Dying Light: The Beastbrings the scares back to the zombie survivalist sandbox. Debuting in 2015, the parkour exploration and focus on a day/night cycle for the zombies helpedDying Lightstand out in a crowded field. The first-person perspective lent itself to the game’s frantic feel, especially when hordes of aggressive zombies turn their attention towards you once the sun goes down.Dying Light 2was an enjoyable sequel in 2022, but the exploration and movement replaced the tension and terror of the first game.
That’s what makesDying Light: The Beastsuch an enjoyable return to form. Originally conceived as a DLC expansion forDying Light 2,The Beastbrings back the first game’s protagonist as well as the overwhelming sense of dread that any turn could lead to a horde of the undead — or something worse. During a preview event held in Los Angeles,Screen Rant got the chance to playDying Light: The Beastand survived the experience with a new appreciation for how hard it can be to outrun the infected.
Dying Light: The Beast Is A True Sandbox Survivalist
Dying Light: The Beast Brings Back Kyle Crane
Dying Light: The Beastis a refinement of the open-world sandbox from the first game in the series, streamlined into a horrifying new package.Dying Light: The Beastreturns the focus to Kyle Crane, who was the lead character of the first game. After being experimented on for thirteen years by the mysterious Baron, Crane escapes into the rural Castor Woods and discovers that it has been overrun by the infected. The open world setting has been expanded, with plenty of upgrades and allies to find before facing off with the Baron and his army.
Whereas previous games likeDying Light 2put more emphasis on branching story paths and parkour exploration, the more narratively focusedDying Light: The Beastleans heavily into combat and survival.There are plenty of undead to dispatch across the world, requiring a mix of blunt instruments, firearms, and fists to overcome. Sometimes, they won’t be enough. In an effort to replicate the more frightening tone of the original game,Dying Light: The Beastspaces out the urban environments and forces players to venture into the wilderness.
Unleash The Beast With Dying Light’s Brutal Action
Going Beast Mode Turns Dying Light Into A Very Different Kind Of Game
The emphasis on survival is a fitting focus forDying Light: The Beast, but there’s also a larger focus on combat. The combat relies on breakable weapons and limited ammo, which often ends with players forced to go on the run to escape the grasp of the ghouls that are following after them. However, the game makes combat unavoidable in certain cases, thanks to a number of Chimeras roaming the world.These hulking, mutant-infected individuals have unique qualities, such as a more aggressive attack strategy or a brutal approach to combat.
These are effectively the game’s boss battles, harrowing arena fights that force players to rely on quick wits, combat skills, and pure luck to survive. The Chimeras break up the game’s standard zombie enemies, confronting players with a beast that you can’t just run away from. This is where the game’s emphasis on combat really kicks in — and specifically how easily it can fail a player. This is a feature, not a bug. Players shouldn’t feel like Leon Kennedy. Even if Kyle can fight,it works to the game’s themes that he can rarely just brawl his way to safety.
This is what makes Beast Mode so fun, after all. Built up over time, Beast Mode can transform Kyle into a berserker state where, for a limited time, players can rip the undead apart with their bare hands. It’s a brutal little moment that doesn’t happen as often as you’d want, but defeating more Chimeras around the map will help unlock the upgrade tree for this brutal mode. The tight controls rely on precise hits even in this mode, with zombie weak points like the head quickly leading to better (and grislier) results.It’s a fun break from the game’s more stealthy moments.
Our Takeaways From Dying Light: The Beast
The Apocalypse Is Your Playground In Dying Light: The Beast
Dying Light: The Beastis a gruesome expansion of the survivalist horror seriesthat feels like a return to what works.Dying Light 2presented too open of a sandbox, with threats feeling like afterthoughts in comparison to the more dogged and fearsome elements of the original.Dying Light: The Beastis a tight rewind to that style of gameplay, which suits the grim world and overwhelming sense of danger better. The bolstered graphics for modern systems make the gore even more gruesome, fully immersing players as they flee hordes in the dark.
These are also some of the most engrossing moments of the game, where exploration can turn deadly in an instant. Moving through the bushes and finding a zombie you can dispatch quickly and quietly is great. Finding four or five, one of whom is screaming, is less so. Especially as the game shifts to night, the chances of survival drop as the enhanced variant of the undead stalk the area and hunt you down. There’s a natural sense of immersion as the players make their way through the dark only to find a ghoul rushing towards them.
It’s these kinds of moments that makeDying Light: The Beastreally compelling, especially in terms of exploration and gameplay. Making one’s way through the forest to reach different settlements or groups of survivors lends itself to an ever-present sense of dread.Dying Light: The Beast’sexpansion works best in these moments, with the immersion dragging you kicking and screaming into an overrun world — a gruesome adventure that will leave your heart racing and your nerves on edge.
