There are a few staple zombie games that introduced me to the gory, bloody world of ‘shoot heads, ask questions later.’ Of course, there’s Left 4 Dead, but personally, the original Dying Light was a little more up my alley. As the lone gamer in my class, the single-player aspect appealed to me more than L4D’s multiplayer, so I spent most of my time stalking the infected through the streets of Harran instead of teaming up with pals to slay witches.
So, when Dying Light 2 came around, I was excited to relive those head-bashing, gore-splashing memories. Due to the lack of firearms at launch, though, I found myself diving back into the OG zombie game instead of dropping into Villedor with my makeshift axe in hand.
And it turns out I’m not alone. Before the launch of the Dying Light 2 Reloaded Edition on Thursday February 22, the original Dying Light has consistently maintained a higher Steam player count than its sequel, holding stable at between 4,000 and 5,000 average players versus DL2’s much more variable 3,000 to 4,000 (there’s a considerable spike in June 2023 at 5,893, likely a result of the huge parkour update).
With the Reloaded Edition marking the second anniversary of DL2, I ask franchise director Tymon Smektała whether or not Dying Light 1 having more players than Dying Light 2 bothers him.
“Dying Light 1 is a great game packed with eight years of content that you can currently buy at a low price. It’s hard to beat that!” he tells me. “But yes, we’re happy with running both games in tandem as they both serve a different purpose.
“The first game is a great entry point into the world of Dying Light and we see lots of players who convert into the sequel which is still our premium offering.”
Fewer players may imply that Dying Light 2 hasn’t managed to live up to its predecessor, but Smektała assures us that isn’t the case – although he admits that there have been “highs and lows” for the team.
“[Dying Light 2] became profitable within its first weekend and continues to perform very well, but the commercial performance is not as important as the acceptance of our community,” he says.
“Even though at launch we realized that some of the bold design decisions we’ve made didn’t hit the bullseye, we managed to improve all of our mechanics and add all of the requested features to prove to players that Dying Light 2 Stay Human is a serious contender.
“It’s true there were highs and lows on this journey, but we’re in a good place and ready for the truly exciting future of the game. Come to think of it, even the fact that we’re still discussing Dying Light 2 Stay Human two years after the release is proof of the game’s longevity.”
And it’s true that, despite the turbulence that’s come to define the post-COVID gaming landscape, Dying Light 2 has persisted. I’ve written countless articles on it over the past couple of years (my personal favorite being the Vampire: The Masquerade collab), and every time new content crosses my desk I can’t help but smile – it was, after all, my first big review in this industry.
If the Reloaded Edition has you intrigued, we chatted to Smektała about what to expect from it, so be sure to check out our exclusive interview. We also have a rundown of all the best parkour games if you’re looking for something new, as well as a list of all the best horror games if it’s the adrenaline that gets you going.
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