Dying Light: The Beast Taught Techland That “Quality Beats Quantity,” Says Former Franchise Director

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In a year packed with great releases, it’s easy to forget Techland’s Dying Light: The Beast. Not only did it receive extensive acclaim from fans and critics, but it also righted the ship for the franchise, returning to its core gameplay elements. This is coming off of Dying Light 2 Stay Human, which struggled to resonate with players, even after years of updates.

Tymon Smektala, who previously led the Dying Light franchise, described the launch of Dying Light 2 as a tough learning experience. Speaking with GamesRadar at Digital Dragons, he explained that despite the game being similar to the first Dying Light and having millions of eager players, the team quickly discovered they’d overlooked important details. Players were quick to share their feedback, making those omissions clear.

Problems with the project’s development weren’t unexpected, and Smektala says switching to a new engine and setting tight deadlines created difficulties. While players appreciated updates after the game launched, they tried to address too many issues at once.

Players have different ideas about what they want in the game – some prefer a more intense experience, others want deeper role-playing elements or more acrobatic movement. There’s debate about the level of violence and whether the game should focus on realism, wish fulfillment, recreate the feel of the original, or try something completely different. Trying to satisfy everyone’s desires at once, however, is a mistake.

Techland realized that prioritizing quality over quantity was key for Dying Light: The Beast. They slowed their development process, concentrating on the most important aspects of the game. This approach, first adopted for Dying Light 2, proved successful and allowed them to focus on delivering a high-quality core experience, even if it meant not meeting every player expectation.

The game’s popularity – it’s sold over 1.5 million copies – stems from its mix of exciting features like parkour, intense combat, and a vast open world. Since its release, it’s been significantly expanded with free updates, adding things like New Game+, challenging Legend Levels, a tough Nightmare Mode, and most recently, the Restored Land area.

These updates make the game world permanent – you won’t be able to repeat actions or endlessly search containers for items anymore. Once zombies are defeated, they stay down, and you’ll gradually see players repopulating previously dangerous areas. For players seeking a real challenge, there’s also a One Life mode with permanent death.

Even though The Beast will probably be updated for a long time, the future of the game series is uncertain. However, it looks like Techland has a plan for where to take it next.

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2026-05-25 23:42