Parkour And Rage – Techland Reveal New Details on Dying Light: The Beast
- Kyle Crane returns with zombie rage and new moves.
- Parkour upgraded with 100+ animations, edge grabs, and natural flow.
- Combat and enemies get a new physics engine for dismemberment, and strategic positioning.
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Dying Light
The Beast reintroduces players to Kyle Crane, the protagonist from the first game. However, it hasn’t been all sunshine and lollipops for him since the events of Dying Light, as he’s now filled with a zombie-like bloodlust and enhanced movement abilities.
Both of these were shown off by Techland in a new trailer and dev blog yesterday. Previous updates revealed that Crane was experimented on by a mad scientist, the Baron, but now he’s free and out for revenge. The new Out in The Wild trailer gives players, and Crane, a taste of freedom – and an unusual rage.
“Tortured for years, you’re finally out in the wild,” Techland said in a dev post. “You are free and seeking revenge, but you may have just traded one hell for another. Welcome to the beautiful zombie apocalypse. Welcome to Castor Woods.”
They Should Have Called Him Peter Parkour
Kyle Crane’s zombie-infused anger is just one new ingredient added to The Dying Light recipe, with the full implications of how it will manifest still unknown. Techland has also liberally sprinkled more tasty movement options into The Beast, which it has outlined in more detail.
For starters, Crane now has over 100 new animations that highlight his improved athleticism, alongside 17 unique edge grab animations. There are also no parkour hints in the default game mode, adding to the immersion and encouraging players to figure out for themselves how best to move through an environment.
“We want players to truly feel like they’re the parkour specialists experiencing the thrill and flow of authentic, natural movement,” said Kacper Kowalczuk, Technical Game Director, “In our game, you can go anywhere and climb anything – but it’s always grounded and realistic.”
Zombies, Kiss Goodbye to Your Limbs
It’s not just Crane who’s got a little more love and attention in The Beast; enemies and weapons have also been shown extra care by the dev team. Human enemies are now capable of stealth playstyles too, and as such have access to 22 possible strategic positions during shootouts.
Zombies have also evolved. Although there are still special types to be found in The Beast, the vanilla version is much more deadly now; they can instantly counter attacks, with no guarantee of a long cooldown between attacks, so each encounter with the undead becomes a true test of skill.
Luckily, Crane’s stamina doesn’t deplete as he parkours around, meaning he has more energy to use melee weapons. These have received a new physics-based combat engine, that makes each hit and weapon feel appropriately weighty. Zombies’ bodies also experience the force of the new engine, as limbs and heads can detach in explosive sprays of gore.
Crane’s overall combat skills have also been improved, to better represent a protagonist with military training. This means that he can handle firearm recoil a lot easier than before, as well as wield handheld weapons with better efficiency.
All of this makes Crane a far more powerful character than he used to be, but the cost of his new abilities may well be his humanity. Players can find out what the Baron’s experiments have really done to Crane when Dying Light: The Beast is released on all major platforms on Sept. 19, 2025.
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