With the release of Dying Light 2, many players are discovering that the game has changed a lot since its initial gameplay reveal in 2019. At that time, Dying Light 2 looked like one of the most ambitious RPGs to date, but given the immense success of the first game, people were hopeful that Techland had the bandwidth to achieve it. While Techland likely wanted to make the game it pitched to audiences in 2019, it had to pull back on its ambition, which may disappoint some fans.
Despite having to cut some features and content, Dying Light 2 is a big hit on Steam and consoles. Techland has managed to dominate the conversation among gamers ahead of a really busy month for releases. With Horizon Forbidden West and Elden Ring right around the corner, many are knee-deep in the highly anticipated zombie slayer. Although exact sales numbers have yet to be revealed, it's likely Dying Light 2 will be near the top of the sales charts at the end of the month.
Despite its success, Dying Light 2 is an iterative sequel to the first game. While there's nothing wrong with that, as it succeeds at improving on the core fundamentals of the franchise, many craved more from the game. Early gameplay demos and trailers for Dying Light 2 suggested a much bigger game with a massive branching story, sophisticated gameplay, and much more, but the final product is a shell of that. It still has hints of that big picture idea, but Dying Light 2 feels more like the foundation for the grand sequel Techland had initially envisioned. With that said, here are all of the things that changed from that 2019 gameplay demo.
Dying Light 2's Demo Level Has Drastically Changed
The level from Dying Light 2's demo still exists, in some form, but it has drastically changed from the version uploaded to PlayStation's YouTube channel nearly three years ago. The entire context is completely different in the final game, different characters are present or absent, and so on. In the final product, this is part of Dying Light 2's ending, but it has nothing to do with a battle for water.
No bandits attack the Fish Eye in this segment, Aiden does not chase down a van across rooftops, and the part where Aiden falls into a room with zombies has been changed a bit. There's a moment where Aiden slides underneath a giant metal door being held up by a wooden stick and he takes it as a weapon, but there's nothing like that at any point in the game. Aiden hijacks the bandit van in a rather traditional way, as opposed to flying on top of the van as he does in the demo. From here, everything up until the final confrontation with the Colonel plays out largely the same.
Dying Light 2's Branching Story Is Not As Significant As Advertised
One of the biggest selling points for Dying Light 2 was its ambitious branching story. While it still has choices that impact the ending and the missions the player plays, it's not as grand as promised. At the end of the 2019 demo, Aiden is given the choice to turn the water pumps on and hydrate the city or to talk to the Colonel about the ramifications. One of Aiden's companions emphasizes the urgency of acquiring the water, pushing the player to turn on the pumps. As a result, water is restored throughout the city and a new, previously flooded town is made available.
It's heavily implied at the end of the demo that this part of the city was flooded on purpose to keep a more dangerous zombie variant at bay. Due to the player's choice in that demo, that zombie type returns. There's nothing quite that extreme in the final game, as players will get the same general experience with slight variations.
Dying Light 2's Gameplay Isn't As Intricate As The Demo Showed
Dying Light 2's gameplay is its bread and butter. It has slick, smooth parkour and a fluid combat system that feels incredibly satisfying, but there were a bunch of smaller touches shown in the demo that are missing from the final game. For instance, Aiden finds himself cornered in a room with a bunch of zombies and kicks one through a boarded-up window to create an exit. There's also the aforementioned weapon holding up a metal door, found organically in the world rather than in a chest or at a vendor.
The fight in the Colonel's chambers also reflects some massive changes to the gameplay. At one point, Dying Light 2 had guns and the player would be able to use them as an effective melee weapon when out of ammo. The grappling hook could also be used as a way to knock over objects, taking out enemies in the process. While the hook can be used to pull enemies closer in the final game, there's nothing quite like what's shown in the demo.
In another gameplay trailer uploaded to the official Dying Light YouTube channel, Aiden can be seen sticking a knife through a big banner advertising a product, using it to break his fall and quickly slide to the ground. All of these things are gone in the finished game, and while these are largely minor things, they made Dying Light 2's gameplay look more dynamic than it ultimately ended up being. The player would be backed into corners and have to use the environment in creative ways to get out of them and although there's a bit of that still in the game, it's not as sophisticated. The game as it is today is still fun, but it just shows how much those small, thoughtful details would make for a much more engaging experience.
Of course, video games change a lot throughout development. These demos are rarely pulled straight from a full build of the game and are instead made to pitch the game to audiences. These short bursts are made and designed to highlight all of the key things in the game, such as gameplay and story. With that said, when large portions of these demos are hallowed out or outright missing in the final product, it's understandably frustrating for players.
Given Dying Light 2 reportedly had a troubled development filled with staff changes, shifts in direction, and so on, it's not exactly surprising that the demo and the final game are almost night and day in some areas. Nonetheless, Techland still managed to avoid a Cyberpunk 2077 situation and still delivered an enjoyable experience that just falls short of some of its ambition. Whether or not the developer will be able to capitalize on those shortcomings in a potential Dying Light 3 remains to be seen, but Techland has a lot of lessons it can learn from after releasing this game.
Source: YouTube/PlayStation/Dying Light