Please support Game Informer. Print magazine subscriptions are less than $2 per issue
Dead Island
Dead Island shocked the world upon its return after a three year hiatus with a gorgeous cinematic trailer
that placed us right in the middle of the action as a family fought for
their lives against a bloodthirsty zombie horde on an island resort.
The reverse story progression and its heart wrenching musical
complement struck an emotional chord among gamers in a way that rivals
short films. Dead Island's announcement trailer came out of left field
and secured a spot on our radar as a game that has the potential, if
executed well, to prove you can never have too many zombie games.
Call
of Juarez developer Techland takes players to the Royal Palms Resort on
Banoi Island, a fictional exotic locale stationed in Papua New Guinea
that attracts tourists worldwide. Players check into the Chinese hotel
chain for a few days in paradise, but soon things begin to go awry.
Aggression prevails as guests attack other guests, infecting them in a
breakout that spreads like wildfire, and different mutations emerge for
a variety of grotesque zombie classes. Only a handful of survivors will
remain and among those is your character. To escape the island
un-mauled, you'll have to figure out the secret to immunity and get to
the bottom of the gruesome situation.
Dead Island is a
first person "zombie-slasher/action-RPG" reminiscent of undead splatter
films. The only way to survive is to engage in the fight for your life.
There is a single player campaign, or up to four friends can seamlessly
join the fray in drop in/drop out cooperative mode online.
The
main character in Dead Island is an everyman that requires creativity
to fight with everyday items. Combat focuses heavily on melee, so
whichever items in the world that can be used as a weapon of
destruction, be it a pipe, broomstick, or paddle, is fair game. Despite
the emphasis on melee, players will ocassionally recieve access to
firearms, however ammunition like in any horror game is a rare find.
Use it wisely. Not to mention, melee weapons can degrade or break after
extensive use, so resource management is key. If you become fond of a
particular item you'll have the option to repair it at select workbench
locations.
In regard to RPG elements, Dead Island will feature a
leveling system and skill tree helping the player grow as a zombie
slaying machine over the course of the game, providing new tactics, new
character animations, and boosts in stats.
Dead Island is due
out for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC later this year. In the
meantime, feast your eyes on the media gallery below for another look
at the zombie slaying action.
Products In This Article
I’d like to ask you to support Game Informer’s continued coverage of games with a subscription. For less than two dollars per issue, we mail you a full year of 10 print magazines, each with cover stories and preview features filled with exclusive details about the most exciting upcoming games. We profile and interview game creators. We look back on the rich history of gaming, and we celebrate what’s next.
Here on the website, we offer much of our content for free, including game reviews, daily news, videos, event coverage, and more – all with minimal ads.
We do so with a small editorial team, alongside contributing paid writers from around the world – over 65 individuals from 9 countries around the world, just in the last couple of years.
It’s not possible without support.
In a time when game makers and games coverage have faced hard struggles and layoffs, the future of this 30+ year magazine and community is at risk. Our new standalone magazine subscription is the number one way you can keep us alive – and we believe you’ll get a pretty fantastic gaming magazine in your mailbox every few weeks for your trouble.
Thank you.
