Dead Island

Just want to put a disclaimer up here, I've played through ALOT of this game, and I still haven't reached the end. I'm about 86% through the storyline, and I've done a buttload of side missions; but I don't see myself playing through to the end in time to get this review up (more on that later). So, lets get on with it.

STORY
Dead Island takes place on the tropical island of Banoi where a strange virus has turned the natives, tourists and resort workers into flesh devouring monsters. You play as one of the only 4 characters who are seemingly immune to the strange condition, and as such, you are tasked with finding out exactly what is going on, as well as providing supplies for the other, non-immune survivors.

The story, as it is, isn't the most riveting thing we've seen in games, but its by far not the worst. It works well enough in that it gives us some fairly interesting goals to pursue while trying to unravel the undead mystery. Without it, we'd just run around bashing zombie brains out. Though, that isn't bad.

PRESENTATION
Dead Island is most certainly NOT the best game you'll play this year. It'd have a hard time standing up against certain games from a few years ago. The graphics aren't particularly smooth, but zombies look suitably dead, and certain main characters have distinct looks that suit them.
The game has a number of visual hiccups, from textures taking a while to pop in, to waypoints on the map not showing up at all.

The sound design, on the other hand is fairly good, especially in the music and sound effect department. The larger zombies actually roar, and after playing this game for so long, it still makes me anxious. The sound track captures the somewhat depressing, desperate mood prevalent in the game, and it really works.

Voice acting is a bit hit-and-miss on the OTHER other hand, with there being more than one horrible aussie accent in the mix. That said, they aren't all bad, and it helps give the game a broader national scope than, say, gta 4 in (not) New York City or any other game that generally features an all american cast of characters. So, the voice acting isn't stellar, but its fun and diverse.
The playable characters fair a lot better, with some real experience in the form of Phil Lamarr (Futurama, Metal Gear Solid), Kim Mai Guest (Metal Gear Solid, No More Heroes) and David Kaye (Resistance, Spiderman: Shattered Dimensions).

GAMEPLAY
Here's where we get into the diseased, rotten meat of why Dead Island is a mostly enjoyable game. Zombies aren't new to our medium, but very few games actually feel like zombie games. So many use zombies just as cannon fodder, but never truly replicate the feeling of desperation or resourcefulness that one would think would come with a zombie apocalypse. Left 4 Dead did it, and I truly believe Dead Island has pulled it off as well.

Gameplay revolves around killing zombies, and fetch quests/escort missions; the latter of which we're all more than familiar with. What makes Dead Island fun is the way it lets you decide how you want to take on the undead hordes.
Do you go in guns blazing, or throw knives to soften them up before landing a killing blow? Do you bash in some brains with a mallet, or do you strategically dismember the horde with a katana?

Each of the above options is a viable solution to the undead problem, and they allow players to choose the way they want to play. Adding to this choice are the 3 seperate skill trees for each character, allowing for even deeper customization of one's play style.

The quests all tend to feel the same after a while, but the feel of the combat and amount of potential loot to grab certainly make up for it. Very few games do 1st person melee combat well, but dead island is certainly one of them. The amount of weapons is truly stunning, with mod blueprints available to customize your weapons and play style further.

Just a few minor issues, stop this game from playing perfectly. As I said before, visual issues pop up now and then, and occasionally get in the way of the combat. Aside from that, there are some minor collission detection hiccups, as well as a sometimes annoying (occassionally infuriating) autosave function that seems rather schizophrenic. Sometimes it doesn't autosave for a while, other times it autosaves every 5 minutes, causing yours truly to get stuck 86% of the way into the game because my AI escortee continues to get his head ripped off a minute after reloading.

In short, Dead Island's gameplay is THE reason to play this game. The visceral, satisfying combat makes the game feel powerful, while the shooting mechanics also feel like theres a tangible weight to them. Missions tend to feel a bit samey, but the core combat makes up for the games few gameplay faults.

REPLAYABILITY
While there are multiple characters to use in Dead Island, the initial choice doesn't mean much, aside from a few weapon specialties and different stats. There are no multiple endings, as far as I know, and aside from further exploration, there isn't much reason to play through the campaign again. Co-op is always fun, so i suppose theres an option if you feel so inclined.

OVERVIEW
To sum things up, Dead Island is one of those games that has quite a few faults, but the overarching gameplay is more than enough to save it. While Dead Island doesn't look great, aside from the landscapes, and the story is rather so-so, the violent gameplay at its centre is enough to make this definately worth a buy. If you like zombie games, you should really already have this. If not, go get it right now!

Also theres a half Australian Aboriginal ex-cop lady as a playable character. Thats certainly a rarity in gaming, so yea. Some food for thought.

Next week, Gears of War 3, the (possibly) final installation of the chainsaw gun wielding dudebro fest from Epic Games. See you next time!