Dying Light was great, but with the sequel studio „made some missteps.” Techland frankly about Dying Light 2

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The initial release of Dying Light took the industry by surprise, but Techland acknowledges that in developing the second installation, they might have taken a few wrong steps.

Although the Dying Light series isn’t frequently cited as a top contender for “best video game,” it remains a notable and respected one in the zombie genre. However, there were certain challenges, particularly with some expansions of Stay Human.

Tymon Smektala, who oversees franchise development, openly stated during an interview with GamesRadar that it came as a surprise to everyone at Techland when they managed to create such an exceptional game upon the release of the initial installment. He’s not shy about admitting that this project wasn’t the most expensive or top-tier AAA game, but he is clearly proud of what was accomplished in the first edition of Dying Light.

Quality of DL2, DNA of DL1

It’s no surprise that with such unexpected success, a follow-up was inevitable. However, Smetkala acknowledges that while DL2 enjoyed commercial success, the studio might have erred in making the sequel too appealing to a wider audience, potentially diluting some of the original’s essence. Consequently, this high-budget project fell short of expectations for fans of the initial installment.

As a gamer, I’ve been growing weary of the recent trend of games marketed as “for everyone.” Just like Johan Pilestedt from Arrowhead Studio pointed out, some of us are tired of games that seem to be churned out based on popular trends, essentially safe investments aimed at replicating successful titles. Unfortunately, these games fail to ignite the same passion they initially intended.

The reasoning behind this is that the upcoming Dying Light aims to go back to its core elements, emphasizing on refining aspects cherished by fans. However, this doesn’t imply a decrease in production quality. Instead, The Beast will maintain the original game’s characteristics while still meeting Triple-A standards.

We aim to achieve two things simultaneously: maintaining the exceptional quality that our games are known for, while also demonstrating that our creativity and passion (our “mojo”) remains strong. We want players to recognize the essence of Dying Light in this new game, so much so that they say, “Wow, this feels like Dying Light 1, and it looks incredibly polished, a truly amazing game.” If we can achieve this, I believe we will be extremely satisfied.

On August 22, Dying Light: The Beast is slated for release across platforms including PC, Xbox Series X/S, and PlayStation 5. We’ll soon find out if the developers can maintain the top-tier elements from both installments of this exciting series.

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2025-06-27 13:02