Dying Light: The Beast has been unleashed, and fans of the DL franchise are eager to know if this game is going to be the new big thing or just another notch in the door frame for Techland's acclaimed series. If readers are having second thoughts about buying the game, perhaps this article will help them decide if it's worth their time and money.
With so many active players enjoying the game and a decent amount of positive reviews, it might seem like the game is on its way to becoming one of the best of 2025. Still, whether to buy or not, that depends on what players are looking for in a game such as Dying Light: The Beast. With a whole new sandbox scenario called Castor Woods, this title is not like its predecessors. So, let's take a look at its characteristics to help players decide if it's a buy or pass.
The Game Started As A DLC, But Became A Standalone Game
The End Of An Era, The Beginning Of Something New
To help players decide if it's worth purchasing Dying Light: The Beast right away, it's worth mentioning that this game was born as a DLC for Dying Light 2: Become Human, and shortly after, the guys from Techland decided to give it a Standalone Status, after a huge leak spoiled most of the contents of its story. So, the devs had to redesign the game completely, which served as a stepping stone to make it into a standalone game.
This meant that a large proportion of the content had to be redesigned to fit the new gameplay, and also, the story had to be rethought to include the return of the Legend of Harran: Kyle Crane. The result is a magnificent game with lots of challenging quests to complete and tons of secrets to find.
It Respects The Continuity Of The Series, Being The Third One After Dying Light 2
A Seasoned Hero, In Search For Answers
As mentioned before, it continues the story with a setting 13 years after the Harran incident that led to the mass outbreak of the THV, which turned 90% of the world population into mindless Biters and ravenous Virals, and highly mutated the rest into the dangerous Volatiles that only come at night. But hope is still alive, since many people managed to survive the ordeal. Some formed clans to protect themselves, others, members of organizations like the GRE, led the research (and potentially militarized) of the virus.
Dying Light: The Beast dives into the aftermath of these first years after the Virus Outbreak has made human society collapse, narrating the stories of survivors, villains, and a Hero who has suffered enough for a lifetime and a half. The Kyle Crane players will incarnate in this delivery, is an older, tired, and scarred version of the GRE operative that dived into the epicenter of the virus, and came out as something more than human. He has lost tons of people, bled rivers, and has been deeply traumatized by the events following the fall of Harran.
Has Several New Features That Make It Quite Entertaining
A New Arsenal Of Weapons, Gadgets, And Powerful Abilities
Besides the obvious new weapons available since the start of the adventure (like the Hunting Bow), Dying Light: The Beast places special emphasis on the Day/Night Cycle difference in difficulty. Back in the day, when Dying Light arrived, adventuring during the night could be very profitable, and players could risk going out and be chased for a while to gain experience (and hand skills) while dodging the endless waves of Volatiles and Virals chasing them. Now, Castor Woods is not Harran, and most definitely not Old Villedor: It has very few Safe Spots, the thin line between what remains of civilization and the wilderness blurs as players explore, and the infested zombies running around are not easy to deal with.
But Kyle Crane is not the same man he used to be: As a result of his infection with the Harran Virus, he has become something beyond human, but less than an infected. This gives him strength, speed, and the ability to control the monster within (up to a certain extent). So, it has a nice dynamic that balances being mauled by zombies and, at some point, unleashing the Beast, sending all of them flying, and destroying them with vicious finishers. Players need to learn how to fight both as Kyle and what lurks inside him, playing smart to stay away from the jaws of voracious zombies, or diving in and stomping them to a bloody pulp when its primordial instincts take over. So, if players are attracted to this duality that greatly affects combat, then they should definitely play Dying Light: The Beast.
Puts Emphasis On Survival, Now Players Will Truly Feel In A Zombie Apocalypse
The Game's Traversal And Survival Gimmicks Will Push Players To The Edge
One of the coolest features about exploring a huge map in the Dying Light Universe has always been the Parkour. Some of the things players need to do first are re-adapt (or re-learn) how to move as Kyle Crane, because he keeps most of his 'abilities' from Dying Light and Dying Light: The Following DLC. Still, there are tons of things players need to learn or unlock as they level up. Some of them are related to one of the coolest features that were added to the mainline games: Driving.
Moving in vehicles is not just an optional activity: It becomes a necessity since in Castor Woods, there's no Fast Travel. Players will break their heads trying to figure out how to move between the settlements and the wilderness areas, and walking around with so many zombies waiting to jump on Kyle's neck is not an option. Thus, driving the Park Ranger trucks (and those left behind by human enemies) is key to succeeding in Castor Woods. Plus, this adds an extra layer of realism to the game, and players will need to be on the lookout for fuel and know that vehicle durability is a gimmick that they will need to deal with eventually. So, if players enjoy this extra bump in the difficulty and are ready to combine parkour and driving, then they are going to have lots of fun playing Dying Light: The Beast.
Dying Light: The Beast
