14 DAY TRIAL // Polish developer Techland made a name for itself with creating niche hits such as Call of Juarez or Dead Island but, with Dying Light, the studio is trying to breather fresh life into the already extremely tired zombie genre.
By allowing players to execute different free-running (aka parkour) moves while trying to navigate the zombie-infested environment, the studio hopes to draw in fans who are looking for a survival experience with a twist.
Dying Light puts players in the shoes of a main protagonist who is in a settlement that's infested by the undead but also has pockets of human resistance that are pretty well organized.
The demonstration at Gamescom 2013 starts with the player being tasked to set up different zombie traps and distractions in certain parts of the city, so that couriers can go in and out easily, without trying to fend off zombies while carrying different things.
These traps range from electrified fences to cars with alarms set to go off at the push of a button.
While this may not be that unheard of, what makes Dying Light stand out is the fact that players can free-run across rooftops and walls, thereby avoiding the undead with ease.
When you do have to put your boots on the ground, players are armed with special decoy bombs that emit a lot of noise and can easily distract zombies from the actual player, albeit for a limited period of time.
Another crucial gameplay mechanic is the night, as the zombies turn into much fiercer creatures when the sun goes down and can even climb on top of buildings, thereby rendering the free-running advantage of the players pretty much useless.
While the game looks and feels quite good, the same cannot be said about its control scheme, or rather the PlayStation 4's DualShock 4 controller, as the running was activated only after pressing on the left stick while pointing it in a direction. Sadly, you couldn't really tell when the stick was pressed or when it wasn't, meaning you could be moving towards a wall, expecting to climb it, only to find yourself face to the wall and with zombies on your back.
Overall, the Dying Light experience felt pretty great and bears a different tone than Techland's Dead Island series.