Preview

Dead Island preview

We take a brief vacation to Dead Island to get some hands-on impressions.

May 17, 2011 9:00 AM

Nothing can ruin a tropical island vacation quite as well as a massive zombie outbreak. Such is the premise of Dead Island, a first-person action-adventure game set at the Royal Palm Resort on the picturesque (and fictional) open-world island of Banoi in the South Pacific. I took on the role Xian Mei, a Chinese receptionist with a proclivity for knives, working at the Royal Palm Resort. In the final release players can also choose to play as Sam B (a one-hit wonder rapper Xav saw in his GDC preview), or two other characters - Logan and Purna - about whom little is known at the moment. Dead Island's opening cinematic begins with a party at one of the resort's nightclubs. Suddenly, the festivities turn deadly as zombies appear and begin to devour the party-going patrons. Then everything fades to black. It's visually "in-your-face," appropriately chaotic and disorienting, and does a fine job setting the stage. I assumed direct control of Xian Mei the next in-game day; apparently, someone pulled her out of the club and across the island to one of the beach lifeguard towers. The tower was populated with other survivors with various missions to take, including a guy in need of an amplifier for a broken radio antennae. He asked me if I could retrieve a spare from a nearby lighthouse. Before heading out, I stopped and upgraded some of my weapons at a nearby workbench. Weapons can also be combined to make new tools of destruction, once the proper blueprints are collected. I used one such blueprint (provided for the purpose of the demo) to add some nails to the business end of my Louisville slugger. Inventory management in Dead Island doesn't pause the game, however, so it's best to do your battle preparation in a safe location. Combat in Dead Island is brutal and gory, with a purposeful focus on melee weapons that send body parts a-flying. Machetes, cleavers, and knives slice through zombies like hot butter at close range. All melee weapons can also be thrown from a distance, and can be retrieved for re-use. I couldn't help but chuckle after I skewered a zombie's torso with my thrown machete, ran up and retrieved the blade as it continued toward me, and then decapitated it with the same blade. Physical actions, such as swinging a weapon or sprinting use up player stamina, which automatically recharges. It's a nice touch that ensures fights require a bit more strategy than simply spamming the attack button. There are also powerful guns to be found or purchased from survivors selling black market goods, but they're very rare and will only include thirty to fifty rounds of ammunition apiece. Players also have a melee kick at their disposal, which can be used to knock zombies down and provide some breathing room.

AlohaaaaaaAAAAAAAAA!

After slaughtering more of the walking dead in the sunshine, I finally made my way to a bungalow close to the hotel and noticed a pickup truck parked nearby. After a messy three-point turn, I was barreling up a dirt road towards the lighthouse. Zombies, as one would expect, are no match for a truck, and I watched with satisfaction as the undead meat-sacks splattered under my wheels. A couple of zombies even flew over the truck's hood and cracking the windshield, which Xian Mei proceeded to knock away with her fist - a nice attention to detail. After mowing down dozens of zombies (and crashing into a couple of trees), the truck was battered and smoking as I reached the lighthouse. The lighthouse itself proved to be another "safe zone" filled with survivors to talk to and more missions to accept. A guy named Trevor asked me to head down and gather some signal flares from some wrecked ships down the beach. It was here that I encountered my first of the "Infected," which are incredibly fast. Zombies in Dead Island come in at least a few other flavors, including "Suiciders" - zombies covered in pulsating growths that will explode if you get too close. Next, I jumped ahead to a part of the game about ten hours into the story, where I found myself standing outside of a church. The bright sunshine had been replaced by ominous storm clouds. Upon entering the courtyard, I was immediately attacked by a seven-foot zombie wearing a straight jacket. Too powerful to attack head-on, dispatching the hulking foe required dodging his charge and then stabbing him in the back. Because the fight took place in a fenced-off space, it proved to be a bit of a challenge, and was a welcome change of pace from the standard zombie fodder. Once the battle was finished, survivors in the church could be chatted up for more missions, including a nun who requested that we disable the church bells, because apparently, zombies find loud noises irresistible. Bells disabled, I again ventured outside to see that rain had begun to fall. The island of Banoi had taken on a much gloomier tone, due in no small part to the encroaching storm. My vacation abruptly ended there, but what I saw of Dead Island is enough to keep me checking with my travel agent for a return flight until the game is released. Survival horror fans and avid zombie killers might want to keep their eyes on this one, which is planned for a Q4 2011 release on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC.

Jeff Mattas

Filed Under

From The Chatty

Refresh Go To Thread

Shacknews

 reply
May 17, 2011 9:00 AM

Jeff Mattas posted a new article, Dead Island preview.

We take a brief vacation to Dead Island to get some hands-on impressions.
- Korban
  
   reply
  May 17, 2011 9:23 AM
  
  man, that trailer still gives me chills
  - fmellish
    
     reply
    May 19, 2011 10:33 AM
    
    There are two reasons this video makes me tear up every time I watch it.
    
    1) I have a daughter that age and the situation, while fictitious, seems to hit home.
    2) The music is emotional, and it makes the scene sad.
    
    Yeah, having kids makes you a big pussy, oh well, it's still worth it.
    - DocShiv
      
       reply
      May 19, 2011 9:11 PM
      
      I'm with you. I also have a daughter. I watched that trailer twice. Twice was enough.
- ShXIII
  
   reply
  May 17, 2011 9:37 AM
  
  Cant wait for this, I really hope they capture a good survival horror feel and not the run and gun that is L4D
  - mikecyb
    
     reply
    May 17, 2011 9:40 AM
    
    lol, did you read the preview?
    - ShXIII
      
       reply
      May 17, 2011 9:51 AM
      
      yeah but I don't really take anything to heart any more until I play it myself. When first heard about Dead Island years ago it really seemed to be what I was looking for in a zombie game ie survival horror not action but now its almost teetering towards action. Either way I still have hopes for this game
      - dahanese
        
         reply
        May 17, 2011 9:59 AM
        
        the trailer is awesome and i don't think the game will be anything like that at all. 7 foot tall zombie in a straightjacket on a vacation island? awesome game - not the promise of the video.
        
        aethyr
        
         reply
        May 17, 2011 10:24 AM
        
        As far as I can tell this game is basically Dead Rising?
        
        dahanese
        
         reply
        May 17, 2011 10:29 AM
        
        pretty sure. which is great, because that game sounds fun, and since it won't be emotional i am going to win my bet and get a delicious, delicious steak.
        
        mikecyb
        
         reply
        May 17, 2011 3:02 PM
        
        it seems like all the stuff I wanted Dead Rising to have (or stuff I loved it for) without any of the bullshit that made me hate that goddamn game (which was a lot of bullshit)
- Dynotaku
  
   reply
  May 17, 2011 10:54 AM
  
  After that amazing trailer, I find myself judging the game unfairly for falling in to standard video game trappings, like reading the preview, I couldn't help but think "What kind of moron needs blueprints to stick nails in a bat?"
  
  The presentation has been so good up to this point I guess I was hoping for something a little more from the gameplay, again, which is totally unfair. It's a dumb thing to gripe about, I'm just glad it's coming to PC.
  - House
    
     reply
    May 17, 2011 1:37 PM
    
    I would agree with you that the trailer, which got me so excited for the game, is almost too good. The game sounds as though it could decent in a pretty standard zombie-fest-carnage way, but it's not going to be anything like the trailer.
- Entity
  
   reply
  May 17, 2011 10:56 AM
  
  So, it sounds like Dead Rising on and island instead of in a mall, with a presumably far bettter save system.
  - p34nk
    
     reply
    May 17, 2011 2:13 PM
    
    And no time limit! :)
    
    However, I still love Dead Rising series. Just wish they can go away with the time limit (even though I know thats the point, but still want free roam zombie action games with horror and humor thrown in here and there).
    - excessus
      
       reply
      May 17, 2011 2:42 PM
      
      Agreed. Or a no time limit mode, ffs.
  - SpaecKow
    
     reply
    May 17, 2011 3:00 PM
    
    No it sounds like a melee focused Left 4 Dead with a serious SP campaign.
    - Pettytheft
      
       reply
      May 18, 2011 8:04 PM
      
      IF that's the case then I'm disappointed. I prefer zombie games to be more survival oriented than pure action.
- hypn0t1c
  
   reply
  May 18, 2011 3:11 AM
  
  I'm a huge zombie fan, and this game just keeps looking better and better, it's on my wishlist.
- peasofme
  
   reply
  May 18, 2011 8:07 AM
  
  dead rising 2: tropical vacation
- fmellish
  
   reply
  May 19, 2011 10:29 AM
  
  Can't wait for this. Luckily have Crysis 2 on the PC just released new maps, that should keep me busy.