Dying Light 2 Stay Human: Bloody Ties review of Techland’s first plot DLC for action

The first Dying Light, which debuted as a true underdog in 2015, has managed to draw on a seemingly unlimited number of enthusiasts over the years, and as a pure rookie it has become one of the most successful survival horrors of eighth-gen consoles. This wealth is certainly due to the massive features of the base game, but a large part of it should instead be attributed to the prolific post-launch support that has poured massive amounts of unreleased content into the streets of Harran. The community has been busy all the years after its release.

know this gift technology country, so it was perfectly reasonable to expect great things to happen for Dying Light 2: Stay Human’s post-launch content campaign, and in some ways it was called to use the not-so-stellar reception reserved for this sequel. Just like seven years ago, the Polish studio made a quick debut in a few months by releasing a series of updates that enriched the game’s offering and brought some key features such as the new game plus and photo mode. it was naturally focused on Bloody Ties, the first DLC in Aiden Caldwell’s history and is now available on all platforms at an affordable all-in-one price of €9.99.

Is the expansion a valid reason to return to Villedor? What new content does it offer? But above all, is it worth the ticket price? ours Dying Light 2 Stay Human: Bloody Ties reviewall the answers to these questions.

Aiden’s new adventure

The Bloody Ties DLC made its public debut with a trailer that baffled some of the community due to its resemblance to one of the first Dying Light’s least-rated expansions, Horde of Bozak. This content focused on a very mundane arena mode that puts players in front of countless waves of infected without any true narrative intervention, and many fear that Techland will repeat the mistake in this case as well, given the focus of the DLC. The big hero of Bloody Ties, actually, Massacre HallA magnificent arena carved into the heart of an old opera house, which survivors used as an amphitheater to stage brutal and violent fights to the death.

If you find yourself among those looking forward to the DLC with some trepidation, the good news is that Bloody Ties, unlike Horde, puts itself at the center of the offering. narrative component. Carnage Hall and the clashes in the arena are the backdrop to an entirely new story that will engage Aiden with a host of new characters whose fates, as in the main game, are largely dependent on our choices. The beginning is not overwhelming, but the story, at least in the beginning, has a good pace and managed to grab our full attention.

Aiden starts going to Villedor’s fight clubs for fame, glory and money and they get to know each other. Cyrus, a warrior whose family appears to have more than a few ties to Carnage Hall. Generally speaking, the point of the whole adventure is to become new champions by progressing through the hierarchies of the arena, but the performances are somehow irrelevant to the progression of the story. Each meeting is distinguished from the others thanks to a small number of particularly structured plot missions that continue the narrative narrative by shedding light on the secrets of Ciro’s family and others. AstridThe bloodthirsty leader of Carnage Hall.

We do not want to explain too much about this. complo Dying Light 2 Stay Human: Bloody Ties, but we have to admit that after wrapping it up in about four hours, we were expecting more from the expansion, considering how it wanted to focus on its narrative component. The story starts out convincingly, but as soon as you finally feel like you’re at the center of events, everything suddenly speeds up, so much so that some major knots seem almost rushed, not very comprehensive. The strictly limited duration of the expansion is the direct result of the amount for which it was sold, and while we still find the relationship between quality and price positive, it’s the thresholds of Carnage Hall’s history of production values ​​that aren’t up to a story DLC.

Bread and circuses

Given the community’s fears, it’s almost paradoxical to see how the DLC’s true value is consolidated around it. fights in the arenaIt is in no way comparable to what has already been seen in the Bozak Horde. To climb the ranks of Carnage Hall and take on the DLC’s true nemesis, the fearsome Skull Face, we’ll find ourselves in a series of 16 spectacular performances that never expected to wipe out waves of completely handcrafted and random monsters. generated by the computer. Divided into four sub-categories, they may require us to perform a complex parkour obstacle course that will be completed within a certain amount of time, or eliminate some specific monsters that fill the arena, or even win in bloody boss fights against rare species. infected. But the most fascinating exhibit is the one known as “The Spectacle”, which includes themed objectives and the handling of specific scenarios. To give you an idea, in one of these, Aiden must emulate Kyle Crane’s prowess in an arena modeled after Harran, much like a reproduction of the battle of Zama between Hannibal’s mercenaries and Scipio Africanus’ legionnaires in Gladiator.

Just like in the Colosseum, where sometimes even naval battles were fought,arena Hall of Carnage changes its face with every performance, so you’ll never perceive the unwavering sense of repetition that characterizes nearly all video game wave modes. Fights are sometimes fun, challenging and exciting thanks to a selection of designs we all share. Aiden doesn’t carry his weapons with him in battles, but uses standard equipment and is always motivated to use resources hidden in all corners of the environment to evade the threats that fill the arena. So the DLC is aimed at everyone, whether you finished Dying Light 2 a long time ago or just finished the prologue.

You will get the exhibits by winning Opera TokensIt can be spent in shops in Carnage Hall to receive special rewards provided with DLC, such as outfits, weapon packs, armor and blueprints for Aiden. While tokens are obtained in large quantities by repeating previously completed shows, unfortunately there is no mechanic who can procedurally assemble arenas to have endless replayability of fights. It’s not a discounted item, but it would definitely grace the last Bloody Ties offering.

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DLC introduces a new maphowever, this is largely confined to the opera house and does not include the typical open-world dynamics observed in Villador, as the space is almost entirely controlled by the survivors. The palace garden is full of events and challenges, but you’ll rarely be persuaded to explore the surroundings of Carnage Hall, as you’ll mostly have to do it by the 10 side quests that accompany the main story. Like the latter, the latter are well made but will never leave you hairy with enthusiasm.

an unpublished element of close interest Gameplay is the Slaughter Sleeve, a new item obtained at the end of the story that can be inserted into the slots reserved for accessories. The channel basically adds some depth to the combat system, giving Aiden’s hands three additional skills that are activated in certain situations and are fully customizable thanks to three modification slots. We’re announcing the introduction of two new infected variants, Gorilla Demolishers and Goon Cataclysms, a variety of melee weapons, and a new item that has the potential to revolutionize the way you navigate Villedor: It’s a key juncture of the plot so we don’t want to tell you anything, just know that the contagion is blankets. and will delight those who like to sneak among blankets.

final thoughts

Striking an arithmetic balance between the qualities and flaws of the DLC, Bloody Ties could turn out to be an expansion to be avoided at all costs, as it aims to focus on the plot first and foremost by failing to pack one of real value. Even so, the low price and incredible quality of the arena fights make the expansion a good buy for fans of Dying Light 2. If you’re desperately looking for a reason to play with Aiden, don’t hesitate, if not, carefully consider the idea of ​​waiting for a nostalgic new pack, especially for Villedor. evaluate. We’re just at the beginning of post-launch support for this second episode, and if Techland has taught us anything… then we’ll see the good ones.