Dying Light is a first person parkour-driven survival horror zombie game...

And it feels satisfying to chop those mobs in two. In this game you play as Kyle Crane, a soldier-turned mercenary hired by the Global Relief Effort on a mission to the infected fictional city of Harran. A terrible virus has broken out, and turned many civilians into violent flesh-eating zombies. As such, the city was cordoned off from the world and occasional supply drops are sent to aid suvivors in the city. However, there are rebel factions and an evil leader with a file containing a highly toxic incomplete cure for the virus - threatening to leak this to the world. You must stop this from happening and survive long enough in this tough environment to do so. Gather materials to craft strong weapons, and gain xp from kills to improve your skills and abilities. Embrace a rocky adventure and be immersed in the cool world the developers have created. Did I mention there's plenty of parkour to get you going?

Gameplay

The gameplay can range from relaxing to exhilarating, creeping through the streets, looting buildings, taking out zombies feels quite realistic for an apocalyptic scenario. Weapon durability provides an incentive to upgrade weapons, maximising their usefulness. Weapons can be upgraded to do fire or electric damage; guns can even be used but they attract plenty of attention. The game also has its wacky side, with some odd side quests and regular events where you can have super strength and send zombies flying over the whole nine yards. What is admirable is that the game was supported for 7 years after release and there were frequent community events throughout. There is lots of to explore, and you can take others along in co-op mode. There is a lot of DLC content, including The Following expansion which adds buggies and a new map. Where there is great danger comes greater rewards - should you venture out at night you will gain more xp than usual, but zombies will become faster and more aggressive. And should you ever come face to face with a volatile... let out your final scream.

Audio Visual

I really dig the vibe of this game, the layout of the city, buildings, and structures means there are plenty of options to do parkour, and without the people it felt like a husk of a place. I was reading that Harran is a fictional Middle-Eastern city ispired by Istanbul and Mumbai which is cool. The soundtrack is electronic and vocal at parts, sometimes it sounds uneasy or menacing which is thematic. The slashing of blades, splattering of guts and limbs, and the guttural roars of the zombies are great. There are some of visual effects and sounds of the world which create a special ambience for this dying place. There is a lot of dialogue which is engaging for the player, also some empowering and disheartening moments in the story that are memorable. The map is quite simplistic, so getting to locations is easier than getting lost. I find the graphics to be good, with lots of play with lighting in different areas, but some zombie animations look glitchy and not perfect as they occasionally clip through objects.

Pros

• Addictive gameplay
• Captivating story
• Lots of weapon + character upgrades

Cons

• Zombies can be obstructive
• Weapons break easily
• Plot and characters cliche to some

Conclusion

Dying Light is an excellent and enjoyable survival game. Despite my police rifle and head-slicing khopesh I was still afraid to go out at night. I score it 9/10.

Information

• Release date: 2015
• Developer: Techland
• Platforms: PC, Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo Switch