How to Survive Dying Light: A Combat Guide

Dying Light‘s Humans

Humans are much smarter in combat than zombies, but they can also prove to be more fragile.

Dying Light has been out for nearly a week with its parkour take on action survival horror. Around every turn is a new threat for you to either avoid or meet head-on. One would think that in a game whose advertising seemed to focus on the walking dead you wouldn’t find yourself up against too many humans. However, you’ll be pleasantly surprised to find that there are quite a few humans who would like nothing more than to remove your pretty little head from your shoulders.

Dying Light not only pits you against zombies but also against an enemy human faction controlled by Rais, one of the primary antagonists, hell bent on controlling everything in the city of Harran.  They can be a serious threat if you approach combat in the wrong way. The human enemies come in three distinct varieties. You have your melee, throwing weapons, and firearm-equipped humans to look out for. Luckily they are much easier to dispatch than your typical zombie adversary.

In order to take out any of Rais’s men you will only need a few things. Firstly, a stock of molotov cocktails will keep any humans at bay. Unlike the already dead, humans don’t have a strong resistance to being covered in flames. A well placed bottle of fire can clear out an entire group of unsuspecting humans. Only other thing you may require is a firearm for those human enemies in Dying Light who happen to be equipped with assault rifles. There is nothing like a well placed headshot to quickly eliminate an enemy.

Humans are much more aggressive than their zombie counterparts but luckily they have nowhere near the same resistances. This gives you the advantage since you no longer have to worry about using the best tools. They are able to use the same dodge mechanics as you though so never allow yourself to be surrounded and you’ll be fine. Having mastered humans, you can now focus on more pressing matters such as those zombies trying to tear your neck open.

Dying Light‘s Basic Infected and Virals

The basic infected in Dying Light come in three distinct varieties. The most basic being the common biter.

Your first zombie encounters in Dying Light will pit you against the basic level enemies in order to give you a feel of how these sorts of fights go. The most basic type of infected you will be up against are biters and virals. Each one possesses the same amount strength but the way they move affords each a different necessary approach. First, let’s focus on biters.

Biters in Dying Light are your typical, slow, TV zombie. They will notice you if you get to close, but they are easily distracted and not too much of a threat if you keep your wits about you. You can either make your way around them with ease or aim for the head with any melee weapon in order to quickly dispatch them. If you’ve unlocked the stealth takedown skill you can throw a firecracker and quickly break the necks of an entire group without breaking a sweat.

Virals on the other hand are ridiculously fast. Any loud noise, such as those from an explosion or firearm, will attract a number of these nasty critters. What sets them apart from biters is not only their speed, but also their ability to traverse the city of Harran similarly to your own methods. They have a telltale screech that precedes their arrival so once you hear that noise it’s best to get on top of a nearby vehicle or small building. Once up there just wait for the viral to climb and give them a swift kick. They are fast but incredibly weak, so a quick kick will slow them down enough to deliver a finishing blow. As long as you don’t panic, virals can be the easiest enemy to get rid of.

Virals are fast little bastards that will go over any obstacle to get to your tasty living flesh.

One other basic you will come across is the gas-tank infected who is easily identified by the bright yellow hazmat suit. These guys are just as slow as your typical biters but have the added risk of a combustable gas-tank on their backs. You’ll want to focus on their legs or head, but make sure not to swing in the vicinity of the tank on their back. If you happen to puncture said tank, this particular infected will explode attracting tons of virals and other undesirables.

Dying Light‘s Goons

Goons are huge, powerful, and very slow.

If you’ve played Techland’s previous zombie-infested game, Dead Island, then you should be familiar with the thugs. They were huge muscled zombies who covered a wide area with their powerful swings. Patience and well-placed melee attacks controlled fights with these powerful enemies. If you were ever unlucky enough to face one of these in a group then you know how annoying they can be. Dying Light reintroduces these hated undead in the form of goons.

Goons are larger than your average infected and are always equipped with a rather large two-handed weapon, usually a piece of rebar. Their loud growls distinguish them from any pack, and they are usually confronted in open spaces that provide enough room for their attacks. They come in two distinct varieties; regular large zombie or dead fireman. While the difference may seem trivial, the fireman variety completely removes a major course of action.

Dying Light’s  standard goons are powerful but slow. They will shamble over to you before attempting any one of their devastating attacks. You can easily set one ablaze with a burning star or molotov and keep your distance, or dance in and out as you deliver multiple cuts to the back and sides of the goon. Their attacks will knock you to the floor if you’re close enough but you’ll be afforded enough time to get up and recuperate. If you’re ever unlucky to be hit directly by their heavy weapon then you’ll find yourself dead after one hit.

For the fireman variation you’ll want to keep yourself from wasting any molotovs or fire imbued weapons. Their clothing is flame retardant so you’ll have to get in close or rely on something with a different element in order to achieve desired results. This variation also seems to have a bit more range to its area attack, so be sure not to stay at its side for too long. With a little bit of practice you’ll find yourself dancing in sync with all of their swings as you hack away at rotting flesh.

Toads, Bombers and Screamers

Toads, screamers, and the above bombers can unfavorably turn the tide of a simple battle.

There are three special infected in Dying Light that are rarely seen, but when they do decide to rear their ugly heads they tend to create a world of problems for anyone playing. Those three are the toads and screamers. On their own they are little more than a nuisance but given the right circumstances you will find these two can be your absolute worst nightmare.

Toads are grotesquely mutated infected with a love for spitting toxic substances at any survivors close by. They will either hit you with a stream of saliva or a sticky bomb that explodes for massive damage plus a poisoning effect. They tend to stay on the outskirts of any battle and prefer higher positions that provide both a vantage point and range. Lucky for you these nasty zombies are physically weak and will usually die in one hit even if you’re not quite leveled up. Locate these guys quickly and take them out first if you want to get the edge in a group battle.

Bombers are pretty much the opposite of toads in Dying Light. While toads prefer to keep a distance in order to survive, bombers will charge at you in the hope of trapping you in the blast radius of their gory suicide. These guys are easy to pinpoint in a crowd due to the gaping maw that has replaced their chest. You’ll want to use a ranged weapon such as a throwing star or battle axe if you want to avoid an explosive demise. Leading into traps will also help eliminate bombers along with any nearby infected.

Here is a picture of a dead screamer. A dead screamer is the only good screamer.

The last specially infected zombie that can create quite the headache if not swiftly dealt with is the screamer. These are very rare; so rare, in fact, that you won’t encounter your first one until more than halfway through Dying Light. You will be warned when one is around if you stop and listen. Where normally there would be background music and the sound of wind, you will now hear the faint sobs of a child crying. Search the areas closely and you’ll find a small zombie that will immediately let out a continuous deafening screech. Silence the screamer quickly, or face the hoards of zombies that its screams attract. Screamers have no attack capabilities and zero defense but their ability to have you quickly surrounded makes them one of Dying Light‘s biggest threats.

The Demolisher

Demolishers are huge, scary things. Approach with caution.

Dying Light‘s largest zombie is the demolisher. He is a large, tank-like infected who is covered in armor and likes to ram anything in front of it. Oh, it should also be mentioned that these tough guys like to throw large pieces of concrete and cars. That makes them a rather formidable opponent for anyone who doesn’t know how to properly approach these hulking monstrosities. Fortunately enough it turns out that these guys aren’t so difficult to take down as long as you don’t mind using yourself as bait.

Before confronting a demolisher be aware that they make a lot of noise. Lots of noise means many virals will be attracted to the location of your fight so you’ll want to keep a fast, powerful melee weapon in your hand (i.e. machete), or you can take advantage of the fact that there is already a lot of noise and try your luck with firearms and/or explosives. But a gun really isn’t necessary if you do this right. What you’ll want to do is stand in the area as far from the demolisher as possible.

Keeping your distance will force the demolisher to either throw something or charge at you. If you’re on the same level as this particular infected it will more than likely choose to charge at you which is exactly what you want. While it’s speeding towards you hit it in with one of your throwable weapons and it will be stunned for a decent length of time. Now you can hack away at this imposing adversary with little to no fear of harm. If all goes according to plan you will be able to take down the demolisher after only one stun.

Bolters and Volatiles

Bolters are easily picked out of a crowd due to their glowing green blisters.

The final two zombie types for you to learn how to master can only be found when the sun sets on the city of Harran. When nightime hits the enemies in Dying Light change. They become tougher, faster, and hungrier. Normally it would be best to stay completely away in order to avoid a violent death, but it’s hard to escape the allure of double XP. For that reason you need to have a gameplan for when you’re forced to do battle with Dying Light‘s most dangerous enemies.

Bolters are really no worry at all. There is one mission where you have to kill one so for that alone it’s good to know how to take one down. The main thing you need to know about this type of zombie is that it hates confrontation and will flee at the slightest hint of threat, and these suckers are fast. One thing that will help you is that they are easily distracted, toss a firecracker and they’ll stand watching in amazement. All you have to do is slowly walk up behind them and take them down which should take no more than 2 swings of your weapon.

Now volatiles can be an issue, especially if you haven’t really gotten any practice with Dying Light’s traversal mechanics. Volatiles are as fast as virals, but they are far more formidable. You won’t be one-shotting any of these guys and to deal with more than two of these nightmares at one time usually spells disaster. If you’re hell-bent on adding one of these to your kill list (there happens to be a trophy/achievement for doing so) you’re going to have to take a few precautions first.

Volatiles are tough but with a bit of planning you’ll be serving them their just desserts in no time.

The first thing you want to do is make sure the fight is on your terms. Don’t try to randomly run into one, instead take the time to lure one to a location of your choosing. You can actually pinpoint the location of volatiles by using your sense ability, so locate one and set a trail of firecrackers. Once they are in position get out your favorite weapon and equip your UV light. The Volatiles have a meter over their heads that fills up as you stay in their line of sight, once the circle is complete they will charge you which is when you want to flash your UV light. This will blind them momentarily leaving them open to attack.

Repeating this quick process will allow you to kill a volatile without taking any damage. Alternatively you can attempt to sneak up for a stealth kill but that will require a specific ability and it doesn’t always work out. The slightest noise can cause one of these zombies to turn instantly leaving you open for attack. One other option is a firearm since they can do massive amounts of damage quickly and at a distance. If you choose to use of these be ready to run at the drop of a dime because you will find yourself fending off 5 or more volatiles which is not an easy battle to win.

Are there any tips you have for taking down the many enemies in Dying Light? If so feel free to share with your fellow readers!