would figure in to Dying Light at all. That all changed upon firing up the engine and getting rolling over the hills and through hordes of zombies, all the while earning driver XP which would allow me to make better parts and mow through those hordes all the quicker. Driving on the road at a good speed gains XP, hitting zombies gains XP, and similar to the base game's way of progression, nearly everything you do makes you progress a bit. Dying Light nailed the idea that practice makes perfect, or at least makes you better by progressing, and it's carried through in the Buggy as well as Legend branches. Legend branch is essentially a way for you to start the new content with a new character, but a version that has all the abilities from the base game unlocked. It's a nice touch that might make parts of the game a little easier as you've got the option for perks like no stamina loss when swinging melee weapons or sprinting and the like.

The team at Techland didn't just put in a little bit of a new story, add in a buggy and call it good though, they've put in a ton of work to just make the entirety of the game more enjoyable. Small things like the admittedly sparing use of firearms get more variety, also noticeable is more variety in about every weapon you pick up, as well as greater facial detail and overall an extremely crisp, good looking game. Dying Light is one of those games where you walk around at night with the flashlight on because you need to, but every once in a while turning it off gives way to some incredible lighting and some of the darkest, and creepiest nights portrayed in games to date.

Pros

+ Incredible amount of enhancements and additions

+ The Buggy handles well, feels good, and can be upgraded thoroughly

+ New variation in weapons, skills, and progression feels like a great addition to an already good game

Cons

- Parkour can still be clunky at times with random falls or sliding down rock faces

- Inventory space restrictions get a little annoying if not managed well

The Bottom Line

Dying Light on its own was a great game - now with the Enhanced Edition, more story, more to do, and more guts to splatter - it takes an already great thing and makes it even better. There's tens of hours to be had exploring, completing side quests, and just breaking bones and slashing zombies, and that's what makes this one the definitive version - all the right additions, nothing really holding it back. Dying Light: The Following and the Enhanced Edition will go down as not just a zombie game done extraordinarily well, but a complete experience that is a love letter to players in a time when it seems ok to be happy with less than great.