PS4 Review: Dead Island: Definitive Edition

3 Dead Island games in one bundle, but is it worth it?

Dead Island joins the latest in the remastered genre of games. This Definitive Edition offers the original Dead Island, Riptide as well as a new 2D side-scroller called Retro Revenge. It sounds like a sweet deal, but is it?
deadisland1
It would be if you’ve never played any of them before, or if you did and didn’t really give it a chance. As you know, the games aren’t exactly flawless in their design…and gamers were angry that the game looked nothing like the trailer (when has any game looked like their trailer?) but they were fun games, even if they were glitchy and unpredictable, as well as visually lacking. The Definitive Edition touches up the visuals nicely, but you can still see it’s rough around the edges…so to speak.

If you hated the original games, then the DE will do little to win you over. The flaws of the originals are still here, for better or worse. It’s hard to recommend to those who persevered with the originals as there isn’t any new content besides Retro Revenge, which in itself might as well be a mini-game.
deadisland2
Techland have left the franchise behind and improved upon their mistakes from Dead Island with Dying Light. Escape Dead Island was a misstep, while who knows what is going on with Dead Island 2, that seems to be yet another game in development hell…Maybe they’ll announce something at E3, but I wouldn’t hold my breath…

Which brings up the obvious question, why now? Why release a Dead Island: Definitive Edition now? I honestly cannot tell you, my personal guess would be to try and get gamers talking about it again and wanting a sequel…which might give them the incentive to get it out sooner rather than later, but I could be very wrong.

You can play the 2 main games either solo or co-operatively online, both are fun and unique experiences. The game will no doubt frustrate you over time, but there are a lot of fun moments to be had…provided you haven’t played them before, otherwise it’s really hard to recommend.

The Verdict

Dead Island: Definitive Edition is a nice deal for the price tag, but it does retain all the original’s flaws, warts and all. It’s had a nice visual update and Retro Revenge is fun, but short. Definitely one worth picking up if you’re new to the series, but difficult to recommend for those who’ve put hours and hours into the originals or those who simply hated them beforehand. I would say give it a go though, then hopefully we will get the sequel we’ve been waiting for…

Score: 7.5