Love it for its body parts, looting, insanity and amazing settings, hate it for its ludicrous bugs and iffy graphics, either way you owe it to yourself to at least check Dead Island out.
There's tons of things to do, there's also a lot of really neat subtle, sorta hidden things. Like how the game lets you change your fighting controls to "analog." I'll let Machinima.com explain in this video.
The PC Version of Dead Island has had a pretty rough launch. First, the developers' code was accidentally released in place of the retail version on Steam. Even after that problem was remedied, the final code on PC was buggy and the multiplayer servers were problematic.
Fortunately, a group of modders have been hard at work, sharing all manner of fixes and tweaks. They've been catalogued here, and the index is being regularly updated.
I haven't used most of these mods, though "Fists of Fury" looks like good fun. When I booted up the game, I found that the screen-tearing that was going on was so ugly that it was significantly affecting my experience. Weirdly, the game has no option for vsync. So, I held off on playing until Techland issued a patch that would add a vsyncing option.
Fortunately, Steam user Kosire beat them to the punch and posted a really easy way to toggle vsyncing on. It totally worked and improved my experience hugely. Thanks, Kosire!
Calling all Modders; Let's Mod Dead Island [Steam Forums]
The reviews are in for Techland's open-world zombie role-playing game Dead Island. Reviewers are talking about immersion and HUDs, PC bugs and control issues, and whether it is possible to love a game for the cool moments it provides while accepting that it has significant flaws. But from review to review, there is one constant: that damned trailer.
Produced by Axis Animation and released back in February, the Lost-tinged trailer received rave reviews. G4 called it "The best trailer I have seen in my life. The best video game trailer. The best movie trailer. The best anything trailer." MSNBC ran a piece entitled "The Dead Island Trailer Will Make You Cry." The ad even won an award at Cannes—not that Cannes, but an advertising festival held in the same location. Our own Mike Fahey was a bit more measured, calling it "The Most Heartbreaking Zombie Video Game Trailer You'll Ever See."
The trailer immediately sparked some debate: It was hard not to be roped in by the soft piano music and the slick intercutting, the final shot of the father holding his hand out to his doomed daughter. But there was a whiff of B.S. to the whole thing—after all, this was an advertisement we were watching. As Wired's Jason Schreier put it in a February op-ed, "If Dead Island's experience and emotional impact are anything close to this trailer, it could be a great game. But perhaps we should wait until we actually see the game itself before we start drawing those links."
In March, Brian Crecente interviewed the brand manager for Techland, who confirmed, more or less, that the family wouldn't be in the game. And now that the game has been released, there is no longer any ambiguity: the game is nothing like the trailer.
Here's Gamespot:
It's played in a first-person perspective and has shooting, but it's not a first-person shooter. And whatever that slow-motion trailer would have you believe, it's not a stirring emotional experience.
Destructoid:
With its debut trailer, Techland set itself the impossible goal of living up to self-generated hype on a massive scale. The video, which showed a family beset by zombies while a hauntingly beautiful refrain played, led one to believe that Dead Island would be an emotional roller coaster that touched on the human side of undead apocalypse.
Eurogamer:
Remember the Dead Island teaser trailer? Of course you do. It "went viral" as marketing people with spreadsheets like to say. That means everybody saw it, posted it on Facebook, emailed it to their friends and said, "Hey, what's this Dead Island game all about?"
3DJuegos.com:
Tras concretamente tres años sin dar señales de vida, el juego volvió de entre los muertos con su memorable tráiler cinemático que logró con apenas tres minutos de formidable CGI dejar impactado a aficionados y no aficionados, y comenzar a crear todas las expectativas que hasta entonces no había conseguido erigir.
and Gamestar.de:
In einem nahen Zimmer finden wir ein totes Paar (das wir schon aus dem eindrucksvollen, rückwärts ablaufenden Trailer von Dead Island kennen). Die zwei können uns nichts mehr erzählen.
Clearly, the trailer made enough of an impression that everyone felt obliged to address it in their review, often at the very top. The question is: Why did this ad, in particular, resonate like it did?
Advertising is meant to inform, but also to persuade. All ads lie to us to some extent; they spruce up the reality of financing a car or buying toilet paper to make us feel excited about it, to capture the essence of the product and convince us to buy it. In theory, the Dead Island trailer was meant to stand apart from the game, to show us what happened on the day the zombies rose up. Even though the tone of the finished game would be totally different than the trailer, the two things provided different perspectives on a unified story.
I've knocked around for a few hours in Dead Island, and reconciling the trailer with the game is indeed a bit difficult. Despite the fact that you can find the corpses of the trailer's family in the opening hotel level, I'm finding that the game's not-insubstantial charms lie in progression and exploration, not in my engagement with the story or characters. Though it should be said that Dead Island is a serious game; far more so than Dead Rising or even Left 4 Dead. Many of the sidequests are personal and fraught with loss and drama—"Take my brother his insulin," "Find medicine for my dying wife," and while the execution is flat and the animations are stilted, the small stories are often quite powerful.
I don't generally care for CGI trailers; they are misleading at a fundamental level. The first half of the reveal trailer for Deus Ex: Human Revolution was a bunch of footage of renaissance-era scientists attaching wings to a man, who then flew into the sun like Icarus. Which stands as a perfectly fine metaphor for the finished game, but is a far cry from what the actual game entails. And while the closing moments with Adam Jensen do show a cinematic approximation of gameplay, they don't show the game itself in action.
Plenty of other game trailers bend the rules of reality a bit to show a stylized view of their product; the famous "Mad World" trailer for Gears of War has been copied and parodied countless times, and the "Believe" campaign for Halo 3 was goosebump-raising, but ultimately unrelated to the game itself.
But still, the Dead Island trailer stands apart. In part, it's because Dead Island was a mystery—everyone knew what Halo 3 was going to be all about, so their ad agency was able to take more liberties with the campaign. All we really knew about Dead Island was that back in 2007, the game had, in fact, been about a family struggling to survive on a zombie-infested island. It was much easier to believe that the trailer was something of an approximation of the final product.
When I first watched that trailer, my bullshit detector was going off like crazy, and as the months wore on, preview after preview of the game made it quite clear that the final experience would be significantly different from the trailer. And yet still we talked about it, in previews and then in reviews; and here I am now, talking about it still. So again I ask: why?
The trailer was well-made and engaging; it channeled a hugely popular TV series (Lost) and it showed a little girl getting brutally murdered as her mother looked on. But I think the real reason for the trailer's impact was that it promised us something that, as it turned out, we wanted very badly.
We may not have known it at the time, but I think we want a zombie game that is tragic and sad, action-packed and tense, full of loss and emotional catharsis. We want a game to make us tear up, to show us impossible loss, to make come to terms with the actual risks and small but human costs of a deadly viral outbreak. Brilliantly, manipulatively, the Dead Island trailer promised us that, and our desire to see our wish fulfilled outweighed our skepticism. It was fun to believe that maybe, just maybe, this game would be different from the others.
And of course, now that the final game is out, we must reconcile ourselves to the fact that as much as we might want the game promised by that trailer, we're not getting it. Yet, anyway. Upon rewatching the trailer, I was mostly unmoved… until that little postscript, home-camera footage of the happy family, a daughter running around on the beach, a father corralling his family for a posed photo. Dang. That is the sort of thing I very much want to see in a video game.
I'm reminded of the famous scene in the season one finale of Mad Men in which protagonist Don Draper is pitching an ad campaign for the new Kodak "Carousel" slide projector. "Technology is a glittering lure," Draper says. "But there is the rare occasion when the public can be engaged beyond flash, when they have a sentimental bond with the product."
The jury's out on Dead Island the game (Crecente will have his full review up this week). But whether its trailer was a misleading misstep or a brilliant piece of persuasion, it did something very important: it opened our eyes to something that we very much desire. By the time the trailer was made, Dead Island itself was most likely too far into development to be significantly changed. But even after the game's launch, the trailer's impact remains, as does the latent desire it illuminated. While Techland may not have made the game that their ad promised, perhaps another developer will.
Here's something I didn't know: Those who pre-ordered Dead Island got a code for free DLC, which includes the "Bloodbath Arena" and a weapon called "the Ripper." They just can't use the Arena until it releases for everyone, evidently.
That will be "later this month," says publisher Techland, with rumor having it around the last week right now. You'll get four maps sending endless waves of undead at you, so, sounds like undead underdome riot.
Bloodbath Arena is $10 if you didn't get the code with a preorder. The version for sale will not contain the Ripper.
Dead Island DLC Out Within[Eurogamer via Joystiq]
One of the unlockable skills for Dead Island leading lady Purna allows her to deal extra damage against male victims. It's called Gender Wars in the game, but the original skill was named "Feminist Whore." [UPDATED]
The errant bit of renamed text was discovered by a resourceful computer gamer who found the original skill name buried in the code for the non-retail version of the game that was accidentally sent to digital game store Steam.
In the code, the game lists some of Purna's skills as "TeamSpirit1Purna", "SharpApprenticePurna" and "FeministWhorePurna".
Reached for comment this morning Techland confirmed that Feminist Whore was indeed the original name for the Gender Wars skill. The inappropriate name was caught by the developers and changed, they said, but remained in one debug, diagnostic file which ended up in the actual game.
Reached for comment this morning, publisher Deep Silver confirmed to Kotaku that the line of code was in an early build of the game.
"It has come to our attention that one of Dead Island's leftover debug files contains a highly inappropriate internal script name of one of the character skills. This has been inexcusably overlooked and released with the game," Blazej Krakowiak, Techland International Brand Manager, said via email. "The line in question was something a programmer considered a private joke. The skill naturally has a completely different in-game name and the script reference was also changed. What is left is a part of an obscure debug function. This is merely an explanation but by no means an excuse. In the end that code was made a part of the product and signed with our company name. We deeply regret that fact and we apologize to all our customers or anyone who might have been offended by that inappropriate expression.
"The person responsible for this unfortunate situation will face professional consequences for violating the professional standards and beliefs Techland stands for."
Publisher Deep Silver also responded with a prepared statement:
"These unfortunate actions were of one individual at developer company Techland and do not in any way represent the views of publishing company Deep Silver."
[Thanks for the tip Spencer]
Dead Island has nothing to do with that family and their child and that sad death. But that doesn't mean it's a bad game.
Sure it has bugs, but I'm still really enjoying my time with this expansive, tropical take on killing the undead. More »
I think we were all a bit shocked when Techland told Kotaku earlier this year that the family so poignantly represented in the award-winning trailer for Dead Island wouldn't actually be in the game.
Blazej Krakowiak, international brand manager for developer Techland, told us that the family and... More »
Should you spend your vacation time on Techland's Dead Island? Normally in this situation looking at a range of video game review scores would help. Normally.
In this case, however, that might not help. The latest zombie survival horror action role-playing game's fancy trailer dragged it kicking and screaming into the spotlight where it now stands, naked and shivering, desperately trying to cover its naughtier bits while the folks from outlets like Edge Magazine and the UK's Metro point and laugh. Other outlets see something they like, and aren't afraid to scrap off a little decaying flesh to get to the good stuff. Heck, Crecente seems to be liking it well enough so far.
How can a game generate such disparate critical reactions? Read on and see for yourself.
Edge Magazine
Metro GameCentral
Without letting slip any spoilers the game world is more varied than the basic set-up might imply and it's filled with enough side quests to make the comparisons with Fallout and Oblivion - even if far too many of them recall the annoying escort missions of the first Dead Rising. But not least because there's never more than a dozen zombies onscreen at once it's Bethesda's first person role-players that are the primary inspiration here, as you continually loot cupboards and left luggage for useful bric-a-brac.
Eurogamer
Graphically, it's a bit of a dog. The Chrome 5 engine conjures up the same jagged Duplo jungle foliage as it did for the wretched Sniper: Ghost Warrior, and constantly struggles with textures, edges and frame-rates. Character models are downright disturbing, with marionette animations and distracting staring bug-eyes. The zombies, at least, are supposed to look horrible but even they're blighted by crude skins and spurting blood that looks like it's been added in MS Paint.
GameSpot
Levelling is par for the course in a role-playing-heavy action RPG, complete with talent trees for customising characters which offer, for instance, options to increase damage or durability of certain weapon types. You level up quickly as well, thanks in part to frequent checkpointing and the minimal penalty for dying: a death tax that skims off a little of the money you've earned by completing missions and scrounging from abandoned suitcases. If you die, you generally respawn a few metres from where you dropped, ready to plunge back into the zombie fray. It's a generous system, though it minimises any sense of dread or tension.
Game Informer
Misery loves company, and Dead Island is best played with friends. Gearing up with three fellow zombie slayers reminded me of the blissful carnage of Borderlands. Power-leveling underdeveloped characters, swapping new loot, and cooperating to survive are all highlights of co-op. When you're standing on the roof of a car surrounded by craven cannibals, having a buddy with a fire axe is a great thing. The drop-in, drop-out co-op demands that all players be at exactly the same point in the main plot in order for quest progress to save, but experience, and loot are always retained. It's in your best interest (and the most fun) to choose a group of friends and stick with them from the beginning, unless you don't mind burning through low-level quests to catch up. Fortunately, enemy levels scale with you, so backtracking isn't a complete waste of time.
Team Xbox
Some of you might play the game and wonder why I gave it a 9/10. You might look at the faults that I've outlined and declare "that list is worth more than a one point deduction!" However, look at it like this. I don't believe in a system where you have to deduct certain percentages of points per hang-up or fault you find in a game. For me it's the overall experience while playing through that determines the final score. Yes, there were faults that I discovered throughout my experience with the game. However, every game has faults, and I viewed this through the lens of a gamer. 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. So looking at the total package that was brought to the table here, this game is too fun to play and too unique an experience to be really nit-picky on the things that didn't go exactly as I'd rather them go.
Dead Island has nothing to do with that family and their child and that sad death. But that doesn't mean it's a bad game.
Sure it has bugs, but I'm still really enjoying my time with this expansive, tropical take on killing the undead. Fahey told you what he didn't like about Dead Island. Here's a look at some of the things I find interesting in Dead Island in my first four hours or so playing it on the Xbox 360.
In a statement to Kotaku, Dead Island publisher Deep Silver has apologized for the wrong version of the game being uploaded to Steam. The correct, patched version will be available as soon as possible. Check out the full statement here.
I think we were all a bit shocked when Techland told Kotaku earlier this year that the family so poignantly represented in the award-winning trailer for Dead Island wouldn't actually be in the game.
Blazej Krakowiak, international brand manager for developer Techland, told us that the family and their sad voyage from happy vacationers to terrified victims of the undead wasn't going to be in the game. Why? Because, he said, the trailer was meant to be an emotional vignette, an example of what happened all over the island the day the dead rose.
The backlash was sudden, and perhaps it's why curious gamers who ignore the directions when the game first starts are treated to a bloody tableau, a room that shows how things ended after the trailer does.
The video above includes the original trailer footage and a new, in-game, Kotaku-edited ending captured straight from the game. Don't watch if you want to discover the room, and its inhabitants all on your own.
Update: To answer a couple of questions. The window in the room isn't visible, it's behind impenetrable Venetian Blinds of +1 no-looking. I spent 30 minutes circling the resort grounds (three times) looking for the corpse of the little girl (animate or not) and had no luck. In fact, I have yet to see a single child in the entire game. What is this? Sandals.
Dead Island has nothing to do with that family and their child and that sad death. But that doesn't mean it's a bad game.
Sure it has bugs, but I'm still really enjoying my time with this expansive, tropical take on killing the undead. More »
