Dying Light Developer Believes Shorter Games like Dying Light: The Beast are the Future of Gaming

Techland‘s Tymon Smektała, the director behind the Dying Light series, recently spoke out about the gaming industry’s current trend toward massive, time-consuming games.

In an interview with GamesIndustry.biz, Smektała highlighted the need for shorter games, suggesting that compact experiences like Dying Light: The Beast may represent the future of the industry.

Dying Light: The Beast, a new standalone expansion, offers an 18+ hour experience. Smektała argued that this shift towards shorter games allows developers to focus on quality over quantity. “It might not be as big as an americano, but it also doesn’t have as much water; it’s just more of what counts,” he said. He noted that as players age and face increasing real-life commitments, they find it harder to invest time in games that require 50 to 100 hours to complete.

Smektała pointed out the industry’s “obsession” with longer playtimes and expansive worlds, citing Assassin’s Creed Odyssey as an example. He admitted to spending over 100 hours on it without finishing. The director believes shorter games can offer meaningful content without the overwhelming time commitment. They also enable developers to take creative risks without the financial burden of large-scale productions.

While Techland plans to continue creating bigger titles, such as a potential Dying Light 3, Smektała sees a future where both shorter and longer games coexist, catering to a diverse range of player preferences and schedules.