While Days Gone received a solid enough Metacritic score of 71 and sold quite well, the game will not be receiving a sequel. This news, combined with a PC release shortly after it broke, led to a lot of discussion within the gaming community. Those who loved the game were understandably disappointed, while those who found it bland or repetitive were glad to know Bend was moving on to something else. Regardless of which side of the fence gamers fell on, though, one small feature from Days Gone deserves to be seen again, and not just in Bend's own projects.

To be clear, Days Gone had more than one thing going for it. Bike customization and weapon variety were impressive, hordes were unique and a proper challenge to fight, and camp members interacting with Deacon is something that the upcoming The Last of Us multiplayer spin-off should borrow. However, all of these features would not work in every game like Trophy tracking would. For Trophy hunters, this feature made a massive difference, letting them keep goals in sight at all times. Since all games with achievements internally track progress anyway, it is surprising that more studios have not followed in Days Gone’s footsteps yet.

RELATED: Days Gone 2 Was Always Unlikely, But It's For Sure Never Happening Now

The Benefits of Trophy Tracking in Days Gone

playstation-trophies-symbol-background

When exploring Days Gone’s post-apocalyptic version of Oregon, they will have to do a number of things if they are hoping to obtain the Platinum Trophy. These include picking up collectibles, kicking over rock cairns placed by Anarchists, and doing a whole lot of bike repairs. Looting items off dead bodies and drifting for several minutes are other tasks, and with many of the Trophies designed to be long grinds done across a full playthrough, not knowing how far one is to completing each task would have been painful.

Fortunately, Days Gone’s Trophy tracker ensures that players are always fully aware of their progress, updating with each cairn that is kicked over and every collectible that is picked up. Making this information so accessible is an excellent quality-of-life mechanic, though many may not even realize it exists. Part of that is likely because, for whatever reason, these tracking systems have only appeared in games randomly from time to time as opposed to growing into an expected feature like photo mode.

To be fair, PlayStation 5’s Trophy system made some solid improvements in this area, with a decent number of games providing more details on how far players are to meeting their goal. However, not all games provide exact details, and those that do will occasionally have stats that are slightly off or not comprehensive. For instance, players will only see a percentage of completed Merlin Trials in Harry Potter: Hogwarts Legacy as opposed to the exact number needed to finish all of them. On the other hand, Days Gone provides that, telling its players the exact number of collectibles they need to reach in-game when the official Trophy descriptions only provide a vague 50% and 75%.

While Days Gone including the feature is excellent, it could still be improved upon by other developers who include it in their games. The big thing to add is an option to pin specific Trophies, similar to how Destiny 2 fans can track certain Quests and bounties without needing to go into the proper menu. For example, pinning the “Ghost of Farewell” Trophy for getting 100 stealth kills directly to Days Gone’s HUD could have been a constant reminder for players to go for sneaky eliminations whenever they get the chance, with a few other pinned Trophies letting players keep track of multiple things at once.

While this feature is ultimately just a minor touch and a thoughtful gesture on Bend Studio’s part, it is deserving of praise. Not needing to leave the game and enter the Trophies menu is terrific, as it makes the experience more seamless and ensures Trophy hunters do not have to stop immersing themselves when playing Days Gone. The concise information is a big help, too. Though it makes sense that most players were more caught up in debating the story’s quality or discussing their horde strategies, the Trophy tracking system should not continue to stay under the radar.

Days Gone is available now on PC and PS4.

MORE: New PlayStation Exclusive Game Rumor is Likely False