Dying Light Update Boosts Graphics and Sound for Gamers

Techland is surprising fans by returning to Harran after a decade with a free content release for the original Dying Light, dubbed the Retouched update.

On June 26, 2025, thousands of dedicated players of the 2015 zombie parkour hit will enjoy a suite of improvements designed to elevate the overall experience. The Dying Light: Retouched update brings visual upgrades, a remastered soundtrack, and more to players on PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X and S. IGN has reached out to Techland to inquire about a potential Nintendo Switch version of this update.

As the studio clarifies, the Retouched Update aims to extract even more value from the beloved Dying Light experience.

This is an exciting development for fans of the original game, though Techland is keen to emphasize that Retouched is not a full remaster. Franchise director Tymon Smektała stated the update focuses on refining the core experience without changing its system requirements.

"When I checked online the day after the announcement, I was genuinely surprised. Many of you anticipated a comprehensive remaster," Smektała explained in a recent blog post. "Let's be clear: the Retouched Update is about enhancing the Dying Light you already know and love. It is not a complete overhaul or a traditional remaster."

Players can look forward to several visual refinements, such as upgraded textures, lighting, and shadow effects. You might observe added detail on a wooden fence or more realistic light reflections on metal surfaces. Techland is particularly pleased with the improved appearance of certain floors and concrete walls, sharing images of stone paths that now exhibit greater depth.

Dying Light: Retouched - Screenshots

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For audio, original composer Paweł Blaszczak returned to remaster the soundtrack. The entire score has been re-recorded on tape for Retouched, with new tracks, ambient sounds, and even hit reaction effects receiving an audio overhaul in this update.

"Many of you have asked recently about the Retouched Update—where it was and why it took so long," the post continued. "The truth is, we were working with technology that's over a decade old. Despite our accumulated experience, applying modern techniques to the original Dying Light engine while maintaining stability was a significant challenge."

The Dying Light: Retouched update is less about reviving a forgotten title and more a testament to the team's commitment to a game that has remarkably endured. While SteamDB shows a peak player count of only 45,876, the original Dying Light has consistently maintained around 12,000 players over the past year. These are notable figures for a zombie game centered on single-player, especially when compared to Dying Light 2: Stay Human, released just three years ago, which often fails to surpass 10,000 concurrent players.

The original Dying Light narrative will continue with Dying Light: The Beast, which has secured a release date of August 22, 2025, for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X and S. It follows protagonist Kyle Crane in a new story; you can see our early preview here. For more context, check out our original Dying Light review, where we awarded the parkour zombie game an 8.5/10.