Do not raise this one from the grave .
PlayingDead Island 2is like playing five - digit fillet blindfold with a rusty matchet : it ’s not fun . I regularly asked myself as I fiddle what I love , besides thinking the taking apart was coolheaded for a few seconds . My experience with Dead Island 2 edge on unbearable , and I hold back wishing for it to be over . In the end , the dismemberment system actually was the one matter I truly enjoyed in Dead Island 2 . Sadly , this one professional can not outweigh the staggering number of cons in the secret plan , peculiarly with how lackluster the mo - to - moment combat is .
Story
Dead Island 2 is your distinctive zombi irruption news report , with little to secern it from those that came before it . The series is know for its humor and macabre take on this tired narrative , but everything about Dead Island 2 ’s story fell flat . The setting , characters , secret plan , and everything in between bordered on predictable . It even bleeds into the side content .
Let ’s just look at the Slayers , the main playable characters of Dead Island 2 . None of them feel relatable or compelling . In fact , they come across as annoying , qualities partake by the supporting mold . Their motivations were silly and unrealistic ; whenever I conform to a persona , I immediately dislike them or did n’t handle about them because of how little they reckon the zombie apocalypse or how selfish they were . Ludicrous may be what Dambuster was go away for , but the livery miss the charm needed for antiheroes to shine . Overall , the characters find hollow .
Dead Island 2 ’s ( attempted ) wit is partially why the character come down flat . I only express joy when I encountered a bug or glitch , which typically caused me to die or reset , but the real dialogue and characters seemed to have been written as slapstick for a jr. audience . It finger cringe and ungainly in execution .
The absurdity of it is also uttermost . It ’s dramatic enough to assay to make me believe that the snake god outbreak wiped out an entire military personnel , yet it ’s gonzo enough that an sometime man who relies on a mechanical seat to go up and down one trajectory of stair could survive on his own . Unfortunately , the ridiculousness embedded throughout the game , within both its story and characters , prevented me from being vest in what was happening and ruin my overall suspension of mental rejection .
musical score : 1/5
Related : All playable characters in Dead Island 2 ( so far )
Image via Dambuster Studios
Combat
While Dead Island 2 features gunfight , it is principally a melee sandbox — which is confusing because of how unsatisfying it feel to fight the undead . Each weapon feels nearly identical , the only difference being that some are fast and others slow . I felt the triteness further when the dismemberment scheme lost its original brilliancy .
Weapons can be upgraded with fringe benefit to apply extra elemental damage or modify characteristics , such as hurrying and damage , but the overall armed combat system remains the same . The only veridical sense of variety in scrap do via Perk Cards that give role player young abilities , such as a drop kick or undercoat pound .
There were particular zombie variants that in a flash made arm useless if they had specific elemental mod attached . Other zombi covered in razor telegram would damage me if I kicked them . This system did n’t enhance the gameplay experience , but rather made it finger more tedious . Additionally , the dodge mechanic mat awful , and I immediately regretted not picking a type with pulley block as their defensive ability . gratefully , this can be switched later in the game .
Image via Dambuster Studios
chief fights and cloud are especially plaguey . Multiple times , the game throw swarms of zombies at the player , and the objective is to kill them all . I encountered this so often that I could predict when it would occur . Boss competitiveness were little more than the unconstipated fights and offered almost no additional challenge . Once a boss is defeat , the player encounters that zombie type throughout the overworld , further diminishing the culmination of overcome and defeating them .
Score : 2/5
Related : Where to find the Dead Island easter egg in Dying Light 2
Image via Dambuster Studios
Pacing and Progression
The pacing is terrible in Dead Island 2 . The independent fib is reasonably short , and Dambuster Studio must have known , as it seems clear that cushioning was added to arbitrarily lengthen the experience . Throughout the game , I was bombard with locked door , chests , containers , and more that required peculiar keys , fuseboxes , or other item to open up . The mandatory item could be found right next to say locked item or sprinkle throughout the area in unnoticeable locations . Nearly every time I opened one of these locked container , I was rewarded with either a washy weapon or one quick made obsolete by other weapons , crafting stuff , or an abyssal amount of money .
The quest and collectible organisation is no good . Certiain quest or object have to be meet to make quest token spawn , but it appear that two quest item ca n’t exist in the same location at the same time , willy-nilly extend the amount of time it takes to complete multiple . This is the bad offender of aggrandize the game for on the face of it no reason .
In term of progressioin , the organization is relatively unpointed . I find stronger weapons , dismantle up , and gain new perquisite throughout my journey , which sound good on newspaper , but the decision to have all zombies scale with the player makes any raise or major power - up trivial . Even near the end of the game , dealing with the weak word form of zombie was dangerous due to how weak I was from the scaling . knob and special variant could down in one or two hits . I never felt potent while playing , regardless of what artillery I used or the perquisite equip . Even an end - game arm I found felt marginally stronger than anything else I used .
Image via Dambuster Studios
It ’s important to note that there is no punishment for dying throughout most of the biz , but sometimes there is , which is frustrating . After decease , I would normally respawn near where I was or my objective with no expiration , and the damage I inflicted on zombies would carry over . But I would then meet sealed missions that would reset all progression for the mission if I die . Indeed , an overall lack of consistency permeates Dead Island 2 ’s pacing and progression .
Gameplay Loop and Bugs
The entirety of Dead Island 2 feels flawed and design for a different clip . It brings nothing new to the genre and feel like a failed nostalgia blast . issue with the game extend to the core gameplay cringle . Dead Island 2 is a zombie game , but shoot down zombies put up nearly no reward or incentive . I would enlighten an area and search for keys or collectible only to have zombies respawn almost immediately . It made notice the overwhelming number of key and collectible tucker out rather than a joyousness . Weapon debasement and the high repair price further warn me from fighting .
Saving was also an issue . There are no save stop , only autosaves . The only dependable means I found to relieve was to move to a young area , complete an object glass , or give out , which modify my motivation for onward motion or move through the world alone at time and lease me out of the experience .
Throughout my 21 - 60 minutes playthrough of Dead Island 2 , I also encountered various bugs and glitches . These graze from small-scale unity , like automaton spawn out of thin zephyr or teleporting after doing a dropkick , to major glitches , including getting stuck in the surround and having to restart . The funniest glitch I happen was when I was fight back a boss and fell off of the level and die . The boss followed me off , died , and I was credited for fill in the battle .
relate : Check outSiliconera ’s Review of the indie championship , Chained Echoes .
Verdict – Avoid like the Undead
Dead Island 2 went through 10 year of development hellhole , and after experiencing what came out on the other side , I wish it would have outride there . Nothing about Dead Island 2 stands out . It offers few reason to spiel it , unless you ’re a fan of previous entries in the serial ( specifically Dead Island and Riptide ) . Dambuster Studios and Deep Silver made an ambitious leap for Dead Island 2 but did not win , and I can only urge paying for and playing this game if you observe it on a deep sales agreement .
A free copy of the game was provided to PGG by the publisher for inspection determination .
