Techland has put out fresh new content for Dying Light 2 Stay Human, which has sparked discussions in the community. What is the latest topic? A space-themed Volkan Corporation gear bundle that lets players traverse the post-apocalyptic world in what seems to be a lunar attire. However, the origin of this bundle is what people are not so pleased with.
Through the Dying Light’s official Twitter account, a new gear was presented to the players with the statement “Step into the post-apocalyptic world outfitted with Volkan Corporation’s most advanced space gear. Fight against the hordes and lead the way for mankind’s next great leap in survival.” Nice, right? The bundle is now available for purchase in the game store, but this is where things go wrong.
The Dying Light fandom has recently been divided between two factions. One faction is the Dying Light 2 full of new content – the latest one being the celestial-themed gear – and the other faction is the neglected Dying Light: The Following – the latter has been referred to as “the Beast” by some users. As a result, the response to the tweet points towards the division.
A user straight away asked “Will the bundles be coming to Dying Light The Beast?” while another user was upset and said “I guess us dying light 1 fans bought the beast for no reason at all.” That was a blow. More people joined in this thought process and expressed it with phrases like “Time to leave DL2 behind and maybe make stuff for The Beast instead” and simply “What about the beast?”
Nonetheless, it’s not a matter of which game is receiving more attention. The whole situation about the in-game shop has left players with mixed emotions. In particular, one player expressed “Why is it that these bundles are kept in the in-game store? Why can’t these items be made available for purchase directly from the platform’s official stores? And even if I buy them from the in-game store, I don’t know if I would even technically own them. I’m so disappointed as it just feels like microtransactions.”
Yes, that is a good point. In-game shops often give a negative feeling, which makes the buyers think if they really own the items they have paid for or if they will lose them when the server eventually goes down. Nevertheless, there are some players who just love the gear. One user wrote “god the Volkan stuff is always cool” and another person admitted “FUCK. fine I’ll get something from this store 😠it looks so sick”.
The outer space style has surely won some supporters, and one user even said “I momentarily thought this was a Mass Effect Andromeda advertisement” and another one quipped “AIDEN FROM OUTTA SPACE” which, frankly, sounds like a catchy phrase for this bundle.
To top it off, there are some players who have already started to request even more and more elaborate and specific skins. One player was at his wits’ end and pleading “please add frank skin bundle or costume (not playable) it doesn’t matter please I write to you constantly i beg you!” while others reminisced about their favorite weapons talking about suppressed rifles, UV guns that kill the infected, and so on.
The debate even goes as far as whether The Beast is a full game or just an extra content pack, one player describing it as “the best ‘DLC’ I ever bought in years” while others were saying that it is actually a proper standalone experience. The community is certainly not shy to express their preferences when it comes to zombie killing.
The entire affair is without a doubt a prime example of the attractiveness and yet the precariousness of the balance that Techland has to maintain between its content distribution support for both of its major titles. Dying Light 2 gets ongoing updates and store bundles while at the same time considering the situation of The Beast players who are left waiting for their turn. One user said “I hope in dying the beast we will get too a store” which…might not be everyone’s cup of tea since it comes with microtransaction complications, yet it certainly shows that people want more content regardless of the situation.
All of these point out the difficult times that game developers are facing in today’s world. Should you invest heavily in the new game to keep the player base active? Or do you split your resources for supporting older games with their devoted communities? And if you add paid content in-game stores to the mix, things get even messier.
Some players are perfectly fine with paying for visually stunning gear, especially if it is as unique as space equipment in a zombie game. Others wish that the valuables could only be acquired through gameplay or at least be available through the platform stores rather than being locked in the in-game system. And then, there is the argument about which game deserves more attention.
In the final analysis, the Volkan Corporation space gear turned out to be very cool, and PlayStation and Xbox players are likely enjoying it.
