Dying Light is a franchise that takes liberties with its first-person perspective. Instead of focusing on guns, projectiles, and driving vehicles, the game's selling points are close-range melee combat and parkour. While these elements are normally reserved for third-person titles, both Dying Light and Dying Light 2 find ways to implement them that don't leave players confused or disoriented.

Playing Dying Light and Dying Light 2 can be fun once players get a hang of their first-person mechanics. Techland has done its best to make sure controlling the player characters feels intuitive and responsive so people spend less time learning the controls and more time finding their own style. To get players immersed in the role of Aiden Caldwell for Dying Light 2, Techland has doubled down on the game's sound design and implemented dynamic music that changes with the players' actions.

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The Highs and Lows Of Dying Light's Combat

Image from Dying Light 2 showing an enemy about to attack the player who's lying on the floor.

Unlike its predecessor, Dying Light 2 puts more of an emphasis on stealth so players can get the upper-hand on their enemies. When enemies are unaware of Aiden, the music is slow, somber, or at times nonexistent. This scarcity of music inspires Dying Light players to be stealthy and use things like hiding spots, distractions, and silent takedowns so as not to break the silence. Enemy detection meters have sharp pings that warn players whenever they are close to being discovered - a stark contrast to the lack of sound when in stealth.

Eventually players will have to enter combat, which is marked by a sudden change to a more fast-paced beat. At this point, players have to contend with the battle cries of Dying Light 2's human enemies, as well as the shrieks and howls of Dying Light's zombie foes. The swishes and clangs of melee weapons also permeate the battlefield, making it hard for the player to notice the upbeat score in the background (which is good, considering players want to hear where the enemies' attacks are coming from). The music is still there, but it serves as a way to urge the player to fight, run away, or get back into stealth.

Dynamic Music Pushes Dying Light 2 Players To Keep Parkour Flowing

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Dying Light 2's dynamic music works differently for the game's parkour system. The music starts out slow and simple at the beginning of a parkour run. As players build up speed by performing different moves, more instruments and layers of music get added. This creates a complex piece that escalates the overall mood players feel during their run.

Different parkour moves, such as jumping and wall-running, produce different musical highs and lows depending on the current animation a player is going through. The apex of a jump, for instance, causes a wide berth in the music and mimics the tension a player feels as they await their landing. Once the player lands, the music kicks back in and resumes its original tempo. The more layers of music there are, the more Dying Light players want to continue chaining moves together. Aiden himself starts exclaiming how much fun he's having once the player gets in a freerunning groove. The music continues to build up as long as players keep moving, and slows down as they eventually come to a stop.

Whether it be stealth, combat, or parkour, Dying Light 2's score always fits the scene. Adaptive music based on the player's actions is a great way to reinforce what they are doing apart from the standard experience points system in Dying Light 2. Doing so not only makes it easier for them to gauge their overall performance, but compels them to push further and improve their skills.

Dying Light 2 is available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. A Switch version is in development.

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