Dying Light 2 has another way to open locked doors: bash through 'em

(Image credit: Techland)

I picked up Dying Light 2's bash skill pretty early. I'd already grabbed the sprint skill (yes, sprinting, usually not sold separately when it comes to action heroes, requires a skill unlock), and the bash skill lets you turn sprinting an act of violence. You can sprint and then plow into zombies, sending them flying, even if they're clustered in a pack. It's not lethal or anything, it just clears a path without having to stop and swing a weapon, which is useful when you're trying to race home before the sun sets and the city gets very mean.

But Dying Light 2 player Longjumping-Owl-2684 on Reddit cleverly found another use for the bash skill. And not only is it useful, it's completely sensible.

You can use bash to open locked doors without having to fiddle with a lockpick and the Skyrim-esque minigame. Just take a few steps back, then sprint and bash right into that locked door. Open sesame! I just tried it out and it works, though my first attempt I activated the bash a little too late and just wound up smooshed against the doorframe for a moment. My timing was better on the second try, and the locked door popped right open.

It's not something I'll probably use a lot—just finding a locked door in the city to try it on took me about 10 minutes, and lockpicking comes into play far more often with locked crates than locked doors. Plus, I never really found myself running out of lockpicks, and I didn't even bother upgrading my lockpick blueprint to make them more durable. Even the toughest lock requires a little patience more than anything else.

But, and I think this is important: being able to bash open a locked door just makes sense. How often have we been a powerful character in an FPS, armed with explosives and heavy weapons and capable of superhuman feats of strength, only to be stymied by a simple locked door? I'm not a slippery jewel thief, I'm someone who drop kicks people off roofs. Don't pick that lock, just knock that damn door down! It's a nice bit of design from Techland, and a brilliant discovery by Longjumping-Owl-2684.

Dying Light 2 co-op: How to play with friends
Dying Light 2 repair weapons: How to do it
Dying Light 2 safe codes: Don't miss any loot

Chris started playing PC games in the 1980s, started writing about them in the early 2000s, and (finally) started getting paid to write about them in the late 2000s. Following a few years as a regular freelancer, PC Gamer hired him in 2014, probably so he'd stop emailing them asking for more work. Chris has a love-hate relationship with survival games and an unhealthy fascination with the inner lives of NPCs. He's also a fan of offbeat simulation games, mods, and ignoring storylines in RPGs so he can make up his own.