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| By: Adam Zimmerman |
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When Dead Island: Riptide was first conceived, it was originally planned as a large expansion of the original. When it got too large for an expansion, they decided to make a full-blown sequel.
Because it started as an expansion, it does feel very much like the first game. It feels so much like the original that even the bugs from the first game return for the sequel.
Not everything is the same as the original though. A new character, John Morgan, has been added to the group. He’s a melee fighter, which fills the void between Sam B, the blunt weapon expert, and Logan Carter, the throwing expert. I really enjoy playing as John. He has sprinting kicks that send zombies flying, plus he lets you live out your Wolverine fantasies with his awesome deadly metal claws. He also has a very useful ability that sometimes, when you are very low on health, will let you, instead of dying, regain some of your health instead.
Also different in Riptide is the locale. In the original Dead Island, the game was split up into four sections. There was the resort, the city, the jungle, and lastly the prison. This time around, it’s just all tropical island. It’s a little like the island from Far Cry 3, except with no animals and a whole lot of zombies.
On the gameplay front, most of it is exactly like Dead Island. New to this game are defense scenarios. Basically you have to set up a bunch of defenses like fences and barricades, as well as traps, and survive several waves of zombies.
They can be pretty fun, especially when you can coordinate your defenses with your friends. It also pays off this time around to try and focus on one type of weapon, whether it’s blades, firearms, etc. Beyond being able to just level up your individual weapons, you can now level up your skills with the different weapon types.
For firearms it may mean being able to hold a little more ammo, or for blades it could be less stamina used per strike. It’s nothing major, but it does give you a small reason to focus on certain types of weapons.
Normally I am a story guy. Most of my favorite games are games with the best stories. Luckily for me, I don’t play Dead Island for the story. It’s not the worst I’ve ever encountered, but I wouldn’t call it very good either. Cut-scenes and the story are delivered using the in-game engine, which makes some straight to tv movies look like Alfred Hitchcock’s best.
Despite all the new stuff, as I mentioned earlier, Riptide suffers from some of the same bugs as the first game, plus has a few new ones to boot. The enemy AI is still shoddy sometimes. A zombie might spends a few minutes trying to tear down your defenses, only to have them just walk away aimlessly when the barricade comes down. The frame-rate in Riptide is also occasionally worse than the original. Throw an exploding barrel into the middle of a large group of zombies and watch frame-rate slow down to about 2 frames per second.
For those that played and enjoyed the first game, you will be happy to know that you can carry your character over from the first game into Riptide. You won’t be able to keep your equipment, but your level and all you skills will transfer over. If you had maxed out your character in the first game, you don’t have to worry about not being able to improve your character at all. The level cap has also been raised to 70, which is 20 more than the original.
New upgrades have also been added to each character as well. If you were a lower level character, or you want to play as someone different this time around, the game will still start you with 15 skills points to assign as you choose.
I should also point out that you didn’t need to have finished the first game with your character to be able to transfer them over to Riptide. Even if you are only a level 5 and played the first game for an hour and a half, they can still be carried over.
I was lucky enough not to experience almost any of the glitches during my time with the game, but they have been reported by many others. At it’s best, few games can match the brutal feel of combat and the levels of co-op fun that can be found in Riptide. At it’s worst, it can turn into an annoying, though still entertaining glitch fest.
Our Honest View gives Dead Island: Riptide an 8 out of 10. While a very fun game, especially with friends, technical glitches and a pretty weak story keep it from greatness. If you liked the first game, or love killing lots of zombies, I highly recommend getting this game. If you did not like the first game, then nothing in Riptide is going to turn you into a major fan.
Replay Value: Moderate
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