Welcome to On The Radar: The home for in-depth conversations around the world's biggest games. This month we are turning our attention to one of our most anticipated upcoming games, Dying Light 2.
Techland has established itself as a studio capable of creating cult classics. That was true of the developer’s first major success, Call Of Juarez, and it can be said of its second too, Dead Island. These were pleasing genre pieces that saw dedicated communities form up around them, even if they did seem to skirt critical and commercial appreciation. Still, both titles received enough love that multiple sequels would be pushed through development, offering Techland multiple opportunities to evolve its tech, toolsets and technical capabilities. Say what you will about Call of Juarez and Dead Island, these games undoubtedly paved the way towards something truly definitive, a release in 2015 that captured the attention of millions of players. When we cast our eye back on this generation of video games, it's going to be impossible to avoid discussing Dying Light and its upcoming sequel, Dying Light 2.
Dying Light was an ambitious action game set across a vibrant open-world. It dazzled players with a natural and fluid first-person movement system; the sense of speed and momentum we were afforded by being able to bound joyously between rooftops and dense, dangerous streets was nothing short of a revelation. Around all of this, Techland built out an atmospheric city to creatively explore and navigate, a visceral melee combat system that once again found the fun in slaying hordes of the undead, and established a memorable narrative that was woven wonderfully through an expressive day and night cycle. Dying Light was a success in every sense of the word, and it has only emboldened Techland to take its ambition to all new heights.
We travelled to Wroclaw, Poland, to find out everything we could about Dying Light 2, the highly anticipated sequel that was first revealed in a spellbinding trailer during E3 2018, and is expected to launch for all major platforms soon. For Dying Light 2, Techland is doubling down on everything that players loved about the original, enhancing the free-running movement mechanics and building out its combat and co-operative systems. But it's also going one step further, looking to fuse narrative choice and consequence into the very fibre of Dying Light 2's action. Techland wants you to shape a unique path through what should be an otherwise familiar story, just as it has done so many times in the past two decades.
Over the next week, GamesRadar will be releasing daily articles diving into the development of Dying Light 2, its predecessors, and the history of Techland itself, so you'll want to bookmark this page as we begin to explore what will undoubtedly be one the biggest action games of this generation. Welcome to On The Radar: The home for in-depth conversations around the world's biggest games. — Josh West, Features Editor.
How Dying Light 2 is a culmination of everything Techland has learnt making zombie games so far
Everything Techland has been doing in the industry over the last decade has led to this, one of the most ambitious games on the near horizon.
Here, we explore how Dying Light 2 is a culmination of everything Techland has learnt making zombie games so far.
Exploring the new zombie types of Dying Light 2
Interested in learning more about the undead inhabiting Dying Light 2's expressive open world?
Techland's lead game designer Tymon Smektała guides us through the new zombie types of Dying Light 2 before giving us an exclusive look at the all-new infected Peacekeeper enemies.
Techland reveals its plans for the future of open-world gaming
Techland believes that "Dying Light 2 is the first game of its type".
After sitting down and speaking with the game's producer Kornel Jaskula it's difficult to disagree. Here, Techland details the shifting narrative and world design at the heart of Dying Light 2.
What's going on with the Dying Light: The Movie?
Did you forget that Dying Light was going to be a movie and that you could have been a part of it?
Techland gives us an update on production of the Dying Light film that was last mentioned back in 2016.
How Dying Light 2 was inspired by The Witcher 3 and Game of Thrones
Why are we still so terrified by the walking dead?
Techland reflects on its decision to have Dying Light 2's virtual streets filled with the undead, before then diving deep into some of the inspirations behind its incredible new creation.
The grappling hook is coming back for Dying Light 2
Techland confirms the grappling hook is back for Dying Light 2.
Are you happy or sad about that? If it's the latter you shouldn't worry, as the studio has promised that it won't break the core flow of the game (this time).
Dying Light 2 has so much content you’ll need to play it multiple times to see everything
Dying Light 2 is a huge production.
So huge, in fact, that Techland has had to produce a dizzying amount of content to populate and support all of the games branching pathways. So much so, that the studio doesn't believe you'll be able to see it all on a first pass through the game.
Co-op is Dying Light 2's secret weapon
Four-player co-op returns for Dying Light 2 and it's most important than ever.
There is so much more to the system that letting you hack-and-slash zombies with your friends. In fact, co-op is going to be one of the coolest parts of Dying Light 2.
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