Parkour | Controls Dying Light Guide
Last update: 11 May 2016
The presence of parkour elements is one of the most important aspects of Dying Light and it is also what makes it different from Dead Island series. The character that we control is very athletic and his agility is very helpful. Moreover, depending on parkour moves may turn out to be necessary, when you cannot defeat an enemy in battle. Below, you can find a list of the most important uses of parkour. Some of the moves described here is available from the beginning of the game, others have to be unlocked by making progress in the main campaign or selecting particular skills.
During the prologue, all the most important parkour actions will be introduced to you (running and avoiding obstacles, jumping onto far away platforms and climbing). It is necessary to always directly face the edge or platform that you want to jump on, or the wall that you want to climb. Only then will you have the chance to successfully perform the action.
The moves described above can be useful during a fight, for moving quickly and smoothly around the city. Thanks to parkour, you will be able to go past the barricades on the streets, reach higher places that are seemingly inaccessible, which will allow you to have a better view on the area and also to find some hidden treasures (a lot of chests and other boxes are located on the rooftops). Moreover, you can avoid the zombies walking around the streets of the city.
Note - Every action from the parkour category is rewarded with Agility points. More info about each attribute and the skills connected to them can be found in the Character development chapter.
Parkour provides a perfect opportunity to move around the city in a spectacular way, performing a lot of risky actions, but you must remember that the main hero is only human. Avoid falling down from high buildings, as it may take a large amount of your hp or even kill you right away.
Most of all, try to avoid jumping onto objects that are very far away, as you may end up not catching the edge and falling down. If you can, always check the area around you to calculate each jump well. You can also absorb the energy when landing on car roofs, bags, trash containers or directly on the infected (with additional skills, you can also eliminate them this way). It is good to keep your hp bar above 50% so that a minor mistake wouldn't mean your character getting killed.
Most of the time, you won't need to hurry and you will be able to perform all your parkour actions precisely. However, you may find yourself in a situation in which you will need to run faster, like for example during a mission in which you have to reach a given point on the map, or during an extra parkour challenge. In such situations, try to stay on the move all the time and plan your moves ahead. Also, try to avoid climbing high objects, which is quite slow. Instead, focus on jumping and running (use also the narrow objects, like planks or walls).
Running around the city also looks different when your are chased by the faster types of zombies. During the day, you can be attacked by running Infected and at night, by fast mutants. If you don't plan to fight a given enemy, the only way to escape is using parkour moves. When running away, try to make it harder for the monsters to reach you by performing long jumps and staying on the rooftops. The ability to look back when running is a useful thing in the game. Connected with the markers on your minimap, it will allow you to always know how far away your enemies are and whether you are close to losing them.
After you have developed your character enough, you get the opportunity to obtain the Grappling Hook from the Survivor skill tree. This gadget needs to be activated manually each time and it requires several seconds of "cooldown". In spite of these limitations, you should take interest in the hook, because it allows you to reach ledges quickly (also the ones that are more difficult to access), or escape elite variations of the infected. The hook does not wear off, unlike standard weapons. If, for any reason, you lose it (e.g. throw it away from the inventory), you can receive a new one from any quartermaster.