You may also think of Dead Island, the 2011 action/RPG/zombie killer. I really enjoyed the first Dead Island, the sequels - Dead Island: Riptide and Escape Dead Island - were mediocre at best, and we will see how Dead Island 2 pans out.
Enter Dying Light, created by the same studio that did the original Dead Island. This, naturally, got my attention. So how did this mix of zombie and parkour turn out? Here is what I think of Dying Light.
The zombie outbreak - described as a rare form of rabies - breaks out in the fictional city of Harran, which is based off Turkey. You are Kyle Crane, an undercover agent sent in to retrieve what's believed to be the unfinished plans for the cure to the zombie outbreak. Those plans were stolen by a man named Kadir Suleiman, who plans to manufacture this cure. Trouble is, since it is unfinished, it is highly toxic in its current form. Suleiman has taken an alias, so his whereabouts are unknown, but he is believed to be the head of one of the two main factions in the city.
As the game opens, you are airdropped into Harran, and things already go wrong. You land on the street hard, ambushed by bandits, attacked (and bit) by zombies, before being saved by survivors from the Tower, a safehouse nearby and one of the main factions. You get your shot of "zombie suppressant" and are tasked with helping out around the safehouse since these guys did save your life and all.
Of course, what sets Dying Light apart is the traversal, the parkour aspect, the sprinting, the jumping, the hanging on, the wall running, and it all works really well here. Crane is very flexible and athletic and can climb on pretty much anything you can look at. While a game like Assassin's Creed is very deliberate about what can and can not be climbed on, Dying Light makes it feel more natural and immersive. This is good for when you drop down, suddenly find yourself surrounded by zombies, and need a quick escape route.
There are times, however, when you have to defend yourself and bash in some zombie skulls (always aim for the head). Weapons are littered throughout the world and all have their own stats as far as damage, durability, and speed. These weapons can range from baseball bats, to water pipes, to cricket bats, to hammers, to (rare) guns. The weapons have rarity ratings as well, so a purple hammer is bound to have better stats than its blue counterpart. You can also upgrade and modify the weapons to add elemental effects. You can also craft throwing weapons like a molotov or firecrackers, as well as consumables like medkits and lockpicks using crafting items found throughout the city.
The weapons do wear down with use, so they will need repaired occasionally, and they can only be repaired a certain amount of times, forcing players to root around the city looking for new weapons of undead destruction. You can also buy special weapons from vendors and receive free items from "Quatermasters", so you will always have something to smack zombies around with. If all else fails, you can give them the ole' "Duke Nukem Boot" or, my favorite, drop kick them. There are also instant death spike traps around which you can use to your advantage.
The zombie types do vary, you will have your generic shambling zombie, the faster "28 Days Later" zombie, your spitters, your big, hulking zombie, and the terrifying "Night Hunters".
Which is the other big thing about this game: the day/night cycle. It boils down to this; you better get your shit done during the day because at night, the freaks come out. The heavy zombies come out and will wreck your shit up if they see you, which you can see via the Metal Gear Solid-style vision cones on your mini map. Noises will attract them too. They can be defeated, it just takes a lot of work to, which is why you have a UV flashlight to aid you. Your XP doubles at night, and some missions require you being out at night, so there is incentive to be out, but your best bet is to find a safehouse and sleep till morning.
I used the word "terrifying" earlier and this is one of those rare zombie games I've played where I was actually afraid. Normally, I can play Left 4 Dead, get my shotgun or whatever melee weapon I have equipped, and just go nuts. This game actually gave me chills. One really neat touch is the ability to look behind you when sprinting. This may seem like a small thing, but when you are running for you life, being able to look behind you at the horde of zombies stopping at nothing to get at you, it gets your heart pounding.
As you perform tasks, you get XP, whether it's for helping survivors, leaping from ledge to ledge, or smashing zombie brains, you can upgrade your character, increasing stamina and health, unlocking new blueprints to craft new weapons, etc.
You don't have to go it alone though. The game supports up to 4 player co-op and it is a lot of fun to get your friends together and create chaos. The game will also randomly create challenges, such as "Kill the most zombies", "Loot the most money", and so on, awarding XP to the winner. There is also the "Be a Zombie" mode, which allows you to invade other players games as the Night Hunter, looking to kill the human(s). Imagine you are trying to survive the night and you see another player has entered into your game hellbent on devouring you, how scary is that?
You can definitely tell this is the same team that made Dead Island, but Dying Light feels more fluid, and adds the real element of being afraid for your life. The game looks great, plays smooth, and it is still satisfying to take a baseball bat and smack a zombie upside their undead head. Sure, there are some bummers: the UI is a little cumbersome, and the climbing can get a little janky at spots, but overall, this is a very satisfying and suspenseful zombie game. Yes, zombie games are a dime a dozen, but Dying Light does enough to stand out and be well worth any zombie-slayer's time.
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