What’s higher than mindlessly bashing zombies on a wonderful, sunny day? How about very mindfully crafting weapons of all styles and sizes to coat Los Angeles in zombie paste? That’s the place Useless Island 2 is available in, and whereas it has a number of flaws, the sport is bound to depart you happy in additional methods than one. Listed here are 5 nice issues about Useless Island 2, and 5 issues that might have used extra work.
The Bloody Nice Issues
With the wait because the first Useless Island having been nearly 12 yr previous to the discharge of Useless Island 2, the sport has been a very long time coming. Expectations have been excessive, and it may be robust to discover a sport that basically sucks you in with out overloading you with options, abilities, armor and extra. Right here’s the place Useless Island 2 hit the zombie proper on the pinnacle.
The Fight
Useless Island 2 made certain to take probably the most key part to a zombie sport, and so they gave it some well-deserved TLC. The primary sport had thrillingly vicious fight, between the number of enemies and the number of weapons, and the sequel doesn’t disappoint. It’s simple to be sparing with weapons and ammo early on, however there are many attention-grabbing instruments round each nook to play with.
With these completely different weapons come loads of new, ugly zombie-killing animations. The animations used for smashing, slashing and bashing the undead are actually distinctive, and there are a lot of other ways to pile up stacks of our bodies. Fortunately, the sport has an incredible quantity of weapons and combos to make use of, and each has a distinct stage of violence hooked up to it.
Weapon Customization
The choices to customise weapons in Useless Island 2 go on and on. Every one has a distinct harm kind, weapon kind and weapon profile, all of which will be mixed with perks and mods to craft your customized weapons of mass destruction. You may scrap your outdated or damaged weapons for his or her elements, or in the event you’re actually hooked up to them you’ll be able to match them to your personal stage to maintain your instruments devastating.
The sport does a very good job of difficult you and inspiring you to make use of these completely different weapons by throwing zombies at you with completely different resistances. Say you’ve been getting somewhat too snug along with your flaming cleaver, however it received’t work on a zombie that’s already burning. As an alternative, you’ll should swap to your surprising machete or one thing completely different to get the job finished.
The Zombies
The number of zombies within the sport and the mechanics they use do a very good job of protecting gameplay contemporary with out being too repetitive too rapidly. The sport balances what number of of every completely different zombie to have in a sure space, in order that gamers don’t get caught combating both 4 Crushers in a small room or one single Shambler out within the streets. There are additionally a ton of fashions for zombies within the sport, so it isn’t quite common to discover a zombie that seemed just like the final one’s twin sibling.
Useless Island 2’s zombies behave far more like what zombies in all probability would than in another video games, falling over and stumbling amongst themselves as they shamble and crawl their technique to your flesh. They are often bashed right into a ragdoll and slashed to items relying on the weapons that you simply use, which additionally adjustments the gameplay as a result of they assault based on what limbs they nonetheless have. The sport additionally cleverly makes use of the introductions to new zombie varieties to additional the story, which helps the sport not really feel too cluttered.
The Story
The story of Useless Island 2 is humorous and lighthearted in the identical methods as the primary sport was, utilizing darkish humor to energy its approach via what would realistically be a traumatizing occasion. The sport takes itself critically in that the characters need to accomplish their objectives and really feel as if they’ll obtain them, however it leans closely into the satire of stereotypical Los Angeles, California. The occupants of Hell-A are wildly eclectic to say the least, and so they be sure to maintain your survivor busy doing favors for them and saving their lives.
The sport does a very good job of establishing every second utilizing the world in addition to dialogue. Slightly than supplying you with waves and waves of zombies to slaughter earlier than each single boss battle, Useless Island 2 makes use of the extent design to inform half the story and dialogue to do the remainder. Say you’re going via a mission and your survivor is chatting with one of many NPCs as you go. The characters received’t simply let you know what’s going to be on the finish of the tunnel, however the physique elements, paperwork, weapons and enemies alongside the way in which will do half the storytelling.
The aspect missions in Useless Island 2 are additionally well-balanced in bringing humor and enjoying into the tone of the sport, whereas nonetheless staying true to their objective: getting you extra loot. They play nearly like Far Cry aspect missions, the place you’ll be able to both search them out or stumble onto them fully by mistake. This additionally makes gamers really feel like they’ve extra selection as to how a lot they work together with the world round them.
The Setting
Ah, attractive Hell-A. The sky is blue, the sunshine is sizzling in your pores and skin that the undead need to gnaw proper via. It actually does function the subsequent finest place to witness the zombie apocalypse after solely having seen it on distant islands. The folks within the sport act like they dwell on trip, in order that they have the identical Existence of the Wealthy and Well-known that so many stereotypes are primarily based on. It’s loads of enjoyable simply going room-to-room all through the world studying folks’s notes and seeing the weird — and generally horrid — issues they’ve of their houses.
There’s a lot to discover in Useless Island 2. The completely different locations you journey to have nooks and crannies stuffed with loot like provides for crafting into mods and money to spend on extra provides. The map is the right steadiness of open-world and linear, encouraging keen-eyed gamers to look via every room and see what the builders hid away. To not point out, among the rooms inform oftentimes humorous micro-stories by having a collectible observe that offers context to what was in any other case only a chunky crimson mess in a rest room.
As a fan of horror and mature-themed video games, I don’t discover myself getting shocked fairly often by among the issues builders lay all through the world. This was not the case in Useless Island 2. There have been a number of occasions that I discovered myself turning a nook and taking a look at a streak of blood considering, “What occurred right here?” adopted by, “Oh,” as I not far away leading to an appalled, “OH.” Deep Silver needed us to be very conscious that zombies eat folks, and don’t assume a lot whereas they do it. What they depart behind isn’t for the faint of coronary heart.
Issues That Might Be Higher
With the entire nice issues about Useless Island 2, there are at all times a number of drawbacks. Whereas nothing felt prefer it was sufficient to interrupt the sport, right here are some things to pay attention to that might have used some extra work.
Character Customization
Given the first-person perspective in Useless Island 2, it’s comprehensible that Deep Silver didn’t embody character customization and outfits. Simply given among the completely different kinds and clothes you can see NPCs sporting, it will be enjoyable to get the choice to customise your personal look. The primary-person perspective makes it simpler to neglect that you simply don’t have something customized happening, and also you don’t see your survivor after you choose them, even while you look in a mirror. Regardless, it will have been numerous enjoyable to get to point out off to your pals or match with them when you’re hacking and slashing via the in any other case eccentric world of Hell-A.
Breaking the Mould
Whereas Useless Island 2 does give gamers lots to like so far as persevering with what was began in 2011, there doesn’t appear to be all that a lot to essentially attract new gamers who’re much less accustomed to the style. The sport nonetheless performs similar to most different video games specializing in brutalizing zombies, albeit with the humorous shine that the primary sport introduced with it a decade prior. Useless Island 2 performs extremely effectively for what it tries to be, however it doesn’t really feel like there are sufficient proprietary options to completely set it other than the remainder of the pack.
Repetitive Fight Animations
Though Useless Island 2 has all kinds of various weapons with numerous varieties and attributes, most of the animations do come to be repeated after a time. There involves be a degree in utilizing a cleaver with the identical movement time and again the place you could swap weapons only for a change of tempo. It’s cool having the completely different weapons to fall again on, however it will be good to have a number of other ways to swing. After the five hundredth time, slinging a sledgehammer in-game feels nearly as tiring as doing so in actual life.
Recycled Stage Design
This actually is perhaps a nitpick, however there sure stage designs that have been reused between places within the sport. A home in Bel Air had the very same flooring plan and design as a home within the hills, solely with out the staircase having been half-destroyed. It feels prefer it goes in opposition to the life of the characters in sport to share residence design with their neighbors a city over, however maybe they employed the identical architect for the job.
Multiplayer Woes
The multiplayer itself in Useless Island 2 isn’t the priority, however relatively the way in which that it really works to steadiness out ranges between gamers. You cannot be part of somebody’s session with out being on the identical stage of the sport as them, if not farther. Whereas this is smart with having completely different options unlocked at sure factors, it implies that gamers who play extra should proceed replaying sections to carry buddies as much as the place they’re. Even with the number of survivors to select from, it could get rapidly tiring having to replay the identical missions repeatedly, irrespective of how humorous the joke was the primary time.
Useless Island 2’s long-awaited launch introduced with it loads of options which were refined and fleshed-out over its time in growth, and a few issues that might use have used some extra time within the stress cooker. Even with its few drawbacks, Useless Island 2 is a enjoyable time for kicking again and drop-kicking hipster zombies off the rooftops of Hell-A.