(Image credit: Techland)
The director of Dying Light: The Beast insists there are “areas of perfection” within the series that the developer, Techland, absolutely “cannot mess up to any extent” if they aim for their games to truly resonate with their fanbase.
In an interview with GamesRadar+, Dying Light franchise‘s director, Tymon Smektala, articulated that especially in the realm of a smaller game, “it’s very hard to keep your ambitions in check.” To manage this, Techland has recognized “that you can’t be perfect in every area in the game, but there are areas of the game where you have to be perfect.”
These are the aspects “that make your game,” Smektala elaborates. For Dying Light: The Beast, the insights gained from previous titles have equipped the studio with the knowledge of “where those areas of perfection” lie. Unsurprisingly, for Dying Light, “it’s the parkour, and […] it’s also the melee combat.”
Mastering the creativity, freedom, and physicality of combat is a significant focus, with Smektala mentioning that “we really spent a lot of time on tweaking the reactions of zombies, when they get hit, how they respond to various weapons. This is an element that might be overlooked by many, but it’s the element that makes Dying Light games so special.”
Techland firmly believes that depicting the main character accurately is perhaps even more crucial than the core elements of combat, parkour, and zombies. As Smektala emphasizes, “The depiction of the main character [is] something we cannot mess up to any extent, definitely, because our fans would kill us for that.” Getting these aspects right is essential “for any game,” but focusing on core gameplay mechanics that lend uniqueness to your game is paramount.
Dying Light has had the privilege of knowing exactly what their core pillars of gameplay are, and for over a decade, has built its success on them. This insight is a lesson many developers could benefit from noting.
As Smektala aptly puts it, “For us, it really is Dying Light 3“; Techland admits Dying Light 2 “lost the horror, lost the tension,” but assures fans that The Beast is “the best Dying Light that we have ever made.”