Dead Island Critic Reviews

Dead Island is a hell of a ride from start to (near) finish and is a zombie game that stands out from the rest of the pack.

Dead Island joins the ranks of other zombie games like Dead Rising and Left 4 Dead as one of the best experiences in the genre. While the melee combat and first-person perspective will take some time to get used it, the experience is absolutely rewarding, especially if you can gather up a group of fine zombie killers to come with you for the ride in co-op.

Did I enjoy this game? Absolutely. Did it scare the crap out of me at times? 100%. Was there a real feeling of survival horror (as opposed to just jumping-scares) that has been sadly lacking from other contemporary zombie games? You bet.

It really just manages to suck you in and deliver a good time. I love the co-op, the atmosphere and so much else that all I can think about right now is diving back into the game.

To be fair, when Dead Island shipped, it did have a fair share of issues, and to be honest some of them were game breaking, however most, if not all of the issues, have been resolved and Dead Island is shaping up to be a sleeper hit of 2011.

Soloists might enjoy a long weekend on Dead Island, but this isn't a game for the "separate vacations" crowd. The combination of twitch action with an MMO's girth minus the grind cements the game as co-op classic. There's some brain-dead repetition as you down brain eaters, but the rising challenge and resource management means you'll always be mindful of your tasks.

New games featuring the walking dead have trouble standing out from the horde, but Techland's first-person, open-world, action/RPG entry Dead Island distinguishes itself. After kicking and slashing my way through the infected island of Banoi, I can say the game has tons to offer.

Dead Island is a brilliant game and if you want to take this game one step further, the cooperative mode online truly transcends the single-player experience.

I admit that I was not expecting much from Dead Island, given the oversaturated subject matter and the delayed development time. And while the game definitely has its share of weaknesses, it is pleasantly surprising in its own right.

Dead Island is in many ways what fans of zombie horror films and RPG-Action games have waited for. A gory and exhilarating game.

Dead Island surprised us by being a tightly crafted experience, full of interesting locales and intriguing missions. It can lose its way at times, but you will find yourself coming back for one more go time and time again, as crippling zombies and saving bikini clad females never gets dull. Losing yourself on Banoi will feel like the vacation from hell, but you'll love it.

As a fan of all-things zombie, I went in with high expectations and found that the game ticked a lot of the right boxes. Throw seamless drop-in/drop-out co-op into the mix so all of this can be enjoyed with friends or randoms and the appeal is a whole lot stronger, particularly considering the clever variations between quests.

Although a bit too ambitious if we compare the expectations and the final result, Dead Island is still a great game, with a lot of hours of fun, a great ambiance and a good combat system which provides a lot of little pleasures when killing zombies. Its cooperative mode and lenghtly story make it a recommended buy.

Presentation doesn't make a game, experiences do. And they are packed into Dead Island.

Dead Island is a great game. It has many flaws in its visuals, and the first-person gameplay is hard to understand at first. But Dead Island delivers a big open world RPG game, with 4 player coop and many things to do on the island. Horror movie lovers and RPG lovers should give it a try.

Dead Island is an interesting hybrid with elements of FPS and RPG with a survival horror mood that draws inspiration from many other games, but it succeeds in creating something new. With its gigantic island freely explorable, tons of quests and permanent sense of fear it's more an open world RPG than an action game and it certainly has some flaws. But it's quite unique and a very good cooperative experience for 4 players.

The game's also surprisingly scary at times: in dark spaces, we found ourselves flinching at disembodied moans, and being rushed by Infested (fast, growling zombies reminiscent of 28 Days Later) freaked us out more than once.

Dead Island probably won't redefine the survival-horror genre, but it's putting a fresh spin on things by demonstrating how online multiplayer can be used to make a fantasy world really feel inhabited by those with a common goal: survival. And the freedom to explore, exist, and eviscerate the undead the way you want is what makes Dead Island worthwhile.

It's completely different from what the teaser trailers suggested, the narrative is missing, the atmosphere is quite basic, characters are just silly. Yet, Dead Island is a funny action/adventure with small RPG influence, delivering fast paced and visceral combat, best served with friends. Consider it if you're looking for a not-so-compelling, light co-op fun.

Dead Island offers something unique, combining RPG elements with a survival horror setting. Despite a few bugs it is definitely a game you should try if you're a zombie addict like us.