Dead Island 2

BABU* · August 8, 2014

Developer: Yager (Spec Ops: The Line dev)
Publisher: Deep Silver
Platforms: PC, PS4 & XBOX One
Engine: Unreal Engine 4
Release Date: Spring 2015

Dead Island 2 Preview

Horror In Paradise

First of all, the tone of Dead Island 2 is way different from Dead Island 1. This isn’t a game where everyone is somber, sad, and coming to grips with the fact that they probably won’t survive the zombie apocalypse. No, Dead Island 2 is taking a page from the book of Sunset Overdrive and is making zombies fun. Heck, all you have to do to see the change in tone is watch the trailer, which shows a sort of pretentious Californian jogger slowly turning into a zombie on a morning run.

Oh yeah, the game takes place in California now, which the developers said was to further the idea of paradise turned into a hellhole. As an east-coast New York/New Jersey resident for life, I have to say their definition of paradise is a bit biased… but I digress.

The cool part about this new setting is that you get to actually get to visit Californian landmarks. You can throw zombies off the Golden Gate bridge, smash them into the Hollywood sign, heck you could even run through swarms of zombies in downtown LA, which Deep Silver was keen to point out considering that’s where E3 is held. I honestly hope that they let us run through a zombified E3. That would be awesome.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=lBNI1itbbHc

The plot of Dead Island 2 revolves around two new characters, Max and Rick Furry. Yes, Rick Furry is a Nick Fury pun, as the cat iooks battle scarred and is missing an eye. You are immune to the zombie plague, but Max is not, and he is on a quest to find other people who are immune in order to rebuild society… or just have fun. You’ll drive around in his decked out battle van as you make your way through the zombie filled sunny streets of Cali. Oh yeah, and the developers, Yager, were very proud to mention that they actually motion captured a real cat in order to animate Rick Furry.

If Yager sounds familiar, that’s because they are the development studio behind games such as Spec Ops: The Line, and there is no way that Dead Island 2 could be further from that military masterpiece. The game is incredibly melee focused, and you’ll be able to use tons of interesting weapons from knives to chainsaws to take down your undead foes. You’ll also be able to duct-tap together Dead Rising style improvised weapons. For example, one of the weapons we saw was a fanblade at the end of a weed whacker. Another was a chainsaw with a nail gun taped to it. You will scavenge parts for these weapons throughout different missions, and can craft them at any workbench you find.

However, the game will feature much more than just melee combat. For example, you will be able to set traps for zombies. You can set off a car alarm and start blowing up explosive barrels around the cars when zombies rush to see what’s up. You can dual wield weapons, either hacking through zombies with two machetes or carrying a gun at your side just in case. You’ll have to deal with human enemies packing firearms at the same time as the undead, but both of these enemies operate with different A.I.s so you can, in fact, use the zombies against your human foes.

As the demo drew to a close, the player entered a large stately home that had been hosting a wedding just as the outbreak hit. Everyone was wearing their finest suits and the bride and groom looked simply stunning… aside from their blood-drenched faces and exposed innards. It’s these sorts of moments that will make Dead Island 2 stand-out from the crowd of zombie games – little pockets of life occurring in a massive zombie playground. This house could have easily been filled with a couple of zombies and loot, but instead the developers chose to tell a story within the story. What happened here? Did anyone survive? Shall I just forget about it and hit the newly-weds with my fire hammer? All these questions and such little time.

Am I sold on the concept of Dead Island 2? No, not by a long margin. It’s currently far too similar to the original in terms of overall feel and combat. The more comical take on the game means it’s trying something different in tone, which should be commended, but I already feel like Dead Rising has that particular area of zombie killing covered. That being said, the co-op will no doubt aid the cause and I have no doubt that Yager Development have the skills to make a decent product. The question remains if it will have an identity separate to that of the first in order to really make its mark in a very, very crowded genre.

Source

Official Site