Dying Light is back and arguably better than ever with Dying Light: The Beast, having corrected the turns taken by its immediate predecessor to offer players a return to roots for the series that pays off in the long run. Just as past Dying Light games have done, The Beast puts players right in the middle of one of the most authentic zombie apocalypse experiences in gaming, this time with Kyle Crane once again in the lead, his newfound Beast powers raging within him. As players make their way through the zombie-infested world of Castor Woods, they will use those powers, as well as any weapons they can find and craft, to fend off the horde of infected that wander the streets and the surrounding forests.
There is a healthy variety of weapon types for players to choose from when battling the infected in Dying Light: The Beast, from sharp axes to blunt hammers, each of which serves a unique purpose in combat. However, one weapon is hands down the best in the game for its usefulness in stealth builds (which are all but necessary in Dying Light) and its damage output — but there’s a massive catch. In short, it seems Dying Light: The Beast‘s bow knows all too well that it is the best weapon in the game, as its use is significantly limited compared to other weapons.
Dying Light: The Beast's Bow Is Its Sharpest Double-Edged Sword
Why Silence and Accuracy Change Everything
One of the bow’s main qualities that makes it such a formidable weapon in Dying Light: The Beast is how effective it is for stealth combat. Stealth is essential in any Dying Light game, as the main thing players want to avoid is making too much noise, drawing too many infected, and getting overwhelmed in the process. There are other weapons useful for stealth in Dying Light: The Beast, like throwing knives, but the bow is still far more powerful, with greater range and greater damage output.
Getting a well-placed headshot with a bow in Dying Light: The Beast will almost always kill the target in one shot, unless it’s a much larger foe like one of the game’s Chimeras. While guns can certainly accomplish this, as well as throwing knives, again, the bow is both silent and powerful, making it a much better choice for ranged combat. When using loud weapons like guns in Dying Light: The Beast (and any Dying Light game, for that matter), the noise can attract Virals, which require less damage to kill than a normal infected but can quickly swarm players.
The Rare Cost of Power in Dying Light: The Beast
The biggest downside of using the bow in Dying Light: The Beast, however, is that it is exceedingly expensive to use and maintain, primarily due to its use of Feathers as a resource. Feathers are incredibly rare in Castor Woods — more so than just about every other resource in the game — and they only become rarer as players upgrade their blueprint for the bow and arrows. As the bow and arrows increase in crafting tiers, the Feathers required to craft more arrows and repair the bow increase as well.
Of course, Feathers, like other resources in Dying Light: The Beast, can be farmed if players know where to look, but even then, they are rare enough and show up in such small quantities that it won’t be long after spending a considerable amount of time farming them that players will need to farm them again. It’s a shame that such a great weapon seems to know its limits. It’s a bit cocky, in that sense, with its own pride coming before its fall.