Without a doubt one of the big releases of April in terms of video games is Dead Island 2. Released on April 21, this title that combines RPG and action elements resumes the events of the original game 12 years after its premierebut this time away from the limited geography of the imaginary island of Moresby to give way to a similar metropolis The Angels.
Like in a George Romero movie (Night of the Living Dead or Dawn of the Dead), Dead Island 2 repeats its typical storyline AND the condiments that captivate fans of the genre: a zombie epidemic without too many explanations, a group of survivors and the need to break through – at the discretion of the fan – by killing everything he meets along the way.
Dead Island 2: Welcome to Los Angeles
On this occasion, the action takes place in HELL-A (acronym for LA in English). Players can choose from one of you survived become a zombie hunter or assassins: Amy, Bruno, Dani, Ryan, Carla and Jacobeach with their own unique personality and abilities, the latter customizable thanks to the new skill card system.
Dead Island 2 makes zombie slaying closer and more personal than ever in the series thanks to to the MEAT system (Fully localized evisceration system for humanoids) by Dambuster Studios, the developer of the game, which makes the dismemberment of zombies as bloody as they are real.
When attacking and depending on the weapon, any type of member can fly through the air: legs, arms, head or torso. Everything is fine and everything is at the request of the player. The detail of the clothes, muscles and skeletons makes everything more real. Same with the animations at auction time, one bloodier than the other.
To help in this carnage, the game offers tons of weapons of all kinds: swords, knives, pickaxe, shovel, golf club, pool cue, cleaver, machete or katana. As you progress through the game, the machine guns, rifles or pistols to put another twist on the wild action.
The indispensable RPG seasoning in the saga is in a moderate skill tree to craft and equip, allowing players to build their own unique and devastating arsenal that allows you to switch between giving more power to melee weapons at the expense of stamina or speed and vice versa.
With each mutilation or mission completed, the character gains experience points and increases his level. For each zombie killed, between 15 and 20 XP is added. The figure can go up to 35 each, by successfully performing a combination of dodge and counterattack. You also need to take into account what opening blocked doors entails an additional reward for unlocking it.
On the other hand, the game also has a cooperative multiplayer modewhich allows players to share the game with friends or team up with others and complete missions together.
There are dozens of different types of zombies, each with their own Los Angeles-themed mutations, attacks, and variations. There are slow, fast and aggressive or more resistant thanks to his muscles. Some are even on fire, may spew poison or explode before dying. And as if that weren’t enough, there are also challengers final boss or phase leaders.
Dead Island 2: 12 years of waiting
In terms of development, this sequel has been plagued with issues and has walked the fine line of final cancellation on several occasions.
The game was originally announced in 2014 and was in development by German studio Yager Development, but in 2015 Deep Silver decided to end the relationship and hand the development over to Sumo Digital. They even went so far as to showcase a trailer at the E3 2014 trade show that revealed Los Angeles as the main stage.
However, in 2019, Sumo Digital was also removed from the project after working three years on the project that Yager left. Until then, the future of Dead Island 2 was so uncertain that it was officially unknown if another developer would continue with the sequel.
After announcing three studios in the last 5 years, Deep Silver has handed the responsibility to Dambuster Studios take control and finish the development of the promoted Dead Island 2.
The official confirmation came in August 2022 when the official trailer was released. There you can see Jacob, one of the eligible characters, killing various types of zombies in characteristic areas of Los Angeles such as Hollywood, Beverly Hills or Santa Monica.
Although the first of Dead Island was a commercial success for Techland and publisher Deep Silver, selling more than five million copies; the sequel smashed all kinds of records by breaking the million barrier in the early days.
Dead Island 2: the graphics section
Developed by Deep Silver studio, the game uses the Unreal 4 graphics engine -the same as the zombie games Days Gone or Dead by Daylight- to give it a degree of detail that shows some particularities in each of the consoles and in its PC version.
In the case of the Xbox One, it runs at a resolution of 1600×900 with a target of 30fps (frames per second), which it manages most of the time except for a few slight dips. Its generational rival, the PlayStation 4, boasts a native resolution of 1920×1080 and also aims for 30fps, although the dips in some places are more visible.
In the case of Xbox One X and PS4 Pro, the same graphics are used in textures, shadows and effects, but the resolution increases to 2560×1440. 30 fps is achieved almost perfectly in these models.
When playing Dead Island 2 on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S, they show significant improvements in shadow quality, light reflection from windows and fire, and there is ambient animation for trees, but jumping does gets in performance.
The fifth generation of Sony consoles runs at a resolution of 3072×1728 with 60fps, while the Xbox Series X uses the same resolution. although it drops a bit more in framerate when using elemental attacks. Xbox Series S has a harder time maintaining 60fps – sometimes dropping to 50 – at 1920×1080 resolution.
conclusions
Dead Island 2 is a true reflection of the fact that a project can have twists and turns, even flirt with cancellation, but that the decision to back an idea ends up paying off.
As much as the storyline is repetitive, the player gets involved and gets tons of entertainment. The breadth of the map invites you to fully discover Los Angeles and, in the meantime, the various ways to kill zombies.
His puzzles -such as opening doors or dialing electrical systems, among others- they are not complex because after all the priority is to break through with a clean machete.
The game lasts about 20 hours., although the experience can be extended up to 27 in case of completing side missions. For those who have played Dead Island 1 will find a similar time. Then there’s a list of optional challenges to unlock rewards.
Source: Clarin
Linda Price is a tech expert at News Rebeat. With a deep understanding of the latest developments in the world of technology and a passion for innovation, Linda provides insightful and informative coverage of the cutting-edge advancements shaping our world.