Techland has closed the window of surprise for all zombie slayers. So, Dying Light: The Beast, the long-awaited expansion or perhaps a standalone megaproject, is applying for early release. It even applies for a day-early launch. Yes, that was said. The studio stated that, since they already garnered more than one million pre-orders of the game, they considered it a sign that the release had to be bumped up to September 18th. This week! A matter of days! Crazy, isn’t it?
What is Dying Light: The Beast anyway?! For those who might be living a life under a rock (or steer clear from the horde), it is the next massive DLC for the Dying Light universe. Kyle Crane is, finally, back in the unleashed lands, and the fans cannot think about anything else. The hype is such that about one million people have released their cash without a single review being seen. That’s trust. Deep trust into Techland. And it seems that Techland is rewarding such faith by presenting an early playdate to that million.
The official Dying Light account kept the tweet short as usual, but the ensuing announcement was truly self-explanatory. Big news! Have a glimpse at Global launch times. Pre-order now. Of course, the real story was always in the replies where the community absolutely lost it.
The response was an amazing mixture of ecstatic hysteria, legitimate inquiries, and some… interesting perspective. Players screamed in caps lock. “YOOO LETS GO,” from SynthPotato. “WOW WELL DONE GUYS THANK YOU,” from yuriveyu. “LETS GO COMMUNITY GUY BIG FUCKING KYLE CRANE W,” from BetterCallMauI. Very strong vibes of excitement.
From here sprung gloomy concerns. Preloading inquiries clogged the thread. PLTytus bluntly asked, “Is preload planned?” and Wilden222 followed, “Will we be able to preload it sooner?” Fair questions. If we get it early, can we download it early? Just logic. Salmirss escalated the situation with an unusual question to developers about pre-loading the day before the release. No direct reply was seen from Techland in the answers we viewed, but maybe they’ll circle back to that.
Messy questions about editions and access followed. Haama231 asked, “Do I need to buy the beast if I have a dying light 2 deluxe edition?” scary_mrjo wondered, “So people who had DL2 gold edition will get DL the beast early 18 sep instead 19?” And Lostforeve77 is still awaiting the response on whether free copies are console- or account-dependent, much to their disappointment. Techland, you need to clear that!
Where the physical copies gang finally showed up. JamesLauseng really went for it: “Physical copy now please!!!! or my wallet remains closed.” Harry_potterYT needed to know about the physical version before buying digital pre-order. The struggle continues for physical media, guys.
And, of course, the GOTY comments came pouring in. LazzyEthan basically said, “Dear I say… GOTY?!?!” followed by a fire emoji. TrollOficer just said, “Scared of GOY,” which I guess is a funny typo. The hype is real, but is it actually GOTY material? Guess we’ll find out in the coming days.
Some players went very wholesome. Instinctraps said, “My son is going to be so excited!” That’s cute. MasterShifu1239 added that this builds “trust and appreciation between player and developer,” while Twisted_rexlity called them “Absolute fucking LEGENDS!!” and claimed that this was the first time a triple-A company has done that. Might be a reach, but you get the idea.
Not winning for everyone. Shinjuro grieved, “sadly my payday isnt until 26th so i cannot play next friday,” with a crying emoji. Big oof. Timing is everything.
And then… the request for cross-play. Dominic65234142 said what we’re all thinking: “Man you guys really gotta add crossplay.” Preach it. It is 2024, crossplay should essentially be default, especially for co-op games like this one.
There were a few suspicious already thinking about next-gen enhancements. focustop10 and Essiach inquired about PS5 Pro enhancements. Future-focused! Respect.
Techland gave a little bit of engagement. They answered xvoltsy’s enthusiasm about Kyle Crane’s return, saying “He can’t wait to be released 😉.” Cute.
So what does all this mean? It means that Techland are feeling pretty confident. Moving a release date UP is a power move. It says “we’re ready, the game is good, let’s do this.” At a time when delays are the norm, having an early release is like fresh air. It is paying attention to the mounting hype and rewarding the players who put their faith in it.
Dying Light community has been waiting for this for return to form, for more of that classic parkour zombie action, and now they get it a day earlier. That man’s on their book for free.
Global launch times are out there, so check when you actually are able to play based on your region. Pre-orders are still live if you haven’t jumped in yet. The horde awaits. And it’s coming sooner than everyone thought.
So mark your calendars for the 18th of September. Clear your schedules. The Beast is coming, and it’s hungry. Let’s hope it really lives up to the insane hype. Pressure is on, with a million people already aboard. But Techland has pulled through before. Let’s hope they do it again.
