Techland shoots down Dying Light: The Beast currency rumors, states microtransactions are not in play

In a move that has relieved a particularly vocal part of the Dying Light community, Techland’s franchise director, Tymon Smektala, has confirmed that Dying Light: The Beast will not introduce microtransactions or virtual currencies, previously known as DL points.

Smektala responded to a fan's inquiry regarding the return of DL points to Dying Light: The Beast, to which Smektala responded promptly, “Not planned.” This comes as a major relief to many Dying Light fans as Techland is trying to maintain trust with its community by stepping away from post-launch monetization practices.

Techland introduced a new virtual currency in Dying Light 2: Stay Human 18 months after the game’s 2022 release, and backlash was fierce. DL Points locked cosmetics behind additional in-game purchases. What truly caused frustration among Dying Light 2 players was the fact that players often had to buy more DL points than necessary due to fixed bundle prices.

Fans accused Techland of being “greedy”. Despite Dying Light 2’s commercial success, with five million sales in the first month, community trust started to dwindle. It’s pretty clear that Techland and Smektala are prioritizing player feedback over industry monetization practices to maintain a clear, player-friendly slate with Dying Light: The Beast.

Dying Light 2 was previously criticized for focusing on scale rather than gameplay and atmosphere, which Smektala admitted Dying Light 2 had lost the “hardcore survival horror” touch that the 2015 original was praised for.

Despite Smektala claiming no plans for monetization, Tencent’s July 2023 investment of $1.6 billion in the company, upping its stake in Techland to 67% could potentially influence monetization decisions in the future. 

For now, Techland is doubling down on polishing Dying Light: The Beast amid a one-month delay, which pushed the release date ahead to September 19, 2025. Despite this turn of events, Dying Light: The Beast will still be available for a hands-on demo at Gamescom 2025 in Hall 6 for players looking to get an early peek at Castor Woods.