Dying Light 2 Stay Human is a first-person survival horror game set in a post-apocalyptic world. The main character, Aiden, enters a tournament where people sacrifice everything for status. Cue the combat skills, armour and parkour.

The original game was released in February 2022, but players are now getting extra options with the Bloody Ties DLC. For the non-gamers among us, DLC stands for additional downloadable content that extends the standalone version of the game.

Every trailer needs a soundtrack. And this one is no different.

So we stepped in and started crafting.

The client’s main request was for the trailer soundtrack to be instantly recognisable with a well-known melody. At the same time, the music had to fit the overall mood and scenario of the game, full of zombies and bloody battles.

Additionally, the structure of the song had to match the timing of the trailer. That’s why we recommended recording a hard rock cover of a well-known song.

We started by making a selection of evergreen tracks with re-record potential. We then focused on the lyrics, which had to evoke the game scenario. Out of all our suggestions, the client chose ‘Born To Be Wild’, a song with a mysterious atmosphere that would perfectly blend with the narrative.

The trickiest part of recording a hard rock song for this soundtrack was maintaining the right balance between the heaviness of metal and the reference to the original recording. We also needed some time to find the right vocals; ones that were distinctive enough to draw the attention of the audience, but with enough character to match the heavy drums and guitars.

By choosing the right musical references, we built an emotional mood that is at the right level of tension and leads the narrative of the trailer. The drums were recorded at a studio specialising in drum recordings, so we could get that hard, heavy sound.

We put a lot of emphasis on playing distinctive notes of the song at the very start of the trailer to trigger the audience’s familiarity, while bearing in mind that the beginning of the track should be calm and mysterious to match the visuals.

In addition to the male characteristic vocals, we also recorded a mysterious female vocal. We not only wanted to add depth and uniqueness to the sound of the song; we also wanted to highlight the presence of women in the gaming world.

Ready to immerse yourself in the world of horror games? Scroll to the top to watch the trailer.