Six months after the launch of Dying Light 2 Stay Human, Techland answered our questions about the future of the license, the new game modes to come and Dying Light 3. Interview.
Dying Light 2 was released last February after a somewhat complicated development. A success for the sequel of the zombie game that leads Techland to offer more and more for its players. We also tried to discover the new features planned during the five-year roadmap announced. Exclusive interview with Tymon Smektala, Lead Game Designer of the studio.
VGRFive months after launch, how many sales for the game and what is the feedback from players? Is it a success for Techland?
Tymon Smektala: It’s definitely a success, the biggest game we’ve ever created and launched. We’re not revealing any numbers right now, other than the 5 million copies sold during the release window, but extrapolating that, you can imagine how monumental the game is. But personally, for me, the numbers don’t really matter, at least not in the business sense. I’m proud that the entire team was able to create a game that touched so many players, and I want to assure everyone that we see it as an obligation to support the game and the community with every possible resource. For now, we’ve solved most of the usual launch issues, so it’s time to start adding new things to the game.
The first DLC has been pushed back to September, does this allow the team to offer more than expected?
We changed our plans mainly because of what the community wanted from us. Our players told us about certain features that were important to them and we decided to focus on those. The community always comes first. We could try to fit the DLC into the initial release window, but that might compromise the quality of the content produced. But yes, I think the DLC has been expanded a little bit from what we had planned in advance – we’ve added an extra 1 or 2 side quests, a really cool Easter Egg. It will definitely be a little bit thicker.
The community has been asking for a new Game +, which was supposed to be in this DLC, what other improvements are coming?
Actually, the NewGame+ is already out, so I invite all players to go back to the game – if they haven’t already – and see how it changes the experience. More Volatiles in the streets, a greater threat from the infected – this is something that fans of the first Dying Light will especially appreciate. Our plan is to keep an eye on the community’s requests and continue to respond until we and our players are satisfied with the game. We’re improving the game’s technology, rebalancing some of its parts, adding quality of life improvements. It’s really nice to see how the game evolves every day.
Are there any other game modes planned?
During the 5 years of support we have committed to? Sure (smile), but it’s too early to tell the details. We want Dying Light 2 Stay Human to be that game that will stay on players’ machines for the duration of this generation, that there’s something to keep coming back to, so we’re going to try to keep reimagining our gameplay to keep it fresh. There are definitely some great things to come, but for now we’re focused on the first DLC and the agent chapters.
So DL2 seems to be moving towards a GaaS format, with recurring seasonal content and new chapters: what are the next additions planned after this DLC? Any hope for a DL3 one day?
We’re in this for the long haul, so right now we’re not thinking about Dying Light 3 at all. After the vacations we released chapter 2 with a cool new character. Then we’ll have the first DLC and I’d love to tell you what else is going to happen very soon, but that would spoil the surprise, wouldn’t it?
Any crossovers or collaborations with other licenses?
Our mouths are sealed, but we are working with the studios behind some of our favorite games in hopes that we can do something fun with their communities as well. I think fans of the first Dying Light and some of the collaborations we did there would be more likely to guess some of those titles…
Looking at the roadmap, is Techland full focus on the DL franchise or does the way the studio operates allow them to focus on other creations?
I think it’s important to point out that as a company we have two full studios – and we’ve already announced that the Warsaw studio is working on another AAA open world game, this time in a fantasy world. There’s a dream team behind it and an incredible game is being born there. But Dying Light is our baby and, as I said before, we are committed to further developing the franchise and seriously supporting Dying Light 2 Stay Human for at least 5 years!
