Kacj321's blog

Dead Island GOTY - Out Tomorrow

2012-07-05T20:54:56Z

Tomorrow, 6th of July, Dead Island Game of the Year Edition is released. Dead Island GOTY will contain...

Dead Island - The full Dead Island Game
The Ripper - A unique weapon, this combines a baseball bat with a rotary saw
Bloodbath Arena - Challenging you to take out multiple waves of zombies in four new arenas, plus a new weapon - the Sonic Pulse Grenade
Ryder White - Play as the game's cheif antagonist in a unique story with new blueprints and weapons to collect

Dead Island Ryder White DLC Trailer

2012-01-26T17:00:17Z

Dead Island banned in Germany

2011-11-29T17:57:54Z

Dead Island has been banned from sale in Germany.

"This isn't unexpected," developer Techland told Eurogamer. "Germany has its unique regulations regarding video games and violence and the industry can only comply. "Both Deep Silver and Techland were aware of such a possibility from the very beginning."

Germany's Federal Department of Media Harmful to Young Persons (the BPJM) classified Dead Island as "List B".
"List B" contains the names of "youth-endangering media". Media on "List B" cannot be sold anywhere in Germany, and anyone caught doing so is punishable by law. GamesIndustry.biz Germany tells us "List B" is usually reserved for media depicting extreme torture or Nazi content.

Being on "List B" means that importing retailers Play.com, Amazon.de and Gameware.at run the risk of cargo being seized at German customs. The BPJM didn't explain why Dead Island was banned, which is common practice. Game publisher Koch Media will have been given a detailed report. Publisher Koch Media (owner of Deep Silver) avoided German law by distributing the game in Austria.

"We did not distribute or sell Dead Island in Germany", Koch Media told GamesIndustry.biz Germany. "The intention was to bring the game to the international markets, as the product seems to be better suitable for audiences abroad." Despite bugs, despite controversy, Despite unremarkable review scores, Dead Island was a big hit this summer.

"Much like gnawing on human flesh," wrote Dan Whitehead in Eurogamer's Dead Island review, "Dead Island's clumsy horror-action role-player is the definition of an acquired taste."

Dead Island Movie is Official

2011-10-05T22:56:59Z

Lionsgate announced Tuesday morning that it has acquired the film rights to the zombie title and will begin developing it as a feature. There are no writers yet on what is essentially a film in very early development, but producer Sean Daniel ("The Mummy"), who was reportedly involved with a "Dead Island" movie project early on, will produce it, Lionsgate said.

So whats your opinion on this? Do you think is going to be the next big zombie movie or a gametomovie flop?

Xbox 360 Patch

2011-09-14T23:00:22Z

This Patch fixed all problems below. There is no news on a PS3 patch. *Fixed map synchronization when player joins during map load.

Fixed saving player re-spawn position when playing in co-op mode.
Fixed occasional inability to complete sidequests in Laboratory.
Improved enemy awareness (zombies).
Fixed occasional bug with NPC’s hands bend (IK)
Fixed spawning enemies in some quests after joining co-op game.
Fixed showing locations on invisible NPCs.
Fixed potential path blocker when quest “Knockin’ on heaven’s door” was completed before talking to Dominik during the “On the air” quest.
Fixed displaying gather rings near some doors.
Fixed enemy reaction to fire.
Fixed enemies’ health and stamina bars in co-op.
Fixed filtering of games in lobby.
Volume of pickup’s engine has been increased.
Fixed a number of issues causing game instability.
Fixed the switching of maps upon player death.
Fixed enemies unable to reach the player on some arenas.
Thrown items cannot be picked up by co-op players for five minutes.
Items from freshly opened containers cannot be picked up by other players for five seconds to prevent theft.
Fixed animation glitch when trading with team members.
More than one player can use a ladder at the same time.
Fixed stomping execution animation when target’s attacked by a second player.
Fixed the infinite respawning of shooting enemies.
Fixed not hiding menu if players die inside a vehicle.
Fixed item level calculation when playing New Game Plus.
Added information about players requesting pause in co-op.
Fixed A.I. animation glitch after fast-traveling or using a map portal.
Added distinction between quest checkpoints and other types of saves.
Fixed bug causing all inventory to disappear.
Fixed reloading and kicking. After the clip goes in, the reload is a success.
Purna can gain bonus rage from both “Grim Inspiration” and “Inspiring Kick”.
Only “Walker” type enemies increase the extra XP of the “Combo” skill from Xian’s Survival skill tree.
Health regeneration is disabled during grabs.
Focus on items in shops not changing after selling or buying.
More HP for NPCs in escort missions.
Butcher enemies won’t spawn at all during escort missions
Fixed tracking after loading checkpoint.
Increased minimum vertical distance to count a waypoint as passed for NPCs (they no longer wander back-and-forth).

Dead Island Day 1 Bugs

2011-09-06T14:48:16Z

Here is a list of some bugs:

Fixed map synchronization when player joins during map load.
Fixed saving player re-spawn position when playing in co-op mode.
Fixed occasional inability to complete sidequests in Laboratory.
Improved enemy awareness (zombies).
Fixed occasional bug with NPC's hands bend (IK)
Fixed spawning enemies in some quests after joining co-op game.
Fixed showing locations on invisible NPCs.
Fixed potential path blocker when quest "Knockin' on heaven's door" was completed before talking to Dominik during the "On the air" quest.
Fixed displaying gather rings near some doors.
Fixed enemy reaction to fire.
Fixed enemies' health and stamina bars in co-op.
Fixed filtering of games in lobby.
Volume of pickup's engine has been increased.
Fixed a number of issues causing game instability.
Fixed the switching of maps upon player death.
Fixed enemies unable to reach the player on some arenas.
Thrown items cannot be picked up by co-op players for five minutes.
Items from freshly opened containers cannot be picked up by other players for five seconds to prevent theft.
Fixed animation glitch when trading with team members.
More than one player can use a ladder at the same time.
Fixed stomping execution animation when target's attacked by a second player.
Fixed the infinite respawning of shooting enemies.
Fixed not hiding menu if players die inside a vehicle.
Fixed item level calculation when playing New Game Plus.
Added information about players requesting pause in co-op.
Fixed A.I. animation glitch after fast-traveling or using a map portal.
Added distinction between quest checkpoints and other types of saves.
Fixed bug causing all inventory to disappear.
Fixed reloading and kicking. After the clip goes in, the reload is a success.
Purna can gain bonus rage from both "Grim Inspiration" and "Inspiring Kick".
Only "Walker" type enemies increase the extra XP of the "Combo" skill from Xian's Survival skill tree.
Health regeneration is disabled during grabs.
Focus on items in shops not changing after selling or buying.
More HP for NPCs in escort missions.
Butcher enemies won't spawn at all during escort missions (hooray!)
Fixed tracking after loading checkpoint.
Increased minimum vertical distance to count a waypoint as passed for NPCs (they no longer wander back-and-forth).

'Dead Island' - The First 16 Minutes Of Gameplay

2011-08-12T00:14:47Z

http://multiplayerblog.mtv.com/2011/08/11/dead-island-the-first-20-minutes-of-gameplay-video/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+MultiplayerBlog+%28Multiplayer+Blog%29

Dead Island Co-op Gameplay Trailer

2011-08-09T15:54:59Z

Added by Kacj321

Confirmed Dead Island System Requirements

2011-07-11T15:11:28Z

Minimum:OS: Windows XP
Processor: Core2Duo 2.66 GHz
Memory: 1 GB RAM
Graphics: ATI 2600XT 512MB VRAM (GeForce 8600GT)
DirectX®: DirectX 9.0C
Hard Drive: 2.0 GB available hard drive space
Other: keyboard, mouse

RecommendedOS: Windows 7
Processor: Core2Duo 2.66 GHz
Memory: 4 GB RAM
Graphics: GeForce 9600 (1GB)
DirectX®: DirectX 9.0C
Hard Drive: 2.0 GB available hard drive space
Other: keyboard, mouse

The Guardian's Dead Island Preview

2011-06-28T13:31:56Z

Dead Island Preview - The Guardian

"Perhaps more importantly than any other aspect, it felt fresh and original to play, rather than bearing any marked similarity to any of the myriad zombie games we have enjoyed in the past."

First Dead Island Mission Gameplay

2011-06-24T19:35:06Z

Check it out Here

However, its in Italion though it has english subtitles.

Logan Revealed

2011-06-22T17:02:49Z

The Dead Island official site has revealed the third of our heroes, Logan!

NAME : LOGAN

CATEGORY : HERO

A former American football star, spoiled by life and successful in every possible way, Logan's ego finally put an end to his bright

future. Taking part in a reckless street race with tragic consequences, Logan not only killed a young woman - his unfortunate passenger; he also fractured his knee, putting an end to his sports career. His fall from stardom inevitably followed and he plunged swiftly into a life of bitterness and despair. In an attempt to get away from the demons hunting him, he gladly takes the chance to experience the beauties and wonders of Banoi.

Soon enough though the getaway he was dreaming about turns into a real life nightmare...

Added by Kacj321

E3 List of Things To Do.

2011-06-08T01:43:38Z

This list will be updated more as E3 continues.

People:

Quests:

Last Chance on the Wall

Weapons:

Places:

Market District

E3 Sneak Peek Multiplayer Dead Island Demo

2011-06-07T14:53:05Z

Dead Island Live E3 Gameplay Demo in High DefinitionEdit

A Very Nice New Picture

2011-06-04T16:23:06Z

In this picture you can see all four characters:

Xian Mei is on the left.

Purna Is on the right.

Sam B is on top.

Logan is at the bottom.

We can also see the Ram, the Butcher and the Floater.

Dead Island Bloodbath DLC

2011-06-04T12:44:46Z

Dead Island Special Edition will be exclusive to specialty retailer GameStop and will contain the Bloodbath Arena downloadable content, which Deep Silver values at £6. As for the content, the Bloodbath Arena pack is composed of both single-player and multiplayer challenges in four distinct areas

Waves of zombies--each billed as more difficult than the last--will assault players in the Bloodbath Arena content, with players tasked with killing them off and staying alive. Additionally, gamers can display and track their progress via the Bloodbath Arena's leaderboards. And to help gamers in their deathly pursuits, the content will include an exclusive weapon: the "Brain wave bomb."

People who order Dead Island will get this DLC for free.

Dead Island Boxart Revealed

2011-05-30T18:35:09Z

Added by Kacj321

censored version

Added by Kacj321

And here is the special edition cover.

Added by Kacj321

Dead Island Twenty Minute Gameplay Video :D

2011-05-28T11:14:27Z

Check it out Here

Gamers and Geeks unit - Dead Island solo campaign hands-on

2011-05-22T23:39:33Z

Gamers and Geeks unit - Dead Island solo campaign hands-on

Last Wednesday I was given the chance to put my hands-on Dead Island solo campaign which trailer managed to awake my interest while a general zombie overdose had reached (even) me after the awfully boring The Walking Dead TV series (read preview here, and yes I found the series so disappointing I don't see the point in writing more about it...). Following this amazing trailer you can see in our preview, the first in-game teaser was released the day before my hands-on and once again, it worked!

Today the game is still in its production phase and for what I understood the version we played on was a pre-beta one. Though the rendering for the landscapes and characters was nice already and I encountered no bug playing while I'm quite a specialist on this field!

For the first test I started as a woman character in a mountain refuge which allows me to discover in full security the game routines for Dead Island. Quite surprisingly I discover that dialogs with NPC (non playing-characters) take a large part in the game. Through these dialogs you get to know what's going on and you are also proposed quests which you can accept or not. Should you accept several, you will then be able to choose them from the menu and solve them in the order of your choice.

I wasn't expecting Dead Island to make me think about Fallout 3 but it did, a lot! For what I've seen it wasn't as central as in Fallout but, a real role-playing dimension exists in Dead Island. It ends out to be much more than the zombie FPS I first imagined, making the game a lot more interesting!

Having many quests opened at the same time comes with freedom and great areas to explore. I've forgotten to ask if all the island was opened from the beginning but during the test I borrowed some car and never encountered any unnatural obstacle to prevent me to go somewhere (well, zombie hordes are not that "natural" but you got the point, didn't you?). Last big FPS on the market tend to offer awesome rendering but corridors for gameplay areas. It's good to be free again! Especially in such a nice environment.

[1] [2] [3] [4]

Still alike Fallout games, you also find lots of stuff while exploring. Some are useless (empty cans), some help you to figure out what is going on and why your holidays are screwed (newspapers and recordings), some can be used as more or less exotic weapons, and some be crafted. Yes! Crafting is an option. If I never had the chance to find a firearm while playing, at least I managed to craft myself some explosive knives which found out to be quite efficient!

These crafted knives were highly appreciated as for now, Dead Island comes with a very, very serious challenge! Actually I hope they will lower a bit the difficulty level as it was even beginning to become a little bit boring to find myself running away out of weapon, except for my stiletto heels!

I don't know if the choice will be given in the campaign or if the solo campaign will be divided in several chapters with different playing characters but, I wasn't given the choice for the hands-on and played a woman whom, in pure respect of B movies rules, wouldn't have thought once about getting rid of her uncomfortable shoes! If they happened to be efficient weapons, this character couldn't run for long and found herself out of breath quickly while fighting with a heavy baseball bat. Hard to rest when a colossus in straitjacket is charging you, though!

Indeed, like in Left 4 Dead, I've seen at least two kinds of zombies, above the overall. First is an explosive one that you can see in the back end of the second picture below, the other if the straitjacket wearer already mentioned. In both case, you pray for a gun, a big one!

[5] [6] [7] [8]

As I mentioned Left 4 Dead, if we didn't tested it, our hosts gave us some info about the multiplayer campaign. It will be a different campaign than the solo one. It will involve four playable characters and like in L4D, they will be played by bots if the game lacks players online.

The least I can say is that this little hands-on made me eager to play the game! No date was given forDead Island release except "before the end of the year". Once again, we have to be patient!

Dead Island Preview: Reality bites

2011-05-16T14:09:13Z

Following our initial look at Dead Island back at GDC, I recently got our first chance to play the game for real. And "real" is the appropriate word here. Despite the zombies, wacky weapon combinations and a creepy Lost vibe, Dead Island does a lot to emphasize the reality of your admittedly unbelievable situation.

It starts right away in the demo, with an opening first-person cinematic that has my character living it up at one of the island's clubs, as signs of the big Z start to appear at the corners of my blurred, drunken vision. Is that woman just resting in the booth over there or is that blood near her head? Wait -- did that man just bite his date? Eventually, I'm too drunk to tell or even care, passing out in a nearby corner. This is when the game proper starts.

I'm playing as Xian Mei, one of the four playable characters that serve as classes in the game. She's a feisty Asian woman ("I don't punch like a girl!"), who I'm told is quick and good with knives; sort of the "rogue" of the group, if you want to attach an RPG archetype to her. The first segment has me meeting up with a lifeguard named Sinamoi, who's become the makeshift leader of a band of tourists trapped on the island during the zombie outbreak.

Standing in his lifeguard hut, looking out at a gorgeous blue bay, Sinamoi presents me with a quest. He asks me, in a style reminiscent of Bethesda's Elder Scrolls games, if I will climb up the nearby hill to a lighthouse and look for an antenna the survivors could use to try to radio for help. I agree, of course.

The quest is marked with a difficulty level ("Very Easy," in this case), and I'm to receive some XP and cash as my reward. This one's marked easy because it's an introductory story quest, but Deep Silver's brand manager Vincent Kummer says that sidequests will vary in difficulty. "You're going to take quests that are story-based," he tells me, "and then sometimes you'll want to come back for those that require a higher level or skill."

Before I set out, Sinamoi gives me a diving knife, one of the game's many weapons, which borrows another RPG element: Its name is displayed in a color (blue), indicating its quality (blue means it's higher quality than most). At a nearby workbench, I can repair, upgrade or even create new weapons with blueprints found around the island. Repaired and upgraded weapons, like an electrified machete, both do more damage and look different in your character's hands. I ask Kummer how many weapon creations will be possible in the game, and he tells me, "We're looking into a couple of thousand."

After fixing up my knife and making a quick stop at a vendor NPC (where I could buy the usual medkits and upgrades, not to mention things like stingray tails and something called "Drawner meat"), I make my way out into the island, and soon a familiar moan can be heard. The first zombies I come across are called "Vessels" -- they're the slow, ambling dead that we've to know in the so, so many popular depictions.

As we saw at GDC, most of the combat in Dead Island is melee-based, and actually controlling it for the first time is a harrowing experience. First-person melee combat is always tricky to judge -- am I close enough to stab this zombie in its neck yet? -- and Dead Island's bobbing, realistic camera doesn't make it any easier. Most of my fights have me frantically looking around for a zombie to stab, and then mashing on the trigger until the thing stops moving. Getting grabbed by an undead initiates a button-press event to try to knock it back. Fail and -- true to survival horror -- just a few bites will end your game.

While I've never actually been in a fight against zombies, Dead Island's combat feels just as chaotic and tough as I imagine such an encounter would be -- with appropriate video game elements, of course. Plenty of RPG mechanics are in play, as damage numbers and experience points pop up every time I attack. Still, the fights feel less like a grind and more like a struggle to stay above water every time a zombie moans behind me.

Halfway up the mountain to find the antenna, I come across a pickup truck (and Kummer suggests I hop in to make the journey faster, and presumably safer). Though I'm able to aim the car at some walking corpses for a few good splats, the driving feels hyperrealistic -- more twitchy and uneven than your standard video game driving experience. One crash, for example, shatters my windshield, blocking visibility for a few moments before Xian Mei sticks her foot over the wheel and kicks the broken glass out of the way.

By the time I reach the top of the mountain, the truck's hood is pouring out smoke -- like the game's firearms, cars are a rare luxury that you'll have to treat with care. At the top of the mountain is the lighthouse I'm looking for and the end of the first gameplay segment.

Next, I'm swept away to the island's capital city of Moresby, where a hulking zombie-type in a straitjacket is holed up inside a cemetery. This creep is called a "Ram Zombie" (though that name may change). You can probably imagine what his gig is -- he roars and sprints directly at the player. While I end up dying a few times during the fight (costing me some money and possibly XP, says Kummer), I eventually figure out that I need to jump to the side to dodge him, and then attack his backside.

Why was that thing in a straightjacket? The explanation is part of the story, I'm told, and both Techland and Deep Silver are keeping a lid on that for now. Kummer also won't explain why, as one of the NPCs mentions, my character is immune to zombie bites and obviously special among those on the island. I notice a few more mysteries, as well, like a locker that requires a lock-picking skill to open, a wayward tape recording left by a reporter who'd come to the island to meet a secret informant, and a steadily darkening sky, hinting that Dead Island has more storms in store than just the zombie invasion.

Despite my failure to execute any zombie killings with grace, Dead Island's development seems to be going smooth -- the open-world island environment is stunning, and the RPG side of the game appears surprisingly deep. The controls are somewhat clumsy and may end up being frustrating for those players who prefer more precision, but then again, this is the zombie apocalypse. Never mind elegance; you'll be lucky to get off of this island alive.

Techland Chrome Engine Tech Demo & Dead Island Limited Polish Edition Box Set.

2011-05-16T00:02:29Z

Techland Chrome Engine Tech Demo This is the engin that Dead Island will run on, and it looks great :D

Also, the Dead Island limited Polish edition box set info + image has been put out.

The Polish limited edition will have:

wooden casket with the logo of the games you will be packed all the elements of the set

polo shirt,

comic book "The Zombie Survival Guide: Recorded Attacks, "based on "The Zombie Survival Guide, " or "Manual of defense against the attack of the Living Dead" by Max Brooks

a set of postcards with images.

Xbox360achievements - Dead Island Interview

2011-05-12T20:50:43Z

Check it out Here

Everyone loves zombie games. It's a bona fide fact. And if you're shaking your head in disagreement, resolute in your hatred of zombie games, then you're wrong. Deep down, you love zombie games, which is why you can't wait for Dead Island, Techland's foray into melee-based RPG survival horror, casting you in the role of a character at a tropical holiday resort besieged by swathes of the undead.

In the game, you'll choose from one of four characters and use whatever comes to hand to bludgeon your way through thousands of zombies of varying classes, sizes and types. Featuring customisable weapons and four-player drop-in/drop-out co-op, Dead Island appears to be rather ambitious, but will it be able to stand out in a market packed to the rafters with games featuring the slavering hordes of the walking dead?

We caught up with Deep Silver's Brand Manager, Vincent Kummer to get the lowdown on Dead Island, which has been a good few years in the making having been first announced almost four years ago, to find out how far the game has come since then and what developer Techland has done to ensure that you'll want to pick up a baseball bat and smash a zombie head like an overripe watermelon.

Dead Island was originally announced way back in 2007 and then everything went quiet until the release of the recent CG trailer, which generated a lot of fresh buzz for the game. What has happened in the years since that first announcement and the game's recent return?

It was pretty much just Techland working on the game for a few years now and then we came along and bought the property a couple of years ago. And so what Techland was doing is developing a lot of ideas they had for this title, so they were working on Dead Island with a bigger team for a time and then with a smaller team implementing a lot of those ideas. So, we came on board with them and said, “look, you have so many ideas here, there's enough for five or six games, so we should focus on something and move forward with that general idea that we have there.” We sat down and talked with them, went through ideas together, then helped push the product forward to the point where it is now. We used the trailer to kick off communication again and tell everyone that this is really happening and this is the idea we have behind it.

The weapon customisation you have in the game is very reminiscent of the combo weapons in Dead Rising 2. Was this something that you had before that game launched, or was it an idea that was added in response to that?

It was definitely also an idea Techland had before that, but I guess it took more of the form it's in now, because as always, there are different games out there that everyone plays and we get ideas from those games, and that's just how it works. Many of the unique ideas in Dead Island are comparable to ideas that have already been benchmarked, but I would say that the main difference when it comes to the customisation is that Dead Rising 2 actually focuses on that aspect of the game, taking a really big leap and using the combo weapons to bring down hordes of zombies in a funny way, whereas we use it as a gameplay element to bring more variety to the fighting and the game itself as a whole.

Will the weapon combinations be quite obvious, like nails going with a baseball bat to create a nail bat, or will there be some where you'll be rewarded for thinking outside the box a bit?

It's going to be all about collecting the blueprints and you won't be able to build the weapons without them. There's going to be both out of the box weapons and more obvious things like the baseball bat with the nails, which is going to do more damage. We really want to have a good variety in there, so we want to have those out of the box weapons and we want to have collectible weapons that you might have to earn by running through the jungle and doing a side quest to find that particular weapon. There's a good combination of weapons in the game.

I personally feel that zombies are a great video game antagonist that I hope will be around forever, but with so many zombie games around these days, some people seem to be feeling a certain degree of fatigue with the genre. Do you think Dead Island will be different enough to set itself apart from the other zombie games on the market?

I do think so. I also don't think there's actually a zombie fatigue happening, although there is a lot of zombie games of course, but there are so many different ways to play with that particular topic. Zombies are something that everyone is afraid of and something that everyone can somehow relate to, because in my opinion, zombies at their core are something that we all know, because they're basically a human being that's out of control and in berserker mode. We're all afraid of that stuff because we can relate to it and sometimes we can relate to the situations too, so I don't think that the topic itself is tiring or that it's in a fatigue right now. When it comes to the other zombie games out there, I think that there's more than enough space for all of the zombie games right now, because they all focus on different aspects. If you play Left 4 Dead it's all about the co-op, if you play Dead Rising 2 it's all about the customisation, and then we have this unique setting with the survival aspect that we're focusing on, combined with the open-world, so it's really a different game.

Are there any unique zombie classes then? Ones we might not have seen in other zombie games?

There are different zombies that you haven't seen in other zombie games, of course. Than again, when it comes to zombies, there is a reason why you use certain characters or enemies, because you want tactical varieties. You want ranged attack zombies, close-combat zombies and you want completely different ones that you can use tactically. At their core, there might be a couple of zombies that you'll be able to make comparisons to and see comparable aspects of them when it comes to other games, but of course we'll have our own unique touch in there that you'll only find in Dead Island.

In co-op, does the difficulty level scale up or the number of zombies increase to compensate, or are you simply playing through the single-player campaign with friends?

The difficulty goes up, so all in all this is a question of balancing and we're not quite there yet, because what you've seen so far is pre-beta. But pretty much what is happening is, if you play single-player, it's going to be you and three bots. So it'll essentially be just you, and when the other players drop in, the number of zombies that you're going to have to fight will rise along with the levels, as there's a levelling system for the zombies themselves. It could be that you have a normal zombie in single-player that is way weaker than the same zombie will be with four players.

Is the levelling up persistent between playthroughs, so if say you join a friend with maxed out stats and a high level and you're just starting out, will that be taken into account?

That is something that we're actually looking into, because there are some benchmarks out there that have done a great job when it comes to that balancing. If for example, you play Borderlands, the way they did it was really, really good because you could play it really well at whatever level. We're still in the balancing process so we're looking at different possibilities to try and make it so we have a situation where everyone can have fun, even if they're way too overpowered compared to a co-op player who is weaker. The other thing is also we don't want people to do that too often, because what happens if you have a story-driven game like ours and you have a level four character who is 10 percent into the story, then a level 25 character is going to be in the end portion of the story, alwe haven't fixed the level cap yet. It might be that the guy at level 4 will have things seriously spoiled for him at one point without having played through it, so we're going to give a warning to players joining each other that will warn you if your percentage of the storyline isn't fitting with the other players, so are you really sure you want to continue and join someone else's game in progress?

Today we saw a whole bunch of locations like the lifeguard tower, the beach, the hotel and so on, and you said that there'll be jungles and so on, but what other environments will we see in the game? Will there be any surprise locations at all?

Well, surprise locations will remain surprise locations! But it's going to be what you'd expect from an island like that, so you're going to go through the jungle and the city; stuff like that. There's also going to be story-driven elements in the game that you might not be expecting on an island, so you'll have different situations with a different feel to them and they'll reveal themselves when you play the game.

Is there an actual real-world setting that Dead Island's location is based upon?

Actually, no there isn't. Techland has been visiting some tropical islands though to get a better view of how the environment should work, looking at a bunch of different islands, but there's not one particular island that it's based upon. It is a fictional island surrounding Papua New Guinea, so it's situated around there, so it has people from there and the whole culture around that.

We remember seeing a screenshot of a zombie in the streets in a strait jacket and a mask...

He's not 10 metres tall by the way! (laughs)

Yeah, I realise that now, but I was one of the people who fell for the perspective trick and thought he looked 15 feet tall! What's his story exactly?

He's one of our unique zombies and there's going to be different tactics you'll have to use to fight that guy. You'll understand more about him later on in the process, but we wanted to show that you won't just be fighting the standard George Romero zombie or the normal 28 Days Later zombie like you've seen in the game so far. You're going to see the kinds of zombie that require you to change your tactics and you'll have to fight in a different way with different weapons against them.

Dead Island's melee combat reminds me of Condemned somewhat. Has that been looked upon as an influence during development?

Of course. The things is that when it comes to melee combat – and we've had a lot of feedback showing that melee combat can be really complicated – is that there aren't that many first-person games that deal purely with melee combat out there, so Condemned, we looked at that and other games that use melee combat. All of those are of course influences, but what we really want to do is bring real variety to the melee combat, so it's going to be the normal fighting, but then because of the levelling up, you'll acquire new skills on top of that. There are different influences, but again, we wanted something unique with our gameplay.

As you level up then, will your character improve in all of the key areas? Will they be quicker on their feet, will they be faster at attacking, will they have stronger, swifter kicks and things like that?

We really want every character to play differently, so we have the four different character classes and they each have aspects that set them apart. One is about speed, one is about pure force, one is an all-rounder and so forth. We want them to feel different in the direction you take them, in terms of their speed, force and all that. So, of course they'll each have skills that adapt to that situation.

We've been shown Sam B who is the Tank class in the game. Can you tell us a little bit about the other classes in the game?

There are four different characters that represent four different classes and all of them are on the island for varying reasons. When you start the game, you're going to find out a bit more about their background story and all of them will be relying on their own unique skill sets, so they'll all play completely differently. If you play in multiplayer, you'll want to use tactics that fit, so if one plays as a Tank, you'll preferably want the other to play as an Assassin, for example. We'll be revealing more about the characters and their back stories in the run up to release, so you can choose the character who fits your personality the most. We really want to have the feeling of different gameplay for each different character in the game and when you pick your character, that is your character that you'll stick with throughout the story. If you want to play it with a different character, you'll have to start the game again.

What if you're a Tank and you're playing with a friend who is also a Tank? Will they have to switch characters?

No, you'll be able to play with two Tanks. For realism purposes, it's weird to have two Sam Bs running around, but if you're both 15 hours into the game with Sam B, you don't want to swap characters and start over.

Interview: Dead Island, “Never, Ever Eat Zombie Meat”

2011-05-09T01:48:40Z

Cheeck out the interview on relyonhorror Here

ROH: It must have been a surprise to see the trailer become a sudden internet phenomena! How has the team been reacting to the popularity?

Sebastian: We knew from the beginning that we had something special with this trailer. But seeing how this trailer exploded all over the internet and the media coverage afterwards was really exciting for us! We are all extremely happy to get such positive feedback on our work.

ROH: Many people were quite moved by the trailer, but are a bit worried if this emotional approach will be held in the actual game. It has been said the story is to be full of mystery and drama, do you suspect there are scenes in the game that may emotionally impact players like the trailer has?

Sebastian: Yes. It’s violent, fast, revolting and there are gut punching emotional scenes. But of course in the context of the game they work differently compared to the trailer. A trailer has to work in 2 minutes. The game has to hook you for hours, even weeks.

ROH: The project went silent for a few years and it’s interesting to see some before and after shots of the game. Can you comment on any interesting changes in the project between now and then?

Sebastian: We shifted the focus quite a bit. We wanted to make this beautiful and strange island an open world experience, with a lot of close combat to bring the survival feel to a new level and add seamless multiplayer to multiply the fun.

ROH: Speaking of old ideas, some early screens showed the character driving a vehicle though we haven’t heard anything on this with the recent information. Did this have to be cut or can you still drive in the game?

Sebastian: If you find a car, that is still working, you can drive it! This will help you to get around in the wider areas. This will not be possible everywhere, some areas are just too crowded to drive around.

ROH: What kind of soundtrack do you have prepared for this game?

Sebastian: Our soundtrack is amazingly versatile! Ranging from ambient sounds over heavy metal riffs to rap. And even though this combination may sound strange, I’m sure zombie fans will love it!

ROH: About scaring players and fear, did the development of the game take any focus on making the game scary to an extent, and if so what direction of fear are you guys going for?

Sebastian: In short: Blunt brutal survival terror. It’s not a game that makes you afraid of what’s around every corner. In Dead Island you will see a horde of zombies feasting on a corpse and the fear will come from the obvious questions: How the hell I am supposed to survive this? Can I run away? In what shape is my baseball bat? Is there still a Molotov cocktail in my backpack? These pressing questions cause the terror in you.

Of course when we brought the player to this point it’s fun to add this additional surprise attack!

ROH: What types of enemies can we expect to see in the game? Is there a bigger variety or is the focus more on a horde rather than variety?

Sebastian: The horde is very important as it is a well known terror from all zombie media. But for the sake of variation we added more types as they change the gameplay in a big way. If a behemoth-like guy is standing in the middle of the horde, the above mentioned terror gets pushed to the next level. And they are not only varying in size, you will hear and see that something bad is waiting for you.

ROH: What were some inspirations for you guys while creating the game?

Sebastian: As you will see in the various types of the undead and the areas in the game we tried to get as much zombie-movie inspiration in as possible. Dawn of the Dead, Night of the Living Dead, Cannibal Holocaust, 28 Days Later, The Walking Dead comics, Versus, Tokyo Gore Police…The whole team was into this topic and we tried to get the best stuff out of all areas to create something unique.

ROH: Might the player be able to take part in some recreational activities out of slaying zombies? The website mentions things like fishing, for example. Is that simply part of the pamphlet-like wording of the passage or will players actually be able to go fishing?

Sebastian: Grenade fishing for zombies would be the only thing that comes to mind =). And no, that wouldn’t be very recreational. If you feel tempted going fishing on the Dead Island you definitely did something wrong!

ROH: Since the combat in Dead Island is going to be more melee-centered what’s going to go into the gameplay mechanics to differentiate the game from Dead Rising and Left 4 Dead 2, which also shed some focus on melee.

Sebastian: We took the classic shooter design and translated it into the closed combat. Instead of ammunition- a weapon degrades. Instead of reloading- stamina needs to be recovered. Aiming stays the same, but the resulting impact is much bigger and has much more effect.

You will break arms to reduce the danger of the zombies, cut off legs to immobilize it or the best solution- simply smash or cut off the ehad to kill it instantly.

In Dead Island you will find a whole arsenal of close combat mechanics ensuring the enjoyment of smashing every head by yourself.

ROH: Can you tell us a little more about 4-player Co-op? How is it going to work in the game?

Sebastian: In the desperate fight for survival we can only say: the more the better. The game has more than enough items, skills and features that let the 4 players work together. Multiplayer will be extremely important to Dead Island therefore it will be very user-friendly to join another game. No need to stop playing your own campaign, just join and leave whenever you like.

ROH: Is there anything else you would like to share with the fan base? A comment, advice, anecdote, correction or criticism?

Sebastian: Never ever eat zombie meat. No matter how desperate you are!

Dead Island 3D models

2011-05-02T11:09:53Z

Here are some Dead Island 3D models.

Added by Kacj321

PC Gamer Preview of Dead Island

2011-04-07T20:35:54Z

Bears, a vodka factory, an actual zombie. But not the home of the most exciting undead happening since Danny Boyle made them run in 28 Days Later. Techland, best known for cowboy series Call of Juarez, have taken the best bits of zombie killing and mashed them all together into one open world adventure. Oh, and you’ll want to pack the factor 50, because it all takes place on the sunny island of Banoi in Papua New Guinea.

You’ve seen the trailer, the little girl, the biting, the falling out of a really high window in backwards slow motion. This is all about being a bemused holidaymaker suddenly caught in the middle of the zombie apocalypse and scrambling to survive. One minute it’s Bermuda shorts and cocktails with umbrellas in, the next it’s bashing in the head of a walking corpse with a plank. You get to play as one of four characters, each with their own special skill set and weaknesses, such as speed or strength or ability with sharp things. I mainly got to see Sam B in action, an ex-hip hop star with a gnarly top hat and a passion for melee weapons. The other characters include Mohican-sporting Logan, an air hostess with quick moves and a glamazon bodyguard. Each is somehow immune to the infection, although, obviously, not immune to being eaten alive. Whichever you choose, there’s an RPG-lite system for levelling up that should enable you to tailor your character to your own violent needs.

Four main characters? Obviously that means four player, drop in, drop out co-op for Left 4 Dead-style japes among the bloody surfboards. Not that this was always the plan; the game was originally conceived years ago, before co-op was fashionable, leaving the team to integrate the idea at a later stage.

“It’s a deadly combination,” says Techland’s Blazej Krakowiak “because first we’ve done an open game, which in itself is a huge challenge to balance and predict, and then you’re screwed because you have four live players trying to mess things up.”

It’s certainly tricky. Compared to something like Left 4 Dead’s enclosed warehouses and fenced-in farms, the island of Banoi is massive, replete with story missions and side quests but Borderlands has shown this can work. I saw some very early missions, including going to search for a lifeguard and protecting someone from a zombie attack, but later objectives will help you discover what’s happened on the island, and open up new areas. Outside the hotel resort you start in, there’s jungle and even a town to explore, where you’ll have to face not just zombie enemies, but human ones too, such as looters or a gang who’ve taken up residence in the police station. Techland say they’re concentrating on the moments just after the outbreak, so people are still expecting the military to come and fix everything, there’s still some semblance of law and order and, importantly, money still has value. Expect the chance to buy new weapons or equipment as you explore.

Given that this is a holiday island rather than a war zone, finding weaponry is going to be a problem. It’s not as if there are racks of AK47s lined up next to the souvenir postcards and delightful shell collectibles. You might find the odd gun lying around, but even then, ammo is equally scarce, so you’ll need to get a little Blue Peter on what’s available to maximise the smash and smoosh. Planks, boats oars, baseball bats and machetes are all useful in their own right, but they degrade, and to really do damage you’ll want to take them to a workbench and add your own special features. It’s not just about duct-taping a chainsaw to a surfboard, but more like the World of Warcraft enchanting system, as with applying an electrical charge to hammers or blades.

I saw the shock machete in action – it can remove limbs and provides an entertaining light show. Krakowiak adds: “Some of them are more basic, like nails; others are more complex like the shock weapon, and there’s everything in-between. So it’s not about Dead Rising, putting some wacky things together and trying dozens of combinations. It’s about making the weapons more effective.”

The team certainly seems sensitive to comparisons with Capcom’s comedy zombie caper. “It’s like comparing Dead Rising to Left 4 Dead. It doesn’t make much sense and we are a different game altogether,” Krakowiak argues. “Dead Island is more about the characters you play and the story, and how it unfolds. Dead Rising, for me, is a toy box.”

There certainly seems to be a more serious mood to the whole thing and not just because of all the gore. “We’re trying to do something mature – it’s not about funny Dead Rising stuff. It’s not like there’s a crazy doctor with crazy experiments,” adds Adrian Ciszewski, a producer so committed he broke his leg showing an actor how to do a proper zombie fall during motion capture.

One of the major differences is the innovation that’s gone into the enemy design. Your basic cannon fodder zombie is a pretty standard walking corpse. The only difference is that they’re zombies dressed in bikinis and speedos, which just looks… wrong. They level up as you do and appear in small groups rather than unmanageable hordes. Sometimes they’ll even come in handy, like when you’re facing human opponents and you need a big fleshy distraction to allow you to slip past.

These basic zombies look disturbing, but they’re nothing compared to some of the trickier, and massively ickier, shufflers you’ll face later on. There’s The Ram, wrapped in a straightjacket with a Hannibal Lecter style mask. He’s an unstoppable tank who’ll charge you like a furious rhino, and the only way to take him down is to hit the weak point on his back. There’s the Drowner, a zombie who’s spent too long in the pool, and is swollen with water, with skin stretched so tight you can see his organs beneath.

Clean freaks will want to stay away from The Suicider, riddled with pulsating, infected boils, begging you to help him. Get too close and it’ll get real messy real quick, because he’ll explode in a shower of pus. The most nightmarish of the lot is The Butcher, who sports redneck dungarees, a deformed face and exposed forearm bones he uses to stab and slice at his prey. To be fair, you’d probably be in a murderous rage too; those arm stumps must make enjoying a tube of Pringles really tricky.

Talking to the team, it’s no surprise that the zombie designs are so spot on. They list everything from Romero to Walking Dead to 28 Days Later as massive influences and have strong ideas about why zombie slaying is such an enduring joy to your average gamer.

“Zombies on one hand are relateable. They’re partially human, not like aliens or killer plants,” says Krakowiak. “I won’t get into how they represent the mundane lives of office workers or something. That’s a topic for a conversation after a huge amount of alcohol. In general they are human enemies, but on the other hand you can kill them without any remorse whatsoever.” Sadly, Techland did have to turn down a fan suggestion about a giant killer octopus that players could use to trap and eat zombies. Something for the DLC perhaps?

Until we’ve seen the real mechanics of the game – the four player co-op especially – it’s hard to know if Dead Island can live up to the promise. What I do know is that what I’ve seen is exciting and packed with grisly promise, which isn’t bad for a game originally revealed in 2007, and forgotten about since. Whatever else it’s going to need to succeed, there’s zombie-loving passion aplenty. “We’re not trying to recreate a certain kind of movie genre like voodoo zombies” says Krakowiak. “We are following our own way, but of course remembering the zombie legacy that’s out there and that we love.”

Molotov Cocktail

2011-04-07T20:04:43Z

Molotov cocktail is a throwing weapon which when thrown release

Sam B armed with a cocktail attempts to save a survivor

Added by Mistertrouble189

a fire setting the infected on fire.

Dead Island Q&A

2011-04-05T14:25:31Z

You can ask Your question to the Deep Sliver team.

All you have to do to ask a question is to sign up on Dead-island.com

Then, go to this Thread

Finally, post your question.

The good people at Dead-island.com will send the questions off and Your question will be answer!

Also, A new screenshot has been release! Check it out below

Added by Kacj321

Dead Island Achievements Confirmed

2011-04-05T05:05:53Z

1. A taste of everything.
2. Ah! Spoiled meat!
3. Need a hand?
4. People person.
5. Gesundheit.
6. Going steady.
7. Road trip.
8. Right 4 life.
9. Oh, no you didn't!*
10. How many days exactly?
11. Humanitarian.
12. Knock, knock.
13. Cardio.
14. School of hard knocks.
15. Warrenty viod if used.
16. Gotta find them all.
17. 10 heads better than 1.
18. I want one of those.
19. Can't touch this.
20. Steam punk.
21. First!
22. A very special day.
23. Legen... wait for it...
24. Rageman.
25. Menage et trois.
26. Tis but a flesh wound.
27. Busy, busy, busy.
28. Light my fire.
29. Learning the ropes.
30. Together in the light.
31. Swing them sticks.
32. Savior.
33. Everybody lies.
34. Nearly there.
35. There and back again.
36. Originality
37. Catch.
38. Dedicated student.
39. One is all I need.
40. To put it bluntly.**
41. Karma-geddon.**
42. Tae kwon leap. **
43. Hack & Slash. **
44. Guns don't kill but they help. **
45. Hell in paradise. (i)***
46. No racoons in here. (ii) ***
47.Welcome to the jungle. (iii) ***
48.Banoii redemption. (iv) ***

Here are the Achievement images

Added by Kacj321

Dead-island.com

Three New Screenshots

2011-03-18T23:19:13Z

Techland have posted three new screenshots of Dead Island on their Facebook Page.

Photo one seems to have a man in a straightjacket. It looks like that he is going to be a boss zombie.

The other two just seem to show parts of the island. However, in both of those photos there seems to be no zombies.

GDC11 Preview of Dead Island

2011-03-13T20:21:24Z

GDC11 has posted a preview of Dead Island. Check it out Here

Sorry for the lack of updates and edits.

Dead Island Original Teaser and Damage Trailer

2011-02-22T22:35:49Z

The good people at IGN has reposted the two original trailers for dead island for those of us who did get the chance to see it.

Original Teaser can be found Here

Zombie Damage Trailer can be found Here

Also Tobuscus has posted his LITERAL Dead Island Trailer

IGN Dead Island Trailer Analysis

2011-02-19T00:31:06Z

IGN has just posted there trailer analysis of Dead Island has some great info.

Cheak it out Here