Ever since I first saw some of the very, very early and obscure screenies of this upcoming zombie game, that may, or may not get finished, I was looking forward to its release like crazy, but then the news surrounding this game kinda died down, just like they arose out of nowhere before that. Then bam, suddenly things went really quick and ever more and more new screensots and dev vids dripped in, just like the game had never entirely vanished into thin air and off the radars of so many gamers that were looking forward to itlike myself. And finally the game was graced by my by far most favorite VG-trailer of all time, that even became one of my top 5 best zombie “movies” ever.
I’m ofc talking about the original Dead Island. That game had a very recognisable look to it, considering that the whole thing also took place in the “real” world, as opposed to games like say Rage, Brink and Wolfenstein. The game had a very specific lighting and everything looked a bit like it was made out of plastic. Even though I could’ve lived without the later one it was at least some sort of look, that seperated it quite clearly from any other game at that time. Though I didn’t actually played it, since it wasn’t what I’ve imagined it would be after I saw the very first WiP pics and this terrific trailer. Instead it was a loot and crafting RPG with no real drama to it; at least that’s what I got from watching around 10hrs of LP’s of it.
So now, after various Dead Island titles and a couple DLC, Techland is bringing us Dying Light at the end of the month. And my biggest gripes with it(and many other games at the moment) is, that it doesn’t look any different, than any other game out there. If you’d take a screenshot from anywhere in the game(without the zombies ofc), you wouldn’t know from which game those pics are. What I mean by that; the game looks great from a technical POV and the textures are pretty nice and sharp, but regardless of that the atmosphere, or rather the lack of it kinda bores me, so I’ve canceled my pre-order. I’ve watched all pre-release vids on theRadBrad’s channel, but the game just doesn’t grab me, even though I thought I’d effing love it. But nowadays every game goes so much for realism, that they all look more or less the same to me.
Ok, it’s difficult to make something look unique, when it’s so much rooted in reality and our period of time, but it’s possible. I mean you can’t go too wild on the environment and all the stuff in it, since it’s supposed to take place in the present(more, or less) but you could change the entire visual style; i.e. like Borderlands, Bioshock Infinite, Team Fortress, Loadout, Brink, Telltale’s TWD, you get the idea. But this realistic looking open world stuff just bores the crap out of me, that’s why I don’t feel in the slightest to play something like Far Cry. Actually, just from watching it on YT, Dying Light reminds me a lot of FC; like FC with zombies. Far Cry: Blood Dragon on the other hand is just awesome.
After all I came again to the conclusion, that my idea of the whole zombie genre may be a bit specific and with a strong emphasis on the drama. Zombie movies were never really about horror for me. A Nightmare on Elm Street, the Ring and several other ghost movies are what I’d call horror movies(Freddy is also some kind of ghost), but zombie flicks were always more about blood pumping hardcore thrill, deep, heart tearing drama, interesting make up effects and the return to the core values and pleasures of being alive; like a full stomach at the end of the day, a day without running for your life, you know, those little things; being close to your family and defending them with your life on a daily basis, etc.
But for some odd reasons zombie games are mostly about slaughtering zombies with a multitude of ridiculous makeshift weapons. And even though that’s fun and also a core part of the whole zombie lore, it shouldn’t be such a central element of those games. Telltale’s TWD is actually the only zombie game, that comes close to a 100% of what I’d think a zombie game should be like, but it’s quite short and also not really a game, but more of an interactive graphic novel. I would love the tone and story of TWD cobbled with a open/ongoing world scenario.
What I still like in Dying Light:
-the background music
-the mobility/movement
-the story to a certain extent, though it’s not as dramatic, as I would’ve wished
-day and night cycle
-how the zombies look, behave, even though some of them are way too agile for being dead people
Maybe I’ll finally give it a shot, once the first impression reviews start coming in on YT and when they convince me.
PS: The second best zombie game(that is actually not a zombie game), is ofc TLoU.