Renegades escaping in their truck. We
leave Frank and run after the baddies.Parkour life
This gives us an opportunity to see
the new-and-improved traversal
system which lets you quickly move
about the city. You can use infected
as launch pads to reach higher
ground, or as cushions for your falls,
along with your usual swinging,
wall-running and sliding. Everything
is about maintaining your momentum
while keeping an eye on your stamina.
The grappling hook makes a return,
and now you’ve got a hang-glider to
cross those larger gaps.
Catching up with the truck prompts
us to decide between kicking the
driver from the vehicle or threatening
him to take us to the Colonel. We opt
to keep our new pal alive and we easily
make it inside the heavily fortified
base, thanks to our new guide.
Once inside, we’re taken aback.
Children are seen laughing and
playing, while adults chat and go
about their business. Everything
seems surprisingly normal. Nothing
like what you’d expect from a ‘Butcher’
and his Renegades. But there’s no
time to think – our cover is blown and
we’re told Frank has died from his
wounds. It’s time to meet the Colonel
and get some answers.
We reach the boss man, and he
claims that we’re being played. This
situation is starting to smell fishy.
Did one of the Colonel’s men actually
shoot Frank? What was Frank trying to
tell us just before we were forced to
head over to the compound? Instead
of trusting the Colonel, we turn on
the pumps. Doing so reveals a new
expansive area to explore that was
previously submerged. But it seems
the place was flooded for a reason.
A blistering and puss-filled arm
stretches out from beneath the mud
only to flex and reveal a row of spikes
protruding from its skin. Whoops...
All of these choices could have
had drastically different outcomes.
Would Frank still be alive if we stayed?
What would happen if we sided with
the Colonel? To see the world change
before our very eyes is an exciting
prospect, and although there’s a little
way to go until Dying Light 2’s release,
something tells us it’s going to be
worth the wait. QLike life, Dying Light 2 is all about
decisions. Every choice you make in
this open-world action RPG sequel
affects the story and changes the
world in drastic ways, and thanks to
a recent in-depth gameplay demo
we’ve got a better idea of what those
choices actually mean.
Set 15 years after the previous
game, the infected still rule the night.
You play as Aiden Caldwell, an infected
survivor with the fate of the last great
human settlement in his hands. You
arrive in the city looking for a cure, but
instead find a desperate population
that could use your help. Using your
unique abilities, weapons and parkour
skills, you’ll be able to influence
people and change the city to your
liking – sometimes in ways that you
might not predict. Throughout the
game you’ll be forced to make on-the-
spot decisions. An early example is
featured during our hands-on demo.
Water reserves are running dry, and
the man with the power to change
that is the Colonel (who Aiden and
friends call the Butcher) who runs the
city’s pumping station with his group
of so-called Renegades. A meeting
is called with these Renegades to
come to an arrangement, but things
go south and our friend Frank is shot.
We’re forced to choose between
staying to aid Frank or chase theTechland loves to include extras, so much so that Easter eggs have their own development budget
Dying Light 2
Will you make the right choice
when the time comes?
Adam Bryant
PUBLISHER TECHLAND PUBLISHING DEVELOPER TECHLAND
ETA SPRING 2020CROSS
PATHS
All of the decisions
you make throughout
the game don’t need
to be made alone. The
campaign will be
playable from start to
finish in up to
four-player co-op. Not
only will you be able
to help shape your
world with friends, but
joining others will give
you an opportunity to
see how different the
world can be if you
had made a
different decision.
“You’ll be able to influence
people and change the
city to your liking”
024 THE OFFICIAL XBOX MAGAZINE
PREVIEW