As many suspected, Dying Light 2, the sequel to Techland’s open world first person survival horror action-adventure from 2015, was announced during Microsoft’s Xbox E3 event; and boy does it bring the drama to the next level.
From what we’ve seen thus far, Dying Light 2 is functionally the same as its predecessor, but what sets it apart from what came before it is world-building. To be specific, there are now multiple routes quests can take and your choices impact both the result and the world around you.
For example, a quest shown during the event has the protagonist (it sounds like Crane again) try to secure water for a faction known as The Peacekeepers. You have the option of either killing the people who are hoarding the water supply for themselves or allying yourself with those very same hoarders. Both can help you in the long run, but there are negative side effects that come along with them — some of which might not be immediately apparent.
In this case, killing the people hoarding the water supply will improve the quality of life for everyone in the immediate area and the protagonist will even be able to use the water as he pleases to recover his health and stamina. However, these benefits only apply to those who are allied with The Peacekeepers, and those not allied with them are subjugated — or worse.
On the other hand, allying yourself with the hoarders allows the protagonist to use the water as a precious resource and trade it on the black market for rare items. Unfortunately, since not everyone has access to the water, the quality of life goes down and the area becomes a hotbed for criminal activity.
Overall, this looks like a really cool addition to the tried-and-true formula established by the original Dying Light. What will be interesting to see going forward, though, is whether certain factions will remember your actions taken in certain quests. For instance, would going against The Peacekeepers in the above quest prevent you from taking up their quests in the future?
Dying Light 2 is in development for PC, PS4 and Xbox One. No release date was given.
Check out the announcement and gameplay trailers below:
