Techland confirms Dying Light 2 lead writer has left but says 'exciting news' is coming
Reports that the art director has departed the studio are incorrect.
2020 was a rough year for the zombie parkour game Dying Light 2. It came out strong at E3 2018 with a flashy trailer and Chris Avellone's name attached, but an expected release in spring 2020 was delayed in January of that year, and Avellone was shown the door several months later following allegations of sexual misconduct. Then, earlier this week, it came to light that lead writer Pawel Selinger had parted ways with developer Techland, potentially bad news for a game that still doesn't have a new release date.
"After over twenty-two years, I decided to end my cooperation with Techland," Selinger wrote on his LinkedIn page (via Gaming Route). "I would like to express my gratitude to the company that has allowed me to develop and fulfill myself for half of my life. Techland, I will always be rooting for you, as well as the great people I have met thanks to you. I wish you that Dying light 2 and subsequent projects will become world hits."
In a statement, Techland confirmed that Selinger has indeed left the company, but clarified that his role as narrative designer had been filled a couple months prior to his departure.
"Paweł Selinger, who has been the Narration Designer for the last two years, decided at the end of 2020 to end his cooperation with Techland and to pursue his further career elsewhere," a studio rep said. "Paweł spent most of his professional life at Techland and he, among others, takes credit for the success of the series Call of Juarez. He left a large piece of himself with Dying Light 2, as he worked on the project from the very beginning. His duties, ie. the narrative department, were taken over by Piotr Szymanek in October 2020."
Techland also said that despite some reports, its art director has not left the company. The confusion on that point presumably arises from Selinger's LinkedIn profile, which lists him as the studio's art director from 2007 to February 2009.
"We would like to reassure all fans of the upcoming Dying Light 2 that the position of Art Director is not threatened and has been held by Eric Cochonneau since November 2019. Eric has been taking care of every aspect of the upcoming production ever since and the team under his leadership is doing their best to offer players the best game possible," the rep said.
So the good news is that it doesn't sound like Selinger's departure will result in a major disruption of Dying Light 2's development, but the bad news is that a year after its 2020 delay, we have no idea what the actual state of that development is, and there's still no sign of a release date. That may be changing soon, however: The rep added that Techland "will be sharing exciting news about Dying Light 2 soon!"