48.0 hours played
Written 18 days ago
I had no expectations going into Days Gone, but it proved to be an immensely entertaining game, even with a few small hiccups here and there. It combines incredibly consistent and believable storytelling with a great-looking world and some (mostly) enjoyable gameplay. I was sad when it was over, which is always a good sign.
Days Gone follows drifter Deacon as he tries to survive in a world full of Freakers, mutated by some plague, while looking for his wife and taking care of his buddy Boozer. In my opinion, the storytelling is the high point of Days Gone. Characters mostly act in believable ways, the voice acting and motion capture are top notch, and I actually cared about the characters and their actions. The story is long, but it's mostly fun to play through and Deacon is an awesome main character with actual flaws and (maybe this is silly to mention) speech that sounds actually like a human. He pauses, he adds "uh's", he has reflections...top notch work by the voice actor, and the same goes for most characters in the game.
Speaking of play, the gameplay is mostly standard, but it works. Shoot freakers, marauders and animals, gather crafting materials, level up in a few skill trees - standard stuff, but it provides enough motivation to continue. The game is open world, and it looks absolutely gorgeous if your computer can handle it. The open world is dotted with more expected activities - destroy camps, clear out Freaker hordes, collect...well, collectibles. Days Gone doesn't reinvent the wheel, but the good story and interesting world provide a good backdrop for your activities. Big Freaker Hordes near the endgame require you to use traps, tight hallways and explosives and it's very satisfying when it works out.
If I had to point out a few negatives, then here they are in no particular order:
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[*] The game has some audio issues, especially after the Broken Road patch. Some dialogue is muffled, others sound fine. It was mostly resolved through patches, but I feel like there are still some audio issues if played through speakers here and there, but I did not have that problem with headphones. Your experience may vary.
[*] While I loved the story of the game and the time I spent with its characters, the game has a lot of filler missions that could be cut down. It took me about 48 hours to do everything in the game (aside from collecting a few collectables, as most of them are not marked on the map and are really hard to find without a guide) and I honestly think 10-15 of those were spent in filler missions that could either be removed or merged with other missions. You don't have to give me 5 different missions to ride out and find five different things if you clearly know you need all five to begin with. It's annoying because a lot of those missions don't really affect the overall story too much.
[*] Some crashes, though they were rather rare.
[*] Saving is annoying in missions. It works fine outside, but if you save in a mission, you are usually placed at an arbitrary checkpoint and it's hard to tell when those checkpoints actually appear. I remember saving 15 minutes into a longer mission and then, upon coming back, being placed back at the start. Since then, I just didn't bother saving in a mission and waited until after.
[*] Hold Key actions. Why are these even a thing in so many games now? Hold F for 15 seconds to refill your bike, hold Space to refill your ammo from your saddlebag, hold the use key to pick up items, hold to craft items...there is no point to any of it and Days Gone has so many.
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Overall, though, I had a lot of fun with Days Gone and the more I played, the more I got invested in the story and world. It's my favorite game I played so far in 2025 (at the time of writing this of course) and, even with some of the small issues, a treat for anyone who cares not only about solid gameplay but also good storytelling, acting and world building in their games.