Feature: Dead Island Diaries – Part One

Well the summer drought is in full swing and we have very few decent titles to shout home about, so what better to do than look back in anger at some older titles that we may have missed?

The game in question? You guessed it, Dead Island. The GOTY edition launched recently so I thought, given that I missed out on it last time, that I’d pick it up and play through it whilst I have nothing else better to do. So without further ado, I welcome you all to the Dead Island Diaries which will document each play-through in detail, whilst also providing analytical detail about the game.

Think of it as an on-going, review. Enjoy….

Day One

I’ll be honest, I wasn’t expecting much from this game. But so far it hasn’t turned out to be as bad as I first thought. After watching an initial introduction clip, I’m thrown head-first into a blood curdling world. Choosing to play as the woman, my story involves helping those around me survive this paradise turned hell hole.

As is the case with many games out there it falls down to me, or you, to go out and solve every problem out there which is not easy given that 99% of the holiday makers on the island have gone nuts and started eating one another.

So the story begins with the player escaping from the hotel they were staying in after being rudely awakened by screams of terror and help. Of course, you can’t ignore someone in distress, so you waltz out of your room (still half-baked) and make your way through blood-stained corridors and an insane amount of bags and suitcases.

Instructed to get to the ground floor of the hotel as a means of survival, a nearby elevator proves to be less than helpful by plummeting to the floor. After surviving that, you soon find yourself at the mercy of the blood-hungry creatures and wake to find yourself at the mercy of one of the survivors.

Indebted with your life, what choice do you have but to help him and the others escape in one piece to higher and safer grounds? After a bit of fannying around and general ‘I haven’t got a f***ing clue what’s going on’-ness, this is where the game truly opens up and lets you have some fun.You find other people who need your help whilst you also travel alone most of the time and worry for your own survival. Or at least you should anyway, given how much revitalizing drinks and snacks are scattered around meaning recovery is never too far away…

So seems as though you owe people your life, off you pop on your merry way to find your saviors refuge in higher ground. It soon becomes clear that weapons are hard to come by whilst enemies aren’t and you’re never far from a constant battle. But on my way I managed to find time to help a drunkard source some booze, save someone from their pick up truck and also fight my way through the million bags scattered around the place.

So as the sun set on the first day of my adventures, I found some relief that I was still alive and had managed to help others on my way. There was no doubt that I am in a better position than yesterday but it’s guaranteed that my troubles will only multiply when the morning comes.

To be continued….