Dying Light
GameBy Techland · Released Jan 26, 2015
Documents about Dying Light
Deep Dive: Steam's Top-Grossing Releases of 2023
This analysis examines the performance of top-grossing titles on Steam for 2022, utilizing data from Valve’s year-end sales rankings categorized into Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Bronze tiers.
- In 2022, six of the twelve top-tier Platinum games on Steam were new releases, including major titles like Elden Ring, Dying Light 2, Lost Ark, and Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel.
- Legacy 'games as a service' (GaaS) titles such as Destiny 2, PUBG, and Warframe continue to dominate Steam revenue through consistent monetization and dedicated player bases.
- The traditional 'buy-to-play' model lacking DLC or in-game purchases has become rare, accounting for less than 20% of Steam's top-grossing list.
Top 2022 Steam Games by Gross Revenue
Valve’s annual performance summary identifies the highest-grossing titles on the Steam platform for the 2022 calendar year.
- Valve categorized 2022 Steam top performers into four revenue tiers—Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Bronze—based on gross revenue generated between January 1 and December 18, 2022.
- Top-tier grossing titles for 2022 included major AAA releases like Elden Ring, Dying Light 2 Stay Human, and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II, alongside live-service games Destiny 2 and Lost Ark.
- Long-standing industry staples, specifically Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Dota 2, and PUBG: Battlegrounds, maintained their status as top-grossing titles throughout the year.
Techland Tops CD Projekt as Poland’s Largest Game Company by Market Cap
The Polish gaming industry has experienced significant shifts in market valuation and revenue projections for its primary players.
- As of mid-2022, Techland became Poland’s largest gaming company by market capitalization with an estimated value of PLN 10.6 billion ($2.2 billion).
- CD Projekt’s market valuation has declined significantly to under PLN 10 billion ($2.07 billion), down from a 2020 peak of PLN 40 billion.
- Techland’s valuation is based on share redemption data rather than public exchange figures, as the company remains a private entity.
Plus: Eureka, Some New Indie Hits (Finally!)
Mid-March 2022 marked a significant recovery for indie game debuts on Steam following a stagnant February.
- Indie game launches on Steam recovered in mid-March 2022 after a stagnant February, which saw only five games reach 1,000 reviews in their first week compared to twelve in January.
- Core Keeper emerged as a top performer, selling over 100,000 units in its first two days and reaching a peak of 22,000 concurrent users.
- Market success for indie titles is currently driven by genre gaps, strong art direction, and high engagement from the streaming community.
Plus: The Hottest Pre-release Steam Tags?
This analysis examines the relationship between Steam tags and pre-release consumer interest, utilizing a proprietary "Hype score" to measure anticipation for unreleased titles.
- Niche tags like Warhammer 40k, Kickstarter, and Sequel generate median Hype scores 10 to 50 times higher than the Steam platform average.
- High-anticipation gameplay genres currently include 4X, Colony Sim, City Builder, Management, Farming Sim, and Open World Survival Craft.
- Broad tags like Action and Adventure show high total Hype scores due to volume, but median Hype scores are a more reliable indicator of specific genre strength and profitability.
Plus: Total War: Warhammer III and Elden Ring Dominate Upcoming Steam Debuts
Market analysis of the Steam platform for early 2022 indicates that Elden Ring and Total War: Warhammer III are the primary drivers of consumer anticipation.
- Elden Ring leads all upcoming Steam titles in wishlists, while Total War: Warhammer III is projected to have secured between 1 and 1.5 million pre-launch wishlists.
- Dying Light 2 achieved 3 million total players in its first week, with an estimated 1 to 1.5 million of those users on the Steam platform.
- Sifu sold 500,000 units across the Epic Games Store and PlayStation consoles within its first five days of release.
Parkour: How to Improve Freedom of Movement in First-Person Games in 20 Simple Steps
The development of parkour mechanics in the first-person game Dying Light required a shift from manual level design to a dynamic, runtime-based ledge detection system.
- To detect climbable ledges in 3D space, Techland used a series of forward traces to identify obstacles, validated the space above and below for player fit, and performed vertical traces to pinpoint the exact climbable edge.
- Techland optimized performance for complex parkour environments by implementing a 'carpet of traces' algorithm, which reduced computational overhead by batching geometry and processing traces with identical lengths and directions.
- To solve precision issues in first-person jumping, the developers implemented a 'coyote time' mechanic that allowed players to jump even when slightly off an object, effectively extending the jump window by approximately 20 centimeters.
4.5 Million Players in 100 Days: Lessons from Dying Light
The success of the open-world survival game Dying Light, which reached 4.5 million players within its first 100 days of release in 2015, is attributed to a strategic combination of pre-launch feature communication and aggressive post-launch community engagement.
- Techland achieved 4.5 million players within the first 100 days of Dying Light's release by focusing on clear communication of core game pillars, such as melee combat, the day-night cycle, and co-op play.
- The development team maintained pre-release momentum by releasing weekly 'Dying Highlights' gameplay videos rather than traditional marketing trailers, showcasing specific features and humorous scenarios.
- Post-launch engagement was driven by a robust telemetry system that tracked player behavior, resulting in a high 35-40% completion rate for the PC version.
Kondycja Polskiej Branży Gierwideo Raport 2015
The 2015 analysis of the Polish video game industry provides a comprehensive overview of a sector undergoing rapid structural transformation.
- The global games market in 2015 was valued at $74.2 billion, with mobile games ($22.3 billion) and retail sales ($19.7 billion) being the largest segments.
- In Poland, 72% of internet users play games. 42% play games installed on computers, 40% play on smartphones/tablets, and 38% play browser games.
- Action games are the most popular genre among Polish players, accounting for 35% of page views on GRY-OnLine.pl in the first half of 2015.