We haven’t seen much from Techland’s Dying Light 2 since the game’s official reveal back at E3 2018. Sure, we’ve seen snippets of gameplay and new information of what we can expect, but nothing too extensive. That changes today, as Techland has just dropped a 26-minute gameplay demo for Dying Light 2. You can check it out down below:
https://youtu.be/uy6ne-fEsAw
There’s a lot to go through here (but that’s kinda what you expect from a 26-minute demo). As Techland has said on multiple occasions, you will be able to make crucial decisions throughout the game’s narrative and those calls will heavily impact your gameplay experience. This demo showcased how this can unfold.
One of the game’s many factions has taken control of the water pumps in the city. You play as Aiden Caldwell and are tasked with meeting up with this faction to work out a deal. Since this is a video game, the deal goes horribly wrong and your friend Frank gets shot in the process. Here’s where you are presented with your first major choice. Either stay with Frank and possibly find help or go after the people who shot him. The demo shows Aiden taking the latter option and he ends up sneaking into the enemy faction’s base. While Aiden is “silently” infiltrating the base, he is informed that Frank has died.Ā This begs the question. What would have happened if Aiden stayed and attempted to get help?
At the end of the demo, we see another major choice. Either trust your other friend and turn on the water pumps (creating a new zombie type in the process) or side with The Colonel. With these many decisions you’ll make throughout the story, Techland hopes to give the game more replayability and a better role-playing experience. This mission was a good look at that but we’ll have to wait and see if Dying Light 2 will be able to consistently deliver in that department.
The gameplay is another story entirely. From the parkour to the melee combat, everything looks to be polished up from the original Dying Light. This isn’t a problem as many gamers praised the original for its fluid gameplay and parkour mechanics. One of the most notable additions to Dying Light 2 are these Dark Zones throughout the city filled with a ton of zombies. While in Dark Zones, you will gradually succumb to the zombie virus unless you find a way out. As stated in the demo, you will be encouraged to stay in these zones as long as possible. That’s because Dark Zones are prone to be high-tier loot areas.
Dying Light 2 will release sometime in 2020 for Xbox One, PS4, and PC.
What did you think of this demo? Are you excited for Dying Light 2? Let us know in the comments below!