Dying Light, the upcoming horror game from Dead Island developer Techland, will feature a multiplayer mode called Be the Zombie. Not all players will have access to this game mode, though.
Be The Zombie is the only player-versus-player experience in the game. It allows players to become a night hunter, a monster well-suited to stalking and killing other players. Night hunters are extremely fast and agile. They can grapple objects with their tendril and also charge enemies. These creatures also have an unspecified range attack as well.
By chasing players around as a night hunter, you'll earn experience points. These points enable you to then develop the monster through its exclusive skill tree. Techland promises that players will earn other exclusive rewards as well.
This mode will only be available to gamers who pre-order through participating retailers. The press release says that this is the "only way at launch" to receive the mode. That suggests that the mode will be released as paid DLC somewhere down the road as well. While pre-order customers don't have to pay for this mode, they're spending money on the game before they know if it's any good. The multiplayer mode is essentially a reward for this gamble.
In Dying Light's campaign, players take on the role of human survivors following a sudden outbreak. At night, they have to fight off murderous hordes of infected. If they survive, they can venture out into the world to collect supplies and craft supplies. Once night falls, the cycle will repeat. While they struggle to survive, players will find other survivors and perform quests to help them out. The free-running and open-world exploration make the game seem like a cross between Mirror's Edge and Dead Island.
Dying Light will be released on PS4, Xbox One, PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 in 2014. If you're attending PAX Prime this weekend, you'll be able to log some hands-on time.
