In 2019, Bend Studio and PlayStation released Days Gone, an open world zombie game where players explore post-apocalyptic Oregon as rugged biker Deacon St. John. Days Gone earned mixed reviews at the time of its release, especially in comparison to other first-party PlayStation games, seemingly fueling Sony's decision to pass on Bend Studio's pitch for a sequel. However, Days Gone was a commercial hit, developing a dedicated following of fans. Time will tell if those fans are ever treated to a proper Days Gone 2, but maybe Days Gone Remastered can help tide them over in the meantime. Days Gone Remastered gives Days Gone a native PS5 version and takes great advantage of the console's unique features.
Days Gone Remastered utilizes the PS5 DualSense controller to add real weight to combat and driving Deacon's motorcycle across open world Oregon. The haptic feedback goes a long way in making this version of Days Gone much more immersive than its PS4 counterpart, with the feel of Deacon's bike changing based on the terrain. The adaptive triggers are also put to great use, making it so exploring Days Gone's grim world has never felt better.
Proper DualSense support is much-appreciated in Days Gone Remastered, but the game leverages the power of the PS5 in other notable ways as well. Days Gone Remastered runs at a consistent 60 frames per second and looks great doing it. That being said, the visual upgrade here isn't something like Oblivion to Oblivion Remastered, but more like Last of Us Part 2 to Last of Us Part 2 Remastered. That is to say, Days Gone Remastered looks and feels better running on PS5 than its counterpart does on PS4, but it's not a full-blown visual overhaul. Still, there's no denying that Days Gone Remastered makes an already impressive-looking game look even better.
Days Gone Remastered Adds Brand-New Game Modes
The real selling point of Days Gone Remastered is the addition of the brand-new Horde Assault mode. Horde Assault is, as its name implies, a horde mode for Days Gone Remastered, where the goal is to survive as long as possible against relentless waves of zombies, or "Freakers," as they're called in the game. Horde Assault features a variety of playable characters, with unlockables to add a sense of progression, and is a fantastic way for fans to jump immediately into some zombie-slaying action without having to go through the story. Plus, players can equip "injectors" that add extra challenge in exchange for bonus points. Horde Assault is feature-rich, action-packed, and plenty of fun, and in my opinion, makes the $10 asking price for the upgrade worth the price of admission.
Horde Assault adds a great deal more replay value to Days Gone Remastered, but there's even more to check out in this new version of the game. Fresh ways to play through Days Gone Remastered's story have been added to the mix, including an ultra-challenging Permadeath mode and a Speedrun mode. Days Gone Remastered also adds more accessibility options than ever before, with one even allowing players to adjust the speed of the gameplay so they can really tailor the experience to their liking.
Days Gone Remastered's new content is also available for PC gamers via the Broken Roads DLC.
Days Gone Remastered is the complete Days Gone experience, which means it not only features the brand-new content and the huge base game, but it also bundles in the post-launch updates that were released for the original back in the day. Notably, this includes the Challenge Mode content, which asks players to complete tasks like survive against the zombie hordes as long as possible or race to a specific location.
Those that have never played Days Gone before are going to get the most out of the remaster because they have the bonus modes to check out alongside the single-player campaign, which is quite an expansive experience. Days Gone is the story of Deacon St. John surviving in a zombie-infested Oregon in search of his missing wife. The story is too long to keep its momentum from start to finish, and there are some serious pacing issues, but there are great moments to discover and plenty of interesting side content to explore alongside the main story missions. Days Gone Remastered's sizable map is stuffed full of activities to do, and while some repetition settles in like most open world games, it manages to stay mostly entertaining throughout.
Days Gone Remastered lets players transfer their save data from the PS4 original to the new game.
Anyone playing Days Gone for the first time with Days Gone Remastered will have a much more polished experience than those who played the original in 2019. As some may recall, the original Days Gone suffered from technical problems at launch, with players encountering bizarre, immersion-breaking glitches while making their way through the game. These problems were ironed out post-launch, and those fixes are in place for the remaster. That doesn't mean Days Gone Remastered isn't without its technical problems, though. Occasionally, while playing Horde Assault, supply boxes simply wouldn't open for me, which didn't have a devastating impact on my runs but was still inconvenient. Presumably, issues like that will be patched out and Days Gone Remastered will become an even more worthwhile experience over time.
As it stands, Days Gone Remastered is easily the best way to experience Bend Studio's open world zombie game. The new content, upgraded performance, and PS5 DualSense support make the game worth $10 upgrade, and those that have never played it before can rest assured that Days Gone Remastered is worth checking out.
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 81 /100 Critics Rec: 75%
- Released
- April 25, 2025
- ESRB
- M For Mature: Blood and Gore, Drug Reference, Intense Violence, Sexual Themes, Strong Language
- Developer(s)
- Bend Studio
- Publisher(s)
- PlayStation Studios
WHERE TO PLAY
- The best way to play Days Gone
- Makes great use of the DualSense controller
- Fantastic visuals and performance
- Horde Assault is a worthwhile new game mode
- Pacing issues are still a problem
- Occasional technical hiccup in Horde Assault
Days Gone Remastered is out now for PS5. The Best War Games was provided with a PS5 code for this review.