Dead Island Review
Dead Island is a zombie game. There's no way around that piece of information. And yes, that is going to get it some hate, simply because of the recent uprising in the zombie and vampire genres. Yes, there have been masses of zombie games recently, including the recent Dead Rising 2. However, unlike Dead Rising 2, Dead Island is an excellent game. Its been a game that's held my attention for the gaming time I've had over the last week, and has been the game thats kept me awake the longest, and not only because its absolutley terrifying.The gameplay itself is amazing. Not only does it use a fantastic melee system, but it feels visceral and real. The role-playing skill tree feels slightly stilted, in that only one tree REALLY feels useful, and the quests seem a little strange, but in all, the gameplay itself is great. The zombies are well detailed, as some are fast, some slow and some special. These special zombies seem a little out of place, but they make the game seem more challenging, so I'm all for it. The weapons are fun and slightly wacky. For example, I currently hold an electrified fire-axe. Yes, it seems a little strange, but its awesome. It feels great and really does some damage to the zombie hordes, often in a very visceral way. The combat system, something that I usually get held up on in a melee game, is phenomenal. The fact that the game uses stamina when you swing your weapon makes you time your blows, and makes the combat actually seem dangerous. Upon connecting with the zombie foes, damage is done and numbers pop up, and the zombies bones crunch. Its very satisfying. Occasionally, you will see a big red "Break!" or "Cut!", which tells you that you have stopped the zombie from using a limb, which is generally good, as it stops them from hurting you too much. Its the closest I've seen gaming get to what I call the perfect melee system, but thats a post for another day.
However, the game does have some downsides. First of all, its butt-clenchingly terrifying. It really makes me sacred, and is actually the first game that I've been able to keep playing even though I'm really scared. Its rather captivating. Not really a downside, but I felt I had to warn everybody.Now, for the real downside. The storyline is not fantastic. For the game that captured the world with its heart-wrenching trailer, the storyline was not great. It seems forced, and has almost nothing of the emotion that the trailer does. It feels somewhat dead and simply an action game. It has some sad parts, especially at the beginning, where you meet a character who had to kill his wife and brother. Apart from that, however, the emotion is very forced.
The weapon modification system feels like what Dead Rising should have been. You are able to combine items with weapons, and make wacky items. Currently, I have a baseball bat wrapped with barbedwire, a rag covered stick (which burns), and an electrified axe, which I mentioned earlier.
However, I played the game for the visceral and gory combat, and loved it to death (no pun intended). Its fun, scary and all around great. The storyline is silly, and some of the quests poorly written, and its still a little glitchy, but I highly recommend getting the game. Its a fantastic game. It gets an esteemed 8.5/10.
You can see me and Nick Nizzi playing the game at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXVZfEMzQPg
James, I'd love to hear your criteria for what makes a game perfect; it breaks down into several different places to where a game should be strong.
ReplyDeleteI hate to say it, but the plot always comes first to me. If the game is rubbish, I may enjoy an hour or so of mind-numbing, repetitive combat before actually throwing down a controller and going to do something else. With that said, a multiplayer option usually is enough for a game to get over that first hurdle; often more work is spent by the developers on trying to create an awesome, revolutionary multiplayer experience rather than a gripping storyline. In a few FPS games that I've played of late, I often wonder if the offline mode was developed solely as a crutch to getting players developed enough for the multiplayer. It seems to be that way in regard to titles in the Modern Warfare and COD series; I'd love to hear your thoughts on this.
Secondly, the combat style cannot be incredibly difficult to get used to. A game can only use so many presses to accomplish its functions, and often gamers have been 'programmed' into a mold where the controls of one game is the same for the others across a genre. I find it hard to acknowledge that a combat situation could be 'revolutionary' if all the keypresses serve the exact same function as others. Perhaps the graphics are the only thing that's important under these circumstances, if everything else is equal.
To bust out of a genre I hear you on the odd styles of combination- honestly it sounds like a recipe for some kind of farce, rather than an actual, usable item. Would the fire and barbed wire actually have such an effect on the weapon, rather than serving as eye candy?
While thinking over this, I'd like to know three answers, at least according to you:
1. What makes a game 'perfect'?
2. What elements in a game, if you had to order them, would form a top ten 'checklist'?
3. What do you think about Skyrim, and how will it fare against said list?
I'm all ears. Take it easy, man.
-Sam