In 2015, Dying Light came out and showed a dramatically real circumstance for a zombie apocalypse. Techland built a first person reality in the city of Harran that captured the desperation and the horror of trying to survive a city overrun by infected people. The Hellraid DLC takes the fantastic fight mechanics from Dying Light and puts a fantasy spin on them as you storm a dungeon trying to unravel the secrets of Ba’al’s Tower and fight a horde of monsters from hell.
The gameplay is very similar to the Dying Light main game (duh), but Hellraid is more of an arcade game mode as opposed to the free roam style of your journey around Harran. As opposed to the other DLCs that are initiated from the main menu, Hellraid appears as a vintage appearing arcade game that is housed on the bottom floor of the tower. This transports you to the world of Hellraid and it starts in an eerie room that only contains a well in the center and a chest that holds the items you pick up in the dungeon. From there, you drop down into the well to initiate your journey to find the 3 parts of the Clavis stone.
Even though the style of the characters and the interactions you have are built from the Dying Light section of the game, Techland did a fantastic job of making Hellraid feel like a unique part of the game. A distinctive Hellraid style is brought to the hordes of enemies in the dungeons. Many of the same enemy classes from the main game are brought over into Hellraid like running zombies, but there are a handful of characters unique to this game mode. They are these different versions of skeleton warriors that spill out of portals placed at different points in the dungeon. These skeleton warriors span different abilities from bare bones, regular enemies that carry swords to armored versions and even some that have magical powers like shooting lightning. However, my favorite part had to be the new weapons introduced with the Hellraid DLC. The weapons carry a very medieval look, and they fit perfectly in the more fantasy tone that this DLC carries. If you end up picking up the DLC, try out the head smasher and you will not be disappointed. It kept me alive many times, and always kept the runners at bay.
In such a great and unique DLC to an already fantastic game, there wasn’t any part of the gameplay itself that I didn’t love. I only wish it was longer. It took me a couple hours to make it through Ba’al’s Tower, and I’m sure a more seasoned Dying Light player could beat it much faster. This could limit the replay value for some people, but Techland plans on continuing to build out the content and levels available over time, which will help alleviate that issue.
Overall, I loved the Hellraid DLC and it was a great addition to the Dying Light story. The goriness, the enemies both undead and supernatural, the updated weapons, and just the feel of fighting your way through the dungeon worked together well and left me wanting a full game of this. I can’t wait to see what Techland has in store as they add on to the DLC, and I would pick up a full Hellraid game in a heartbeat.
8.5/10
Check Out the Dying Light – Hellraid DLC Trailer:
The Dying Light – Hellraid DLC is available on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. Post launch support for Dying Light – Hellraid is already planned including new weapons, bounties, and others, starting with Lord Hector’s Demise planned for September. Further free updates will be available in the upcoming months.
For more information on Dying Light – Hellraid, please visit the official website.
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Xbox One Review
My first console was the original Playstation and I would play Twisted Metal every now and then but games didn't hook me until I played the original Halo at my friend's house. As soon as I picked up that controller, I knew I needed an Xbox and I had to have that game. Since those early Halo days, I've branched out and played any game I could find with a great story and memorable characters but Master Chief is still my favorite. @thenotoriousTGT on Twitter
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