The Zombie-Slicer Dead Island 2 (Steam) will receive a brand new, free game mode in October. Just a few years ago, it was unclear whether the game would actually be released – let alone if it would be good.
What kind of game is this? Dead Island 2 is an action RPG in which you fight your way through a zombie-infested L.A. either alone or with up to two friends. You have a variety of weapons at your disposal to tear zombies apart and make the blood spray.
Dead Island 2 is the latest installment in the Dead Island series. Unlike its predecessors, this zombie game was not developed by Techland, the studio behind Dying Light, but by Dambuster Studios.
After a long and chaotic development history, Dead Island 2 was released in 2023 and was better than anyone dared to hope. GameStar rated the game 80 out of 100 points, while on Steam, 74 percent of around 6,000 reviews are positive.
Dead Island 2 is available for PC on Steam and Epic as well as for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S. In a trailer, the developers introduced their new game mode “Neighborhood Watch” for the first time.
You can watch the trailer here:
Horde Mode with New Classes
What does the new game mode offer? Neighborhood Watch is a horde mode in which you fight for survival with a group of new characters. This time, you are a member of the Bobcats – a group of students defending their refuge from the zombies.
The mode is divided into several stages, which are counted as days in the game. In the first four days, you will search for equipment in the Venice Canals and improve your arsenal. On the fifth day, you will have to fend off a massive horde of zombies with strategic use of traps, weapons, and your skills.
Each of the new characters is assigned to a specific class, which has its own talents and promotes a different playstyle.
- The “Chemist” specializes in crafting corrosive traps and using explosive weapons.
- The “Medic” can heal their allies but is no slouch in combat either.
- The “Hunter” can take out zombies from a distance and distract them with meat skewers.
Unlike in the main story, this time you will not have a “Fury Mode” available to help you out in case you find yourself in a tight situation. Good teamwork will be increasingly important because of that.
When will Neighborhood Watch be released? You can try out the new game mode starting October 22, 2024. It is free for all owners of the game.
The fact that you can play Dead Island 2 with a maximum of three players is simply because the levels for four players are a bit too small. Another shooter also offers co-op for up to three players, but that has a different reason – at least according to the developers: Space Marine 2 only offers co-op for 3 players, as having 4 Space Marines would be “too much slaughter” in the world of Warhammer 40k.
