Achievement Preview Spotlight: Dying Light

By Jonathan Barnes,
With the holiday season squarely behind us, it's time to get back to looking ahead (yes, you read that right) at upcoming releases and, more importantly for us, their achievements. In this week's Achievement Preview Spotlight, we're taking a look at Techland's open-world, parkour, zombie post-apocalypse, Dying Light Achievements.

APS

Secrets are meant to be kept... or shared... or fought over... I don't know. Since I blew the terrible secret about Sister Mary-Margaret in 10th grade, nobody has told me any. The point is that Dying Light has nine secret achievements totaling up to 215G. Since none of the game's non-secret achievements appear to be story related, one could assume that these nine are all tied to the story. Within the rest of the list, there's a fair spread of co-op and single player achievements. Let's take a look at a few highlights.

If you've followed any of the game's videos or livestreams, you've probably noticed that Dying Light is focused more on melee action than firearms, making this achievement one that you may have to gun for... pun intended, of course.

Harran Shooting Club

Kill 50 enemies with shooting weapons

Harran Shooting Club

Fifty enemies doesn't seem so bad in a game that is sure to take its fair share of hours. Given that the game also features (living) human enemies that wield firearms, you'll probably have ample opportunity to exercise your ballistic prerogative.

One of the things that jumped off the screen for me in the recent 90 minute livestream was the incredibly robust upgrade system that had different skill trees. With so many options at your disposal, the next achievement (and related siblings) should come as no surprise.

Everybody Knows Kyle

Reach Survivor Rank lvl 12

Everybody Knows Kyle

In addition to hitting Survivor Rank Level 12, you also have achievements for hitting Survivor Rank Level 18, Agility Proficiency Level 10, and Power Proficiency Level 10. While the developer has hinted that it would be possible to "max out" a character in a single playthrough, it may require some grinding, so be sure to keep that in mind as you're running.

...and run you will, if the next achievement is any indication.

Pheidippides

Run (move or sprint) at least 42.195 m

Pheidippides

Pheidippides was the guy who is said to have run from Marathon to Athens to deliver news of a military victory against the Persians, coining the term "marathon". Given that the game might turn your character into a hybrid of Forrest Gump and the guy from opening of Casino Royale, you shouldn't have too much of a problem popping this one... ditto for Mount Everest, for climbing the equivalent height of the eponymous mountain.

Being a relatively new southerner, in a state known for its barbecue, this next achievement jumped off the page and slapped me with a vinegar pepper bite.

BBQ

Stick a burning zombie on spikes

BBQ
4 guidesOnline/Offline - These achievements can be obtained in either an online or offline game mode.Single Player - These achievements can be obtained by a single player.Cooperative - These achievements can be obtained by two or more players in a cooperative game mode who have met the achievement requirements.

Reading the description on this achievement makes it sound like it might be difficult and time-consuming to set up, but I get the strong feeling that this will be one that you either A - pop by accident without realizing it or B - find an easy solution to. Regardless, pass the pulled pork.

Finally, let's address the elephant in the room; Dying Light is an open world game and has all of the open world achievements you might expect. There are collectible achievements, co-op achievements that require consistent friends, kill-specific achievements, achievements for completing challenges, and world exploration achievements. The game's biggest achievement, however, is the one that is probably going to take the most time as well.

The Whole Story

Finish all side quests.

The Whole Story
4 guidesOnline/Offline - These achievements can be obtained in either an online or offline game mode.Single Player - These achievements can be obtained by a single player.Cooperative - These achievements can be obtained by two or more players in a cooperative game mode who have met the achievement requirements.

While there's no telling how many side quests are packed into Dying Light at this juncture, one can assume it's more than a handful. With 100G on the line, this is probably going to end up being the game's biggest achievement in TA score as well, so you best keep your eyes on the map for all of those objective points.

Brass tacks - You expect a grindy achievement slog in an open world game, though, right? Completionists out there should definitely take heed when diving into Dying Light, as it's probably going to require a relatively large time investment, a group of friends, some hunting/searching, and possibly the use of a guide at some point. That being said, the achievement list packs very few surprises and should provide some sustained score increases for those willing to make the time investment.

If you'd rather wait on a bevy of review options before committing to Dying Light, we're expecting to get our review copy at some point this week with a review to be posted by the weekend or this time next week at the latest!

If there's an upcoming game or DLC pack that you'd like to see featured in the Achievement Preview Spotlight, be sure to let us know in the comments!
Jonathan Barnes
Written by Jonathan Barnes
Jonathan has been a news/views contributor since 2010. When he's not writing reviews, features, and opinion pieces, he spends his days working as an informal science educator and his nights as an international man of mystery.
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