Days Gone

Days Gone is a 2019 action-adventure survival horror video game developed by SIE Bend Studio and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment for the PlayStation 4.

Days Gone
Developer(s)	SIE Bend Studio
Publisher(s)	Sony Interactive Entertainment
Director(s)	John Garvin Jeff Ross
Producer(s)	Darren Yager
Designer(s)	Ron Allen
Programmer(s)	John Hoffman
Artist(s)	Donald Yatomi
Writer(s)	John Garvin
Composer(s)	Nathan Whitehead
Engine	Unreal Engine 4
Platform(s)	PlayStation 4
Release	April 26, 2019
Genre(s)	Action-adventure, survival horror
Mode(s)	Single-player

Set in a post-apocalyptic Oregon two years after the start of a global pandemic, former outlaw-turned-drifter Deacon St. John discovers the possibility of his wife Sarah still being alive, which leads Deacon on a quest to find her. Days Gone is played from a third-person perspective, in which the player can explore an open world environment. Players can use firearms, melee weapons and improvised weapons, and can use stealth to defend against hostile humans and cannibalistic creatures known as Freakers. A major game mechanic is Deacon's motorcycle, which is used as the player character's primary mode of transportation as well as mobile inventory.

Originally slated for a 2018 launch, Days Gone was delayed several times. The game eventually released on April 26, 2019. Upon release, it received mixed reviews from critics, who praised the open world aspect, gameplay and Sam Witwer's performance as Deacon, although the story and lack of character development was criticized.

Gameplay

Days Gone is an action-adventure survival horror game set in a post-apocalyptic open world, played from a third-person perspective. The player controls Deacon St. John (Sam Witwer), a former U.S. Army 10th Mountain Division Afghanistan War veteran outlaw-turned-drifter and bounty hunter who prefers life on the road to wilderness encampments.[1] The game takes place two years after a global pandemic occurred which killed almost all of humanity, and transformed millions of others into "Freakers", mindless nocturnal zombie-like creatures that are quickly evolving.[1] In the E3 2016 stage demo, two types of Freakers were revealed, Newts and Hordes.[2] In the E3 2017 stage demo, infected animals such as bears and wolves were revealed to also comprise the Freakers, and human enemies are revealed to be featured in the game as well.

The player can complete objectives in multiple ways, such as by using stealth mechanics, and long and short ranged weapons. A dynamic weather system and day-night cycle make Freakers weak and slow by day but fast and aggressive by night. Deacon's main transportation vehicle is a motorcycle that can be modified with parts to enhance its speed, durability or maneuverability, among other parameters. The player is able to craft new items to improve combat efficiency.[3]

Plot

When a virus causes a large portion of humanity to become uncontrollably violent, Deacon, his wife Sarah (Courtnee Draper), and his friend Boozer (Jim Pirri) attempt to flee for safety and escape the carnage. Sarah is stabbed and critically wounded, forcing Deacon to evacuate her on a National Emergency Response Organization (NERO) helicopter. Due to the helicopter being at capacity, Deacon stays behind with Boozer, intending to reunite with Sarah.

Two years later, civilization has collapsed, and vast hordes of the infected, now called "Freakers", roam the landscape and are a persistent threat to surviving humans. Deacon and Boozer work as freelance bounty hunters in what is left of Oregon, with Deacon believing Sarah is dead after finding out the NERO refugee camp she was evacuated to was overrun by Freakers. Deacon and Boozer plan to head further north to find better opportunities, but Boozer has his arm badly burned by a gang of cultists called Rippers, forcing him to stay at their safehouse to recuperate and delay their trip. Deacon learns the Rippers have placed a price on his and Boozer's heads. In addition, Deacon catches sight of NERO helicopters carrying a research team several times, leading him to believe there is a chance Sarah may be alive. He manages to track down and confront one of the NERO researchers, James O'Brian (Bernardo de Paula), who evacuated Sarah. He reveals that his helicopter was diverted to a different camp mid-flight, rekindling Deacon's search.

Boozer's health begins to decline rapidly from his burn wounds, forcing Deacon to take him to the Lost Lake camp for medical treatment. Boozer has his arm amputated due to an infection. O'Brian contacts Deacon, requesting his help in investigating what NERO is researching in return for helping him track down Sarah. Meanwhile, Lost Lake has an uneasy nonaggression treaty with the Rippers, held up by Lost Lake's leader Iron Mike (Eric Allan Kramer) while his lieutenant Skizzo (Jason Spisak) is skeptical of Rippers' willingness to honor the treaty. Skizzo makes a separate deal with the Rippers and turns Deacon over to them, where it is revealed that the leader of the Rippers is Jessie Williamson (Scott Whyte), an old enemy of Deacon and Boozer. Deacon escapes custody and, together with Boozer, drowns the Rippers by destroying the dam above their camp and kills Jessie. Skizzo is exiled from Lost Lake for his betrayal.

Later, Deacon remembers that Sarah worked at a government lab and would have had a federal security clearance, meaning she would have been a priority to evacuate from the camp. O'Brian confirms that Sarah was evacuated to a military outpost at Crater Lake, but the area is now under the control of the Deschutes County Militia. O'Brian warns Deacon that NERO's research has shown that the Freakers are evolving, meaning their threat will only increase as time passes. He meets the leader of the Militia, Colonel Garret (Daniel Riordan), under the guise of wanting to join up. At the Militia's main stronghold, Deacon is able to reunite with Sarah, who is working with the Militia to create a bioweapon that can destroy the Freakers permanently. Deacon reluctantly stays with the Militia in order to help her. Deacon and Sarah head to the Cloverdale lab she used to work at in order to obtain a DNA sequencer. However, upon arriving at the lab, Sarah realizes that Cloverdale used her research to develop the virus that created the Freakers.

Upon returning to Sarah's lab, she reveals that she is not actually working on a bioweapon to kill the Freakers, but a cure to save them. Deacon suggests that they desert the Militia and finish the cure at the Cloverdale lab, but complications arise when an increasingly paranoid Garret puts Sarah under protective custody. Deacon attempts to extract Sarah, but the plan is foiled by Skizzo, who lies about Deacon's criminal past to Garret. Deacon is arrested but is freed by a sympathetic officer, Derrick Kouri (Phil Morris). He returns to Lost Lake, which has managed to repel an assault from the Militia, but Iron Mike is mortally wounded. Deacon warns Lost Lake that the Militia will return in greater numbers to exterminate them all, and decides to perform a preemptive strike by attacking their headquarters with a truck bomb. After fighting his way through the Militia, Deacon kills Skizzo, and Sarah poisons Garret, dismantling the Militia for good.

Afterward, Deacon returns to Lost Lake, living there with Sarah, Boozer, and his friends. He is contacted by O'Brian again, who reveals that NERO had known about the virus' mutagenic effects all along and that O'Brian himself is infected with a strain of the virus that makes him an intelligent Freaker. He warns Deacon that NERO is coming and that there is nothing their groups can do to stop the organization.

Development and release

Production of Days Gone began in early 2015 under the working title Dead Don't Ride. Technical director Christopher Reese stated that Bend Studio wanted it to "push the [PlayStation 4] somewhere it's never been before."[4] The game was revealed by Sony at their E3 2016 panel.[5] It was announced by Reese the game would utilize Unreal Engine 4[6] and would have "a very strong narrative".[7] The original score was composed by Nathan Whitehead.[8]

John Garvin is the creative director and writer of the game, and Jeff Ross is the game director. The game was scheduled to be released on February 22, 2019, but was delayed to April 26, 2019, to allow the development team to polish the game. Announced via Twitter, development studio Bend confirmed Days Gone's gold status in a celebratory tweet and accompanying photo.[9]

Reception

Reception
Aggregate score Aggregator Score Metacritic 71/100[10] Review scores Publication Score Destructoid 6/10[11] EGM 5.5/10[12] Game Informer 7.8/10[13] GameRevolution [14] GameSpot 5/10[15] GamesRadar+ [16] IGN 6.5/10[17] Jeuxvideo.com 15/20[18] VideoGamer.com 8/10[19] The Escapist 8/10[20]

Critical Reception

Days Gone received "mixed or average" reviews according to review aggregator Metacritic.[10] Critics felt that the gameplay and world design showed promise but ultimately felt underdeveloped. The story was criticized, noting that it did little to characterize the protagonist, although Witwer's performance was praised.[21]

IGN awarded the game a score of 6.5/10 saying "Days Gone feels bloated, like a movie that goes on for an hour longer than it needs to or should've. It's messy and confused, but peppered with genuinely thrilling encounters with rampaging hordes of zombies and occasionally breathless firefights. There's a good game in here somewhere, but it's buried in a meandering storyline, repetitive missions, and just too much obligatory stuff to do without an eye on the smaller details that could have given it much more character. Some fine tuning and editing could have removed the tedium and celebrated what makes this game unique and interesting, but Days Gone rides strictly down the middle of the dusty road and never finds its rhythm."[17]

Game Informer gave the game a 7.8/10 saying "Days Gone has good gameplay foundations. The scarcity of supplies and ever-present threat of zombies put me on edge as much as it gave me options to escape by the skin of my teeth. But the inability to fully deliver on either the story or open world fronts makes it a title of both possibilities and limitations."[13]

Sales

Despite mixed reviews, Days Gone was the best selling physical game in the United Kingdom in the week of release.[22] It went on to be the best-selling software release in all the format sales charts for three consecutive weeks.[23][24]

In Japan, Days Gone outsold two other PlayStation 4 exclusive games at launch, God of War and Horizon Zero Dawn.[25] It went on to surpass the lifetime sales of God of War and another exclusive PlayStation 4 game, The Last Guardian.[26] In its first three days after launch, it sold approximately 114,319 physical units.[27]

In North America, Days Gone was the second best selling video game software for the month of April, behind Mortal Kombat 11. This marks Days Gone as the 7th highest debut in sales for a Sony-published title, and the best selling game developed by SIE Bend.[28]

Days Gone proceeded to become the second best-selling video game software in North America for April 2019. By June 2019, it was the eighth best-selling video game of the year.[29]

Awards

Year	Award	Category	Result	Ref
2016	Golden Joystick Awards	Most Wanted Game	Nominated	[30]
2017	Game Critics Awards	Best Action/Adventure Game	Nominated	[31]
2018		Best Original Game	Nominated	[32]
	Gamers' Choice Awards	Most Anticipated Game	Nominated	[33]
2019	The Independent Game Developers' Association Awards	Best Audio Design	Nominated	[34][35]
		Best Visual Design	Won
	Golden Joystick Awards	Best Storytelling	Won	[36][37]
		Best Audio	Nominated
		PlayStation Game of the Year	Won
	Hollywood Music in Media Awards	Original Score - Video Game	Nominated	[38]
		Original Song - Video Game ("Hell or High Water")	Nominated
	Titanium Awards	Best Spanish Performance (Claudio Serrano)	Won	[39][40]
2020	23rd Annual D.I.C.E. Awards	Outstanding Achievement in Animation	Nominated	[41]
	NAVGTR Awards	Animation, Technical	Nominated	[42]
		Graphics, Technical	Nominated
		Original Dramatic Score, New IP	Nominated
		Song, Original or Adapted ("Days Gone Quiet")	Nominated
		Sound Editing in a Game Cinema	Nominated
		Sound Effects	Nominated
		Use of Sound, New IP	Nominated
	18th Annual G.A.N.G. Awards	Best Original Song ("Days Gone Quiet")	Nominated	[43]
	2020 Webby Awards	Best Music/Sound Design	Won	[44]
	ASCAP Composers' Choice Awards	Video Game Score of the Year	Nominated	[45]

References

1. Garvin, John (June 13, 2016). "Days Gone: Bend Studio's New Open-World PS4 Adventure". PlayStation Blog. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
2. Shrivastav, Raaj (8 April 2019). "Days Gone Freakers Can Hibernate, Drink And Has A Migration Pattern". Gamer Tweak. Retrieved 2 May 2019.
3. Hurley, Leon (June 14, 2016). "Days Gone is an open world zombie apocalypse that gets everything right". GamesRadar. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
4. https://www.videogamer.com/news/sony-bend-looking-to-push-ps4-somewhere-its-never-been-before-with-unannounced-game
5. https://www.dualshockers.com/sony-bends-days-gone-gets-live-gameplay-demo-at-e3-2016/
6. Makuch, Eddie (January 21, 2015). "Sony Bend Dev Says Next Game Will "Push PS4 to Somewhere It's Never Been"". GameSpot. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
7. https://gamingbolt.com/days-gone-uses-a-modified-unreal-engine-4-features-a-very-strong-narrative
8. https://www.dreadcentral.com/news/293566/interview-composer-nathan-whitehead-discusses-the-score-of-days-gone/
9. S. Good, Owen (October 19, 2018). "Days Gone delayed two months". Polygon. Retrieved October 25, 2018.
10. "Days Gone for PlayStation 4 Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved May 25, 2019.
11. Carter, Chris (April 25, 2019). "Review: Days Gone". Destructoid. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
12. Harmon, Josh (April 25, 2019). "Days Gone review". Electronic Gaming Monthly. Archived from the original on June 8, 2019. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
13. Kato, Matthew (April 25, 2019). "Days Gone Review - Surviving In A Divided World". Game Informer. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
14. Faulkner, Jason (April 25, 2019). "Days Gone Review | 28 Months Later". Game Revolution. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
15. Plagge, Kallie (April 25, 2019). "Days Gone Review - Hog Mild". GameSpot. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
16. Hurley, Leon (April 25, 2019). "Days Gone review: "a scrappy but satisfying adventure"". GamesRadar+. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
17. O'Brien, Lucy (April 25, 2019). "Days Gone Review". IGN. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
18. Logan (April 25, 2019). "Test du jeu Days Gone". Jeuxvideo. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
19. Wise, Josh (April 25, 2019). "Days Gone review". VideoGamer.com. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
20. Constantine, Riley (April 25, 2019). "Review: Days Gone". The Escapist. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
21. Watts, Steve. "Days Gone Review Roundup -- Here's What Critics Are Saying". GameSpot. Retrieved 26 April 2019.
22. Yaden, Joseph (3 May 2019). "Days Gone Sold More Physical Copies Than Any Other Game in April in the UK". PlayStation LifeStyle. Retrieved 5 May 2019.
23. Reeves, Brianna (7 May 2019). "Days Gone Tops UK Sales Charts for Second Consecutive Week". PlayStation LifeStyle. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
24. Tailby, Stephen (13 May 2019). "UK Sales Charts: Days Gone Is Number One for Third Week Running". Push Square. Retrieved 14 May 2019.
25. Simonds, Aidan (8 May 2019). "Days Gone Had a Bigger Launch Than God of War and Horizon Zero Dawn in Japan". PlayStation LifeStyle. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
26. Romano, Sal (12 May 2019). "Famitsu Sales: 4/29/19 – 5/5/19". Gematsu. Retrieved 14 May 2019.
27. Romano, Sal (8 May 2019). "Famitsu Sales: 4/22/19 – 4/28/19". Gematsu.
28. Piscatella, Mat (21 May 2019). "The NPD Group - Apr '19 US Video Game Market Highlights". YouTube. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
29. Piscatella, Mat (18 June 2019). "The NPD Group - May'19 US Video Game Market Highlights". YouTube. Retrieved 20 June 2019.
30. Loveridge, Sam (15 September 2016). "Golden Joystick Awards 2016 voting now open to the public". Digital Spy. Retrieved 20 November 2019.
31. "Game Critics Awards: Best of E3 2017 (2017 Nominees)". Game Critics Awards. Retrieved 6 November 2019.
32. Watts, Steve (5 July 2018). "Resident Evil 2 Wins Top Honor In E3 Game Critics Awards". GameSpot. Retrieved 6 November 2019.
33. Glyer, Mike (19 November 2018). "2018 Gamers' Choice Awards Nominees". File 770. Retrieved 6 November 2019.
34. Stephenson, Suzi (19 September 2019). "TIGA Announces Games Industry Awards 2019 Finalists". The Independent Game Developers' Association. Retrieved 6 November 2019.
35. "2019 Winners". The Independent Game Developers' Association. 7 November 2019. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
36. Tailby, Stephen (20 September 2019). "Days Gone Rides Off with Three Nominations in This Year's Golden Joystick Awards". Push Square. Retrieved 6 November 2019.
37. GamesRadar staff (15 November 2019). "Here's every winner from this year's Golden Joystick Awards, including the Ultimate Game of the Year". GamesRadar+. Retrieved 16 November 2019.
38. "Hollywood Music In Media Awards Announces Nominees". Shoot. 4 November 2019. Retrieved 6 November 2019.
39. "Titanium Awards 2019". Fun & Serious Game Festival. Archived from the original on 21 November 2019. Retrieved 21 November 2019.
40. "Ganadores de los premios Titanium del Fun & Serious 2019". Generación Xbox (in Spanish). 10 December 2019. Retrieved 10 December 2019.
41. Chalk, Andy (13 January 2020). "Control and Death Stranding get 8 nominations each for the 2020 DICE Awards". PC Gamer. Retrieved 17 January 2020.
42. "2019 Nominees". National Academy of Video Game Trade Reviewers. 13 January 2020. Retrieved 21 January 2020.
43. Wilson, Kelly (13 February 2020). "Game Audio Network Guild Announces 18th Annual G.A.N.G. Award Nominees". The Hype Magazine. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
44. "Webby Awards: Games". The Webby Awards. 19 May 2020. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
45. "Vote in the 2020 ASCAP Composers' Choice Awards". American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. 7 May 2020. Retrieved 26 May 2020.

External links

• Official website