Dead Island Review

IceStar100

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Fasckira said:
This game gets a big "meh" from me. I find it hard to care about any of the characters (the player character or any of the NPCs), the quests so far have all be fetch quests with the exception of two escort missions, and weapons so far have been relatively pointless when I can spend the entire time just kicking zombies. Ive only had to use weapons so far against thugs.

Im persevering though, trying to give this game a chance as I get a feeling it may be like Two Worlds was for me - I hated it at first but after forcing myself to play for a few hours I started to develop a taste for it.
This so much. Heck some are down right stupid and or unlikable. Thier is one I will avoid names. That does something really stupid and has something really bad happen to them becuase of this. It is made that we should feel sorry for her.

{Jin tries to help abunch of lets say evil people everyone told her not to. She does and ends up getting raped or it's implyed at least. I admit it's bad but at the same time it is of her own doing. My real question why did we save her. Lets be honest here if she had pulled a stunt like most people would of let her rot.}
 

Metalrocks

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Jan 15, 2009
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looks like you really have to beat the zombies until they are dead. the game as such still hasnt caught my attention really. it seams like its mainly MP focused. or is it an ok game for playing SP only? read pretty much every comment here. looks like many are not really happy with this game.
maybe i might get it when its on special but for now, hard reset is hell lot of fun. and next month we get serious sam 3.
 

Undead Dragon King

Evil Spacefaring Mantis
Apr 25, 2008
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Great last 2 seconds of the video review, Susan! It pays homage to what will always be Dead Island's claim to fame.
 

Baron_BJ

Tired. Cold. Bored.
Nov 13, 2009
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Iron Lightning said:
Fair enough, people still aren't generally immune to new diseases, especially ones that directly affect every system of the body in a dramatic fashion as zombieism seems to do. Four immune people on a single relatively small island is a statistical miracle.

However, my main problem isn't the unlikelihood of immunity but the fact that immunity is terribly cliche in videogames. What we need is a game that breaks the mold just a little to where the protagonist can be infected. Zombies that can't infect are no different from rabid cannibals. Sure that can work for a few games but nowadays it's so oversaturated that I simply can't stomach another fucking cookie-cutter zombie game just like I can't stomach another Madden or Modern Warfare game. So, fuck Dead Island for being a cliche piece of shit.
Gonna address the parts in bold in the order they appear, however some things may be considered mild spoilers, take whatever precautions you wish:
1.
The game makes it clear partway through that the infection is anything but new, in fact the natives that live in the forest are all infected by default, however they kept it at bay (but they cannot actually cure it) by use of a special mixture they make from a native plant and since they've lived with the infection for so very long they've developed a natural immunity atop that which delays the infection for even longer, allowing them to live for many decades before they succumb. The virus mutated and now transforms people much more rapidly. Point being that it's a very, VERY old virus.

2. I'll give you the fact that the likelyhood of so many people being immune is very low, however the size of a country is a rather poor measuring stick for how many people would be there and by extension how many people actually could be immune, for example Australia is 25.69 times larger than Italy, the population of Australia is approximately 20 million, whereas italy has a population of approximately 60 million. and a little side addition to this, but it could be considered a spoiler:
You meet a native woman who is also immune, I forget her name, but she soon begins to follow you around, her back story is that she has lived and learned in the city and that her father is the village shaman Ope, point being that the 4 playable characters aren't the ONLY people who are immune.

3. Sometimes shit becomes Cliche' because it just fucking works.

I keep seeing people talk about games where they can become the infected, part of the problem with that is you're asking that from a zombie game; that kinda goes against the idea of zombies to begin with; even before the modern version of zombies were revitalized in the 1960's by Romero, the idea (the idea of zombies dates back thousands of years to voodoo practices, though the general idea of the dead rising has always been around) has always been that they're mindless and/or are part of a hive mind and that is what makes them so haunting and disturbing. If you want a game where such an idea comes about then that's fine, but expecting it from a Zombie game isn't something that works given the subject matter.

I notice people keep making the L4D references due to the special infected and given the trailers I can REALLY understand that, I got that impression originally as well, but in practise it's really not all that similar, for people who care, I'll give a run down of infected:

The suiciders (http://www.deadislandwiki.com/w/images/c/cb/Suicider.png): are a threat, when you get close they stand still, quake and explode, killing everything in their set radius, however they have a low health pool, allowing for players to use the suicider as a weapon against their fellow undead, either by getting close enough to set him off or nuking him from a distance, causing him to act like a grenade against his surroundings.

The Ram (http://zoknowsgaming.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/dead-island-ram-1.jpg): may seem similar to the annoying fucking Charger from L4D2 and it's attack method is, however combating it is rather different; it is immune from damage that isn't to a select spot on it's back where's its inch thick straight jacket is torn open (ooh yeah, a lone weak spot that is only open at select moments, how original), basically you have to leap out of the way of its charge, attack it's back whilst it freaks out over missing (it freaks out longer if it runs into something). You must know when to stop attacking and retreat, lest the Ram quickly donkey kick you (it will also kick you if you are too close at any time that he isn't freaking out).

Floaters (http://www.deadislandwiki.com/w/images/thumb/f/fa/Floater.png/275px-Floater.png): Okay, have to be honest, appearance is the same as the Boomer and in practise they act just like the Boomer, however the bile they spew is a very narrow cone that it affects, the vomit does nothing to players other than hurt like all holy fuck, however if it coats other zombies it makes them extremely flamable and they catch fire rather easily anyway (I'd say it's like dumping a tank of gas atop a pile of dead leaves), they're rather durable and before you ask, no, they don't explode when they die.

The Butcher (http://www.dead-island.com/forums/members/300/albums/dead-island-enemies/139-butcher.jpg): They run really fast and they stab you with their jagged bone nubs. This does a lot of damage, but you'd kind of expect being stabbed to hurt like hell. Melee is a poor choice against them, and given how you fight most enemies that's what makes them such a pain to run into.

Thug (http://deadislandwiki.com/w/images/thumb/4/4d/Thug_in_church.png/275px-Thug_in_church.png): Basically they're just insanely fucking big zombies, they're very slow, they're speed is a notch below a slow shuffle, they constantly roar (some say this attracts extra enemies, I don't notice it) and you can't get close or they will punch you so hard you'll fall on your ass and lose a decent portion of health, to face them you need to get in there just after they missed a swing at you and hit them quickly, or get a long weapon and hit them just barely out of their reach, it's advisable to either cut off their arms with a sharp weapon or get a strong blunt weapon and break their arms, thereby removing their ability to do heavy damage and to knock you on your ass, meaning all they can do is try and bite you, and they look hilariously stupid when they attempt to do that.
 

Klagermeister

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unacomn said:
I found the melee combat to be unbearably clumsy, which made the simple act of mass zombie genocide less fun than it should have been.
Try the analog controls. It allows you to decide which direction your melee weapon will swing based on where you point your thumbstick (or mouse as the case may be).
I thought the same thing (Just swing randomly until they're dead!) but now it takes some precision and planning.

This infected is rushing me. I'll uppercut his face with a fire axe, knocking him on his ass allowing an easy head stomp kill.
These zombies are walking rather quickly. I'll whip out my Ripper/Sledgehammer and break all their legs with one swing. No more chasing me it seems!
Oh no, seems I'm being chased by a crowd. Hey look, there's a suicider up ahead. I'll lure the crowd to him and bomb them to kingdom come.

My point is Analog controls makes it require a little more thinking and makes it a little more precise, at the cost of speed.
Thus this made it more fun for ME. Give it a shot.
 

Bat Vader

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Mar 11, 2009
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One thing that really annoys me about Dead Island is the other three characters are not controlled by the AI when playing single player. During cut-scenes they are all together working as a team yet when the cut-scenes end Logan is all by himself again. It would have been nice if the developers would have let the AI control the other three characters when someone plays single player.

I also hate the escort missions that are in the game as well. Whenever the person I am escorting gets hit once they die. That is really annoying.
 

Sonicron

Do the buttwalk!
Mar 11, 2009
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Challenge scaling, degrading weapons and horrendous savegame bugs galore. Yeah, no thanks.
 

Metalrocks

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gof22 said:
One thing that really annoys me about Dead Island is the other three characters are not controlled by the AI when playing single player. During cut-scenes they are all together working as a team yet when the cut-scenes end Logan is all by himself again. It would have been nice if the developers would have let the AI control the other three characters when someone plays single player.

I also hate the escort missions that are in the game as well. Whenever the person I am escorting gets hit once they die. That is really annoying.
now this really sucks. MP based game again. at least in L4D you have every one with you controlled by the PC.
 

Dastardly

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Apr 19, 2010
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Susan Arendt said:
Dead Island Review

Welcome to Banoi, where you'll probably be eaten soon.

Read Full Article
Interesting mix of Left 4 Dead, Dead Rising, and maybe a little Far Cry, even. I was just disappointed that the game ended up not quite as original as the early marketing indicated. It borrows heavily (and obviously) from its inspiration, and doesn't really challenge the current notion of "zombie survival" as little more than "killing zombies."
 

Susan Arendt

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Jan 9, 2007
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Also, I have a question. Why the HELL are so many people (Rams) running around in straightjackets?
 

Dastardly

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Apr 19, 2010
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Susan Arendt said:
Also, I have a question. Why the HELL are so many people (Rams) running around in straightjackets?
They're not. It's a Banoi Snuggie?.
 

Olofelefant

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Feb 18, 2011
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Waste of a trailer, I think (this opinion was formed by watching a friend play the PC version).
 

Nohra

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Macrobstar said:
If you can just kick you must not have gotten past lvl 5 or fought more than 1 zombie at a time
You clearly have not discovered the power of the Jump Kick + execution stomp. It's not that hard to lay out a bunch of zombies, then play zombie hopscotch one at a time.

"He can backtrack to join you in an earlier chapter, but he'll have to leave his skills and toys behind and settle for a nerfed version of his character."

No, you keep everything. Which is why I usually switch to fists when playing co-op, no durability loss and you can still drop a Thug in a couple seconds.
 

Aptus

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Nov 16, 2009
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Scaling zombies: Check. (ugh at healthbloating)

Super zombies: Check. (I miss just regular shufflers or atleast 28day-runners, if they are done correctly they are dangerous enough, as in, there are much more of them than you have bullets and one bite will get you, forcing you to maybe keep it under control with medication or turn)

Rampant bugs and glitches: Check.

"immune" PC's: Check.

Silly out of place sidequests: Check.

Non-Interesting characters: Check.


Yeah this game gets a pass from me...
 

Susan Arendt

Nerd Queen
Jan 9, 2007
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Nohra said:
Macrobstar said:
If you can just kick you must not have gotten past lvl 5 or fought more than 1 zombie at a time
You clearly have not discovered the power of the Jump Kick + execution stomp. It's not that hard to lay out a bunch of zombies, then play zombie hopscotch one at a time.

"He can backtrack to join you in an earlier chapter, but he'll have to leave his skills and toys behind and settle for a nerfed version of his character."

No, you keep everything. Which is why I usually switch to fists when playing co-op, no durability loss and you can still drop a Thug in a couple seconds.
Hmmm...this is puzzling. When I tried to do this with a pal, I had to select an earlier version of my character. It must make a difference how exactly you set up the game. Or, alternatively, I'm just a dumbass who misunderstood what I was doing. That's totally possible, too. :D
 

Macrobstar

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Apr 28, 2010
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Nohra said:
Macrobstar said:
If you can just kick you must not have gotten past lvl 5 or fought more than 1 zombie at a time
You clearly have not discovered the power of the Jump Kick + execution stomp. It's not that hard to lay out a bunch of zombies, then play zombie hopscotch one at a time.

"He can backtrack to join you in an earlier chapter, but he'll have to leave his skills and toys behind and settle for a nerfed version of his character."

No, you keep everything. Which is why I usually switch to fists when playing co-op, no durability loss and you can still drop a Thug in a couple seconds.
Im sorry but in what world is a kick that does 50 damage at level 25 going to stop a horde of zombies with thousands of health, and in what way is this preferable to weapons
 

Baron_BJ

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Nov 13, 2009
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Macrobstar said:
Nohra said:
Macrobstar said:
If you can just kick you must not have gotten past lvl 5 or fought more than 1 zombie at a time
You clearly have not discovered the power of the Jump Kick + execution stomp. It's not that hard to lay out a bunch of zombies, then play zombie hopscotch one at a time.

"He can backtrack to join you in an earlier chapter, but he'll have to leave his skills and toys behind and settle for a nerfed version of his character."

No, you keep everything. Which is why I usually switch to fists when playing co-op, no durability loss and you can still drop a Thug in a couple seconds.
Im sorry but in what world is a kick that does 50 damage at level 25 going to stop a horde of zombies with thousands of health, and in what way is this preferable to weapons
Well, you use the kick to knock them on their asses and you're able to kick at a decent enough speed to keep a decent sized pack on the ground (until they're on their feet again they just fall right back on their faces when struck by any attack) and you are able to do a finishing move that is unlocked in a character's talents menu (every character learns this ability, it's in the second tree). The move in question is performed by aiming at the head and pressing the kick button, the character will then proceed to curb-stomp the zombies face, dealing over 50,000 damage, in other words an insta-kill on all enemies, regardless of health. At level 40 however I noticed my character (I'm playing as Logan) stopped performing the move as a curb-stomp and then began doing what I can only call "doing the fucking mario" and leaping onto their faces, 2 feet at a time and simply crushing it, aside from looking fucking hilarious when the zombies head bursts like a balloon it is performed more rapidly than the earlier version of the move. This move can be performed on any zombie, even specials.

Side note regarding durability loss; Throwing weapons causes no durability loss, so you can proceed to throw your weapons as much as you like without them ever taking damage, and since they deal more damage when thrown than regular usage (seriously, I often get one-shots out of this, and not because of the Shinobi Talent (9% chance to instantly kill an enemy that is the same or of a lower level than you)) it's a fantastic option for those who play as logan (the throwing expert) because of his (maxed out) boomerang talent which causes 50% of all thrown weapons to instantly be returned to the users hands.