Dead Island Riptide Preview

The folks at Official Xbox Magazine are offering their own preview take on Deep Silver and Techland’s quasi-sequel Dead Island Riptide, although it goes without saying that, since the piece is based on a carefully-choreographed presentation, we’ll have to wait a little longer for better-informed pieces.

Still, here’s a snippet:

One of the most noticeable changes in Riptide’s overall presentation is the improved responsiveness in combat physics, as well as character and gore animations. Techland assures us that this is still a very melee-centric game the primary weapon used through most of the demo was actually an electrified sword and connecting a blow to a zombie had an impact that the original game somewhat lacked. Firearms and explosives also have a bit more oomph, with much bigger explosion radii and seemingly tighter gunplay to complement the power of the physical strikes.

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In the original, one of the main complaints from players was the constant feeling that you needed to hoard your best weapons and firepower for more dangerous encounters. In response, Techland has implemented some not-so-subtle scenarios to help players figure out when it’s okay to unleash the full strength of their arsenal. As an example, at one point during our demo, a legion of zombies rose from the depths of the water surrounding the church and rushed the base; thankfully, your rage meter from the first game returns to give you a boost.