Undoubtedly one of the great releases of April in terms of video games is
Dead Island 2
.
Released on April 21, this title that combines action and role-playing elements
takes up the events of the original game
12 years after its release
, but this time away from the limited geography of the fictional island of Moresby to make way for a metropolis like
Los Angels
.
As in a George Romero movie (Night of the Living Dead or Dawn of the Dead),
Dead Island 2 repeats its typical plot
and
the condiments that captivate fans of the genre
: a zombie outbreak without much explanation, a group of survivors and the need to break through -at the fan's pleasure- killing everything that crosses the path.
Dead Island 2: Welcome to Los Angeles
Dead Island 2, one of the featured games of April 2023. Photo: Deep Silver.
On this occasion, the action takes place in HELL-A (an acronym for LA in English).
Players can choose from one of
six survivors
turned zombie hunters or
slayers
:
Amy, Bruno, Dani, Ryan, Carla and Jacob
, each with their own unique personality and abilities, the latter customizable thanks to the
new card system. skill
.
Dead Island 2 makes zombie killing more up close and personal than ever in the series thanks to game developer Dambuster Studios' FLESH
(
Fully Locational Evisceration System for Humanoids )
system
that makes zombie dismemberment so gory. as real.
When attacking and depending on the weapon,
any type of member can fly through the air
: legs, arms, head or torso.
Anything goes and everything is at the player's request.
The detail of the clothes, muscles and skeletons makes everything more real.
The same with the animations at the time of the auctions,
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, meat cleaver, machete, or katana.
As you progress in the game,
machine guns, shotguns or pistols
appear to give another twist to the frenzy action.
The must-have RPG seasoning in the series is a
moderate skill tree
to craft and equip, allowing players to build their own unique and devastating arsenal that allows you to toggle between powering melee weaponry at the cost of stamina or speed and vice versa.
With each completed mutilation or mission,
the character gains experience points and increases his level
.
For each zombie killed, between 15 and 20 XP are added.
The figure can go up to 35 each, by successfully performing a dodge and counter combo.
Keep in mind that opening locked doors also carries
an additional reward
for unlocking it.
On the other hand, the game also features a
cooperative multiplayer mode
, which allows players to share a game with friends or join others and complete missions together.
Dead Island 2 has a wide range of zombies so you don't get bored.
Photo: Deep Silver.
There are dozens of different zombie types, each with their own mutations, attacks, and Los Angeles-themed variations.
There are slow, fast and aggressive or more resistant
thanks to their musculature.
Some are even on fire, they can vomit poison or explode before dying.
And as if that were not enough, there are also the challenging
final boss or
phase bosses.
Dead Island 2: 12 years of waiting
In terms of development, this sequel was plagued with problems and walked the fine line of final cancellation on several occasions.
Dead Island 2 - E3 2014 Official Trailer
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 transfer development to Sumo Digital.
They even went so far as to present a trailer at the E3 2014 fair 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 had left.
Until then, the future of Dead Island 2 was uncertain to such an extent that it was officially unknown if another developer was going to continue with the sequel.
After announcing three studios in the last 5 years, Deep Silver handed over the responsibility to
Dambuster Studios
to take control and end development on the much-touted 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.
Dead Island 2 Official Reveal Trailer |
gamescom ONL 2022
Although the first of the Dead Island was a commercial success for Techland and the publisher Deep Silver, selling more than five million copies;
the sequel destroyed all kinds of records by breaking the million barrier in the first days.
Dead Island 2: the graphic section
Developed by the Deep Silver studio,
the video game uses the Unreal 4 graphic engine
-the same as the zombie games Days Gone or Dead by Daylight- to give it a degree of detail that appears with certain peculiarities in each of the consoles and their version. for PC.
In the case of Xbox One, it runs at 1600x900 resolution targeting 30 fps (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 1920x1080 resolution and also targets 30fps, though the dips in certain places are more visible.
In the cases of Xbox One X and PS4 Pro, the same graphic elements are used in textures, shadows and effects, but the resolution goes up to 2560x1440.
The 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 off windows and fire and there is ambient animation for trees, but the jump is achieved in the performance.
The fifth generation of Sony consoles works at a resolution of 3072x1728 with 60 fps, while Xbox Series X uses the same resolution
although it drops a little more in framerate
when using elemental attacks.
Xbox Series S has more difficulties to maintain 60 fps -it drops to 50 on occasion- with a resolution of 1920x1080.
conclusions
Dead Island 2 is the true reflection that a project can have twists and turns, even flirt with cancellation, but that the decision to support an idea ends up paying off.
As much as the plot is repetitive, the player gets involved and receives tons of entertainment.
The breadth of the map invites you to fully discover Los Angeles and, meanwhile, the various ways to kill zombies.
Its puzzles -how to open doors or compose electrical systems, among others-
are not complex
because, after all, the priority is to break through with a clean machete.
The game lasts approximately 20 hours
, although the experience can be extended up to 27 if you complete the side missions.
For those who played Dead Island 1 will find a similar time.
Then there is a list of optional challenges to unlock rewards.
Dead Island 2 was tested on PlayStation 5. It is also available on Xbox Series XS, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC via the Epic Games Store.
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