Dying Light: The Beast Review – Always Angry

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It was great to reconnect with Kyle Crane, even though I wish the situation had been different. Overall, I really enjoyed my time with *Dying Light: The Beast*. The Castor Woods are packed with fun and dangerous encounters – you’ll find plenty of ways to fight and survive. Techland didn’t make things easy, and that actually makes Crane’s new adventure even more exciting.

The Beast is a thrilling new adventure game where you’ll need to carefully manage your time between story events and simply trying to survive. Even though Crane gains powers from The Baron – a truly cold and uncaring villain – he still feels every hit from the Infected, who have become much more aggressive over the past thirteen years.

He still remembers the useful parkour skills Rahim taught him in Harran, and I especially enjoy guiding players through the world using those skills. While the game is strong in many areas, the way you move around really shows how much care and effort Techland put into making it.

Move effortlessly through both indoor and outdoor spaces, quickly reaching your goals with a system that feels natural in its surroundings. Movement is now smoother and more responsive – there’s no more tiring stamina bar, physics feel more realistic, and you have more options for climbing and transitioning between surfaces, keeping the action flowing. The Castor Woods environment is designed for dynamic movement, featuring rooftops, logging equipment, and vehicles that let you create long, flowing routes across the forest.

The way you move around in this game really shows how much care and work Techland put into making it.

Our story opens with Crane, held captive by the Baron and suffering terribly. Just when things seem hopeless, a disaster at the Baron’s laboratory creates an opportunity for Crane to escape. He’s aided by Olivia, a mysterious woman who quickly becomes one of his allies.

She showed him around before they finally met, warning him not to rush into a fight with the Baron’s powerful army. From that point on, the story really took off, and I was constantly eager to see how Crane’s quest for revenge – fueled by thirteen years of suffering – would unfold.

Early in the game, Kyle unlocks his powerful new Beast Mode, which becomes a key part of his experience. Olivia sends him on a mission to eliminate the terrifying new Chimera enemies and recruit allies for the battles to come. This installment of *Dying Light* feels familiar, and the characters you encounter are just as compelling as those in past games, each with their own stories and moments that highlight the desperate situation caused by the THV virus.

I was immediately drawn into Crane’s intense pursuit of revenge against the man who ruined the last thirteen years of his life, and I couldn’t wait to see how it would all unfold.

Now that you have access to Castor Woods, you’re free to explore, and there’s plenty to do. However, completing those tasks won’t be easy. Fighting large groups of Infected is incredibly difficult, so it’s best to carefully separate and eliminate them one or two at a time. This will save you a lot of trouble and time. As you’d expect from a *Dying Light* game, the world is beautifully designed, successfully blending survival and horror elements to create an immersive experience you can easily lose yourself in for hours.

At first, the combat was okay, but it really clicked once I started finding and crafting better weapons. Seriously, Techland did an amazing job with the DualSense controller – every swing felt powerful with the detailed rumble! But here’s the thing: those weapons *do* break down. I found myself constantly pausing to repair them, which meant digging through menus and using up my supplies. It could get a little annoying, but overall, the combat was really satisfying.

It’s frustrating because resources are limited, and getting better weapons and upgrades demands a lot of them. You might find yourself weaponless or with little ammo right when enemies attack, forcing you to run for your life. Guns are powerful in a tight spot, but they’re hard to maintain – ammo is rare, and you’ll constantly be searching for crafting plans and supplies. And that’s just during the daytime!

Like other games in the *Dying Light* series, this game is expertly crafted, successfully blending survival gameplay with scary moments.

Nighttime is much more dangerous. The Volatiles reappear, and they’re incredibly frightening. If they see you, your only choice is to run, unless you’re about to activate Beast Mode and have a chance to fight back.

The Beast Mode feature is a great addition to the game. Early on, successfully hitting enemies fills up a meter, while getting hit lowers it, especially on harder difficulties. Once the meter is full, Kyle can unleash a powerful attack on any nearby enemies. However, the system becomes even more engaging after defeating a few Chimeras and using their blood to create GSB, a stimulant that unlocks Kyle’s full potential and allows him to access his own enhanced abilities.

Defeating Chimeras earns you points to improve your Beast Skills, and a key early upgrade lets you activate Beast Mode whenever you want. This is when the game’s combat really clicked for me. I could carefully fight smaller groups of enemies to build up my Beast meter, then collect resources from them to stock up on healing and supplies, and keep my weapons in top condition for tougher fights.

Guns can be useful in emergencies, but they’re difficult to maintain. Ammunition is hard to find, and you’ll have to search for instructions and gather materials to make enough.

I quickly learned that getting ready before tackling anything in this game is super important. Honestly, the story and side missions are tough, so I really had to prepare! I started on the hardest difficulty, but quickly switched to normal – that’s where I spent most of my time playing The Beast. And you know what? There’s absolutely no shame in turning the difficulty down to easy. Dying doesn’t cost you valuable experience points like it does on harder settings, which is a huge relief. If things still get too crazy, you can even team up with a friend in co-op!

You’ll need to earn as much experience as possible, even on the normal difficulty setting, because all of Kyle’s skills share the same points. I focused on the combat skills – the Drop Kick move alone is worth it – but the other skill branches also offer helpful improvements. These skills add small, but significant, upgrades that make it a little easier to survive in the Castor Woods.

Every mission offers a fresh experience, and even optional activities like raiding convoys, restoring safe havens, or exploring areas overrun by the Infected for valuable parts, remain engaging. The game’s variety extends beyond just the new enemies-though they are a major highlight-to the thoughtfully designed locations themselves. These areas encourage thorough exploration, as you never know when you might find a crucial item you’ll need down the line.

Even on the normal difficulty level, you’ll need to gather as much experience as possible because all of Kyle’s abilities share the same skill points.

The infected come in many different forms, and you’ll find them wherever there’s something worth taking. I especially struggled with the Goons – they’re huge and strong, so I had to be really careful with my movements and attacks. The faster infected are also dangerous, usually attacking in groups and disrupting your rhythm, making them a major threat.

Dying Light: The Beast delivers on its promises, and it ran exceptionally well on the PlayStation 5. While I generally prioritize a smooth framerate, the game’s Quality mode is still a fantastic choice, especially given how beautiful and lively the daytime environments are, and how intensely atmospheric the nighttime ones feel. The sound design is also excellent, with a fitting soundtrack and strong voice acting.

While Kyle’s serious and rough personality makes sense given his backstory, he could be a bit more engaging. This time around, his story is deeply personal and quite dark, and Roger Craig Smith delivers a fantastic performance, really showing Kyle’s hidden anger and strong need for revenge against The Baron. It would be nice to see him lighten up with a smile or a witty comment now and then, though.

The fastest of the Infected can be really dangerous, usually attacking in groups. This can disrupt your plans and make them a significant threat.

Overall, *Dying Light: The Beast* is a really fun experience and easy to recommend to anyone, whether you’re new to the series or a long-time player. If you’ve played the previous games, you’ll probably pick it up quickly, but even if you haven’t, it’s still pretty easy to learn-just maybe don’t start on the hardest difficulty setting, like I did!

Dying Light delivers a thrilling survival horror experience that’s both enjoyable and keeps you hooked on the narrative. It’s a strong return for the series.

This game was reviewed on the PlayStation 5.

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2025-09-18 19:14