Dying Light: The Beast Review – A Polished, Engaging Entry That Finds Its Heart in Side Quests

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The *Dying Light* series is known for its exciting action and smooth parkour, and the developers at Techland are always looking for ways to improve it. Each game, from the setting of Harran to the city of Villedor, has added something unique to the series. Now, *Dying Light: The Beast* returns to the story of Kyle Crane after a long wait, focusing on his quest to find the person who tortured him for years. While this installment has a slightly different feel, it still delivers the core *Dying Light* experience fans love.

Despite building on what’s come before, *Dying Light: The Beast* feels genuinely new. Its unique setting, challenging ‘Beast’ mode, and intense battles with chimera enemies offer a fresh experience for fans. While the main story is a classic tale of revenge, it’s enhanced by compelling side quests and a world that’s both beautiful and dangerous. Combined with the already excellent gameplay that defines the *Dying Light* series, *The Beast* is arguably the best installment yet.

Dying Light: The Beast Is a Classic Revenge Tale That Finds Its Heart in the Side Quests

The Dying Light series aims to deliver a truly immersive zombie apocalypse, and Dying Light: The Beast continues that tradition with a compelling story. Unlike Dying Light 2, The Beast features a straightforward, linear narrative, which actually works in its favor. What starts as a basic revenge story quickly becomes captivating, full of unexpected twists that will keep you hooked until the very end.

In *Dying Light: The Beast*, you reprise your role as Kyle Crane, the hero from the first *Dying Light* game. After being held captive and experimented on by a ruthless villain called the Baron for thirteen years, Crane breaks free. However, the experiments have drastically changed him, both physically and mentally, pushing him to the brink of losing his humanity. Now possessing the strength of a beast, Crane battles to maintain control as he seeks revenge against the Baron, intending to use his new powers to get even.

The Baron is a truly ruthless villain, but the game could have shown us more of his motivations. For much of the story, we only see him through the eyes of the hero, who wants revenge, and his threats feel distant. Since so much of the plot revolves around defeating him, giving the Baron more depth would have strengthened the narrative. However, he does eventually become a convincingly hateful character, which makes the climax of the story more satisfying and builds tension effectively.

The strength of *Dying Light: The Beast*’s story lies in its side quests, which are consistently engaging and worthwhile. While the main story presents a rather straightforward revenge tale, the side quests reveal a more compassionate and human side to the protagonist, Kyle Crane, something the main narrative doesn’t explore. This makes completing these side quests almost necessary to fully appreciate the overall story, and they also provide valuable experience and rewards.

One of the strengths of *Dying Light: The Beast* is its excellent voice acting; the characters sound incredibly realistic, matching their impressive animations. This, combined with natural facial expressions and body language, makes conversations feel genuinely lifelike. All of this contributes to a compelling narrative experience, enhancing everything from simple side quests to the main story of revenge.

I was pleasantly surprised to finish *Dying Light: The Beast* in about 35 hours, especially since I’d completed almost everything the game had to offer. That included most of the Dark Zones, all the side quests, and a thorough exploration of Castor Woods. It didn’t feel rushed at all – it was just the right length. Even after finishing the main story, I still had several Dark Zones to tackle, races to complete, and parts of the world left to explore. While the game isn’t hugely replayable, players who enjoy a challenge might want to try it again on a higher difficulty.

Dying Light: The Beast Balances Beauty, Brutality, and Beast Mode

As you’d expect, *Dying Light* is known for its unique gameplay, and *The Beast* largely delivers on that front. Like previous games in the series, nighttime is a standout experience, though you’re only really *forced* to play in the dark a few times during the main story and some side missions. Outside of those moments, it’s easy to avoid by simply resting in one of the many Safe Zones. While nighttime offers double experience points, *Dying Light: The Beast* only has a level cap of 15, and I reached it before finishing the game without ever actively seeking out the darkness.

One reason for this is that *Dying Light: The Beast* clearly wants players to appreciate the stunning beauty of Castor Woods – and it truly is a gorgeous location. Unfortunately, the near-total darkness at night makes it hard to actually see. Despite this, *Dying Light: The Beast* is the best-looking game in the series so far, so players crave daylight for more than just feeling safer. When night falls, though, the game remains as frightening and exciting as ever, particularly when you’re being chased by a swarm of Volatiles.

As a huge fan of the *Dying Light* series, I was really happy to see that parkour is still a huge focus in *The Beast*. Even though the new area, Castor Woods, is more open than previous maps, the developers did a fantastic job of designing it. It’s dense enough to let me pull off crazy parkour moves, but open enough to really use the cars, too. I was worried they’d tone down the parkour in favor of just a pretty landscape, but that’s definitely not the case! Actually, a lot of times, using the parkour system is how I discovered some of the most breathtaking views in the game – seriously, some spots are unforgettable.

While the parkour in *Dying Light: The Beast* is generally good, it’s not always perfect. Sometimes, the character Kyle won’t climb when he should, and though it doesn’t happen often, it can be annoying. You might also occasionally get stuck on the environment while moving, which can interrupt your flow or leave you vulnerable to enemies. Despite these issues, it’s still really fun and rewarding to run and jump across the rooftops and rocks of the beautiful Castor Woods.

The game features a huge open world, whether you’re exploring on foot or in a vehicle, and offers lots of things to do, like racing. Throughout the world, you’ll find Dark Zones packed with valuable loot and supplies that you can collect repeatedly. However, the gameplay can become quite repetitive, as even though the Dark Zones have slight differences, they mostly involve doing the same thing over and over again.

A key feature of *Dying Light: The Beast* is Kyle Crane’s powerful Beast mode, fueled by encounters with dangerous infected creatures called chimeras. Throughout the game, players will battle these chimeras to gain skill points, which unlock and enhance Crane’s Beast abilities – including controlling the mode and using it to lift and throw heavy objects. Like Spartan Rage in *God of War*, activating Beast mode briefly unleashes Crane’s inner power, significantly boosting his damage and defenses as he fights enemies.

Combat in Dying Light: The Beast is intensely violent, even more so than in previous Dying Light games. Like Dead Island 2, enemies show realistic damage with every hit, and the game’s physics react convincingly to different weapons – even when you’re just using your fists, with or without Beast mode activated. Beast mode itself is well-balanced; it’s not something you can use constantly, making it a powerful tool for tough fights or when you’re overwhelmed, rather than a crutch.

In the game, each new chimera you encounter is a challenging boss battle, and these fights are often incredibly exciting. Unlike regular enemies, every chimera has its own special attack patterns, forcing you to change your strategy to win. Some are fast and attack from a distance, while others are huge and powerful, either charging across the arena or throwing objects like cars at you. Beating these tough enemies rewards you with skill points that let you upgrade Crane’s abilities in *Dying Light: The Beast*, making him stronger for the final fight with the Baron.

In Dying Light: The Beast, Kyle isn’t just relying on his inner strength. Players can find and create a huge range of weapons and gear to help defeat enemies. Different gear sets offer unique benefits, and the game lets you customize your look with any combination of items, so you can be both powerful and stylish. You’ll have access to blunt weapons like bats and hammers, sharp weapons like axes and blades, and ranged options like bows and crossbows. Don’t forget classic throwable items – knives, molotovs, and decoys – to handle any situation.

One frustrating issue in *Dying Light: The Beast* is the cost of crafting and keeping the best weapons in good condition. While you can still find blueprints and craft items, key resources are too scarce. For example, feathers – needed to make bows and arrows – are incredibly rare and can’t be easily found while exploring. This is a significant drawback, especially because weapons like the bow are enjoyable and powerful to use, making the resource scarcity particularly disappointing.

Despite being a large and sometimes chaotic game, *Dying Light: The Beast* runs surprisingly well on PC. The frame rate stays consistent, loading is quick, and I only noticed a couple of minor visual glitches that didn’t really detract from the experience. I can’t comment on how it performs on consoles, but the PC version seems to be very well optimized.

Dying Light: The Beast Finds Strength in Its Core

Ultimately, *Dying Light: The Beast* shows that Techland still excels at creating a thrilling zombie apocalypse experience, complete with exciting parkour and survival gameplay. While the main story focuses on revenge, side quests add depth to the character of Crane. The game’s world is beautiful, even with some repeated tasks, and the new Beast Mode makes combat feel consistently fresh and intense. It’s a polished and captivating *Dying Light* game that, while not revolutionary, delivers plenty of memorable moments with solid performance.

The new expansion, *Dying Light: The Beast*, will be available on PC, Xbox Series X|S, and PlayStation 5 starting September 18, 2025. Players on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One will be able to experience it later in 2025. We received a PC code from the developers to complete this review.

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2025-09-18 19:59