It’s all too easy to compare the continued existence of Dead Island 2 to the zombies it features. Lurching on for years, long after it seemed dead, passed from one studio to another. In spite of the name though, Dead Island 2 is practically a new game. According to David Stenton, when development was taken over by Dambuster in 2018 it was “built from scratch”. The only thing they kept was zombies and its LA setting. “That serves the ‘paradise gone to hell’ pillar.” Though the genre in which it sits feel like it never dies, with zombie games still releasing on the regular. What does something like Dead Island 2 bring to the table? What even is the identity of this series?
Speaking to Stenton and James Worrall at Dambuster, as well as having 20 minutes with the game, it’s clear the focus is squarely on its gnarly close quarters combat. “It was the passion for the gore, the passion for up close melee combat,” Stenton explains. “And just doing that really, really well.” The section of the game I played had our player character, Amy (one of six heroes for players to choose) having to venture onto the well-known Santa Monica Pier. It was a tight, linear portion in which the bright lights and amusements rides are slowly brought back on as we delve deeper, which made for a poor showcase of how the game’s ambitions as an open world will fare but a good showing for the game’s moment to moment fighting.
Denne historien er fra November 2022-utgaven av PC Gamer.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra November 2022-utgaven av PC Gamer.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
BITING BACK
The tooth is out there in adventure TEETH OF GLASS
SMOKE ALARM
THE INVISIBLE SMOKE FACTORY is back in a Flash
MECH ME OVER
Move over Mario, here's mech-based platforming in ARMORED SHELL NIGHTJAR
"I like Pillars of Eternity better than Baldur's Gate III"
PILLARS OF ETERNITY deserves a bigger space in the CRPG pantheon
"A harrowing dark fantasy about hapless, bright-eyed children"
Spelunking into hell with MADE IN ABYSS: BINARY STAR FALLING INTO DARKNESS
THE IMMORTAL LOCK
A massive, meaty game in a single horrific Quake map.
NEW MANOEUVRES
Building a dedicated sim racing space in an average family house
OVERWATCH 2
Save me space girl.
REET GOOD TIME
THANK GOODNESS YOU'RE HERE is a riotous recreation of Yorkshire
THE PLUCKY SQUIRE
How many games let you make friends with a MtG card?