Escape Dead Island (Video Game Review)

Deep Silver is giving fans the opportunity to return to tropical islands full of the undead with a brand-new single player adventure entitled Escape Dead Island. The spin-off game takes place within the Dead Island universe with appearances by several of the franchise’s beloved characters like Xian Mei. If you have been aching for the opportunity to once again explore the beautiful but bloody paradise that is Dead Island then get ready to slice up some zombies just in time for Thanksgiving!

Escape Dead Island starts off with a mission-like tutorial that takes place two days before the initial outbreak on Banoi. Gamers take on the role of a masked assassin who is tasked with finding the mole and the source of the mysterious zombie virus. With only a samurai sword and the voice guidance of Xian Mei, players must take out the hordes of zombies in their path while finding an extraction point all the while the super-villain Charon mocks you from afar. The mission gives players the opportunity to learn more about the zombie virus before they officially step into the roll of the character of Cliff Calo for this action-packed new adventure.

Now fast forward to six months after the events of Dead Island just off the coast of Banoi to enter the luxurious world of Cliff Calo. Cliff is a wealthy, spoilt brat whose fortune stems from his wealthy media mogul of a father. In an attempt to find his own voice while rebelling against his father--Cliff, Devan and Linda start out on a journey to learn more about the outbreak in Banoi in a Scooby-Dooish investigation of sorts. Cliff and Linda soon find the secret island of Narapela and a container that belongs to the Geopharm corporation. What connection does Geopharm have to the zombie outbreak? Well that is one question that Cliff hopes to uncover and much more with his trusty camera in hand.



One of the first things gamers will notice about Escape Dead Island that differs from the other games in the franchise is its new comic style visuals. While past titles had more of a serious and darker tone, Escape Dead Island features an over-the-top humorous storyline coupled with that of its fantastic comic style to give it that extra layer of pizzazz. The game falls into the category of titles like Dead Rising, Borderlands and Telltale Games The Walking Dead when it comes to graphics and sound. It is definitely safe to say that the new approach of using simpler, comic like graphics against a brighter, more colorful world really works in Escape Dead Island’s favor.

Escape Dead Island is a single-player campaign which makes it totally different from the 4-player co-op versions found in past titles. Cliff, unlike other characters we played before, is not immune to the virus which means that he must use stealth tactics to avoid the undead instead of taking them head-on. The battle with the undead isn’t the only thing players must worry about, because Cliff is also a danger to himself, with his sanity slowly starting to slip away before his very eyes.

The gameplay in Escape Dead Island requires players to gather evidence by collecting Geopharm files and taking photos of everything around the island. While this would seem simple enough, the stealth mechanics for getting past zombies doesn’t always work like it should, which makes some missions just a tad more difficult and frustrating. Escape Dead Island contains diverse gameplay were players can approach situations in various ways with some being better than others. The game requires that you avoid the undead when you can but combat is definitely engaging and fun when you do have to take down some of those pesky undead.  When faced with hordes of zombies, gamers will need to utilize a little bit of crowd control with R1/RB to shove and knock down the undead in their path. The best part of Escape Dead Island is the ability to alter events and dialogue simply by the way you play which creates alternate paths that require multiple playthroughs to enjoy them all. Now that adds a crap-load of replayability to the game, alongside all of the collectibles, which makes it well worth the purchase price for that feature alone!

The voice-acting in Escape Dead Island is superb and definitely kicks up the storyline with its own unique sense of humor, intrigue and drama. However, there are moments when the narrative takes a plunge for the worst and scenes just don’t hold your attention like they should. An example of this would be when Linda gets bite by a Bouncer--not only is the scene not as emotional as it should be, but the dialogue between the characters that follows is awful! But hey, no one can be funny all the time, and Escape Dead Island just shows the reality of that it all its undead glory.



In the end, Escape Dead Island is an entirely new adventure within the Dead Island series that is well-worth the $39.99 purchase price. Gamers will feel like they are inside a virtual comic book with Escape Dead Island which makes for some entertaining and fun gameplay packed with zombie-goodness!

Escape Dead Island is now available for Xbox 360, PC and PlayStation 3 for $39.99. Escape Dead Island is rated Mature 17+ by the ESRB for Blood & Gore, Intense Violence and Strong Language.  For more information on the game, check out the official Escape Dead Island website.

Game Features:

• Single Player
• Unravel the Origins of the Zombie Outbreak
• Kill Zombies in Unique New Ways
• The Missing Link Between Previous Games and the Upcoming One
• Extensive World to Explore
• Trophy/Achievement Support

Game Information:
Publisher/Developer: Deep Silver
Platforms: Xbox 360 (reviewed), PC and PS3
Release Date: November 18, 2014

Score: 8.2 out of 10