By John Walker on May 16th, 2011 at 5:58 pm.
Ooh, I’ve got some Dead Island screenshots you can look at. But only after you’ve solved my riddle, completed an ARG, and pre-ordered my next book: Everyone Should Just Bloody Well Do What I Tell Them. Do it today and you’ll receive one extra screenshot FOR FREE!
Or not. In fact, you can see all five of the new pics below.
Some of them look rather good. Click on them to see them full size.
16/05/2011 at 18:02 Odiorne Point says:
Do want. Do we have any idea of a release date/window?
16/05/2011 at 20:38 Commisar says:
seconded, this game sounds and looks great, an open world zombie survival game with multiplayer and NO TIMER :)
16/05/2011 at 23:09 Howl says:
It’s on the Steam, “coming soon” list and has a store page but it only shows as 2011 so far.
16/05/2011 at 18:02 Bilbo says:
Looks interesting but nothing’s gonna top that reveal trailer.
Also, is it just me or are the shadows a little over the top? As in, there’s virtually zero ambient light on Dead Island? Particularly in the first and third shots, which are clearly outdoor, daytime shots.
16/05/2011 at 19:07 MikoSquiz says:
It’s late in the evening and the sun is low. Looks right to me.
16/05/2011 at 19:19 Bilbo says:
Is it though? I’ll agree that’s sort of how it looks, but take a look at the sky. Given how heavy the shadows are in the indoor shots, I think they’re suffering a bit of shadow overkill here
17/05/2011 at 00:37 Davee says:
Strong equatorial sunshine is often emulated with having much stronger direct lighting than ambient lighting.
But it could just be their visual style. I think it looks fine myself. :)
16/05/2011 at 18:02 McDan says:
Darnit, one too many guns for my liking.
16/05/2011 at 19:19 Sweedums says:
that was my first thought too, however, so long as theres very little ammo, i can probably live with that
16/05/2011 at 18:02 Callum says:
It’s difficult to talk about this game without bringing up that trailer, but all of the in game screenshots I’ve seen so far just make it look like another zombie shooter. I am really hoping for a different tone and pace, but I’ve not seen anything to suggest that yet.
16/05/2011 at 18:07 Yorick says:
I agree. I was led to believe in an open-world survival-horror, and this just looks like another coridoorish manshoot. With zombies.
16/05/2011 at 18:28 godgoo says:
I think this going to be another ‘the more I see, the less I like’ title. sigh.
16/05/2011 at 18:02 Bodminzer says:
So much for “Firearms won’t be common at all, honest!”.
16/05/2011 at 18:26 TheSpideryOne says:
Two guns in two screenshots means that they’re at all common?
i’m neutral on the game, but it seems to me like you’re just trying to find a reason to not believe the developers.
16/05/2011 at 19:18 Bodminzer says:
It shows that they are a feature the developer is proud of and view as important to their game, at the very least.
16/05/2011 at 20:24 Wilson says:
@Bodminzer – They could be proud of them and consider them important to the game and still have them be rare. Guns will be cool if you’ve spent most of the game without them. It’s too early to say what they’ve chosen to do at this stage, I think.
16/05/2011 at 18:07 BrendanJB says:
Not sure about everyone else but I’m getting a 404 when I click on the images :/
16/05/2011 at 18:09 John Walker says:
Fixed now!
16/05/2011 at 18:09 Ravenholme says:
They fixed it in the time it took you to post.
Annnnnd Ninja’d
16/05/2011 at 18:09 DiGi says:
Left 4 D3ad again…
16/05/2011 at 18:12 Jeremy says:
Maybe it’s just me, but I question why there is a giant of a man wearing a strait-jacket on a vacation island. It’s a curious thing. All-inclusive resort / asylum?
16/05/2011 at 18:16 Moni says:
Isn’t that the plot to Far Cry?
16/05/2011 at 18:30 godgoo says:
I’m just surprised he doesn’t have a pink Mohawk and a jet pack.
16/05/2011 at 18:15 Moni says:
“Mwuhhhaa.”
“Hear’s my folder of my research on zombies.”
“BLAM, BLAM!”
“THWOCK! SPLAT!”
“Guuhhwa” “Shuuussh….”
Moving pictures and speaker sounds are overrated.
16/05/2011 at 18:19 Teddy Leach says:
I think John’s still annoyed.
16/05/2011 at 18:31 Urael says:
What do you think? Nervous breakdown? Personal Meltdown?
*settles into easy chair with popcorn*
16/05/2011 at 19:21 Vorrin says:
maybe he wants what I demand since I started using that green eyed monster Facebook, a ‘dislike/hate’ button :D
16/05/2011 at 18:21 Teek says:
I don’t really get people’s negativity about this…
Firstly, only two pictures of guns. Hardly makes left 4 dead or any other zombie shooter. I also see two pictures of bats that really seem to show how much focus they put into those mechanics.
Also, where is everyone getting ideas of a corridor shooter from? Because there were two guns? Overkill much?
I don’t think it’s possible to discern the entire gameplay from five screenshots.
All I can discern is “holy crap, look at those textures” and “that pistol is literally smoking hot”
Both of them have me interested in this just on the basis of sheer graphical work being put in.
Still looking at that gun smoke… pretty…
16/05/2011 at 18:35 Torgen says:
“Where is everyone getting ideas of a corridor shooter from?”
Let’s see…
1st image after the break: A road bordered by steep, unclimbable cliffs (though that may be a huge dropoff on the left and not a cliff.)
2nd image: cramped “safehouse” (doesn’t really count)
3rd: small area bordered by buildings and beach.
4th: a cramped warehouse.
5th: a claustrophobic alleyway.
16/05/2011 at 18:53 DrGonzo says:
You realise none of those descriptions are really correct? We can only see a tiny angle of where the player is. You are using your imagination to fill in the gaps and are calling it fact. Completely absurd.
16/05/2011 at 18:59 Dawngreeter says:
What’s wrong with corridor shooters?
16/05/2011 at 19:08 bob_d says:
@Teek: You’re right, we should try not to read too much into a few screenshots, but since that’s all we have, then… ;)
“There are guns in two pictures” Another way of looking at that is: there are three weapons shown, and two of them are guns…
I think a lot of the negativity isn’t coming from a response to these screenshots per se, but is lingering disappointment. The initial announcement & (especially) trailer for the game made it seem like something new and innovative, but every bit of information since has been familiar and banal. Not that anyone expected the trailer to represent gameplay, obviously, but I, for one, rather hoped it represented some goal in terms of a level of emotional engagement and innovation which doesn’t seem to be the case.
@Torgen: Yep, that seems to be about right.
@DrGonzo: By “none of those descriptions are really correct” I assume you mean that “most of these descriptions are correct, but two pictures are ambiguous.” The roadway bound on one side by a cliff may have an open area to the left, but it doesn’t appear so, and the third may only appear to have beach to the right; all the other descriptions are clearly accurate.
Ultimately, of course, these are only some semi-random screenshots, and may not/probably don’t indicate anything about the actual game, but so far it looks like a zombie-themed corridor shooter.
@Dawngreeter: Absolutely nothing, but many of us who initially got excited about the game did so under the understanding that this was not one. We already have plenty of zombie-themed corridor shooters, and a new game that’s only slightly different seems… unnecessary.
16/05/2011 at 22:02 lethu says:
@bob_d, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVCtkzIXYzQ
16/05/2011 at 22:47 Jeremy says:
Aren’t “open world” games just “corridors” attached seamlessly together?
16/05/2011 at 23:17 bob_d says:
@ Jeremy: Corridor shooters are all about funneling the player into specific choke-points so that they have to encounter specific bits of content in particular places. It’s a different design philosophy.
@lethu: Are you sure I wasn’t making an unassailable statement of proven fact? ;P
16/05/2011 at 23:59 lethu says:
@bob_d, yeah as proven fact as aliens and ectoplasm’s, thumbs up, keep up the good work!
17/05/2011 at 00:59 Jeremy says:
Agreed Bob_D, I’m just amazed you can see design philosophy in an image. What I’m getting at is, basing it entirely off of images, it would be easy for an open world game to appear as a corridor shooter.
17/05/2011 at 05:51 sassy says:
Hmmm I seem to remember spending a great deal of time in Morrowind walking between two very steep cliff faces, must mean it was a corridor shooter!
16/05/2011 at 18:22 Ertard says:
It looks like these are console shots. Or at least I hope so. Also, a lot of guns.
16/05/2011 at 18:37 Moni says:
I’ve analysed the fourth screenshot. If you look really closely at the top right hand corner you can see a cluster of pixels that are reminiscent of something from a console game.
16/05/2011 at 18:25 catmorbid says:
Did you notice: No crosshairs on the guns. I take that as a sign to reduce a bit the superhuman-aspect of the hero/heroine/whatever is kicking ass in this game. Plus it be pretty and there be bloody baseball bats – which is always nice.
16/05/2011 at 18:43 TheWanaB says:
That or the HUD just doesn’t look good on screenshots like this so they turned it off…
17/05/2011 at 05:52 sassy says:
We should all hope for no HUD at all, why would a game like this need one?
16/05/2011 at 18:28 Torgen says:
I am *very* disappointed in seeing military-grade firearms in the island resort. I think this has dropped from “OMFG” (due to the cinematic trailer) to “don’t bother” on my list. I still have Left 4 Dead 2 to finish, and don’t see anything different with this one.
16/05/2011 at 19:29 wengart says:
Nothing in the screens is military grade. There is a 9mm pistol and a shotgun of some sort. The pistol is common enough, and it wouldn’t be unlikely for police (especially in wealthier/more built up areas) to have that shotgun.
16/05/2011 at 20:35 Arglebargle says:
They specifically said in some of the background material, that there were ‘Coast Guard’ at or near the resort. That is probably going to be the main source for much of the modern weaponry. Finding and conserving ammo for anything is a much more realistic stumbling block anyway.
16/05/2011 at 21:30 Zenicetus says:
If it’s loosely modeled on any of the big resorts in the Caribbean, there would be plenty of firepower on the yachts anchored in the harbor. Mostly shotguns — yachties are big on shotguns — but also quite a few assault rifles, with the recent piracy scares. So they don’t even need a Coast Guard station pretext. It could be fun if the game makes you swim out to the yachts for guns and ammo restocking. Then again, if you’re on a working boat, why wouldn’t you get the hell out of there?
16/05/2011 at 18:32 magnus says:
An ARG? Do zombies go ARG? ‘Military-grade firearms’ I gave up on it when I realised it wasn’t all about you having to poke them in the eye with cotton buds!
16/05/2011 at 18:45 Hunam says:
The graphics do look stunning. I think this might just be the one zombie game I can get along with as it wants to be an RPG and not just a shooter.
17/05/2011 at 02:49 Benny says:
Really? Personally i’m looking at those screens (which are roughly at standard console 720p) and thinking blury textures, low resolution normal maps, alot of bloom and depth of field to cover up the lack of power the consoles have, heavy post production (Max AA and possibly some touching up in photoshop) and i’m generally very lack luster about it all.
I’m sure it’ll look great but i’m seeing nothing graphically to make it shine versus any other high budget fps released multi format.
As with alot of people, the launch trailer peaked my interest (and i still think it’s an awesome piece of cinematography) but since that everything else has seemed generic. Until they open up a bit more with actual footage of the game in play, rather than rolling with hyped PR potentially missinforming us, i’m inclined to treat this as just another game that i wont care about too much.
16/05/2011 at 18:48 man-eater chimp says:
WHERE CAN I PRE ORDER THIS HERE NEW BOOK.
I want my extra screen.
16/05/2011 at 18:54 rocketman71 says:
Curious. I thought this game was melee only.
Some of those look really nice.
16/05/2011 at 18:55 Very Real Talker says:
I bet 50 Euro-moneys that these shots are shopped, or not indicative of the final quality of the game
16/05/2011 at 20:39 notjasonlee says:
absolutely, that is what i was going to say. looks like a lot of touching up is going on…and the lack of video is suspicious.
16/05/2011 at 19:06 slick_101 says:
is it me. or is it screaming L4D copy?
17/05/2011 at 05:57 sassy says:
just you
16/05/2011 at 19:07 PleasingFungus says:
“Decayation”: winner of Most Undeserved Negative Comments ’11!
Congratulations, everyone.
16/05/2011 at 19:19 Stupoider says:
The game isn’t even out yet, what’s wrong with skepticism?
16/05/2011 at 19:10 mpk says:
I sense much anger in you, young (sky)Walker.
16/05/2011 at 19:42 Nick says:
Crywalker.
16/05/2011 at 22:09 lethu says:
hrmm.. nothing to see here, you know the rest…
16/05/2011 at 19:12 lumberjack_wannabe says:
A zombie game with guns? This is an outrage!
16/05/2011 at 19:16 Xercies says:
Where can I pre-order this book? :)
16/05/2011 at 19:27 Text_Fish says:
There’s a Smoker in screen 4 and a Witch in screen 5.
Just sayin’.
16/05/2011 at 23:17 magnus says:
‘Just sayin’; One of the world’s most annoying phrases right behind ‘Do you know what I mean?’,'Have a great weekend’,'Jarateed’ or anything said with an Australian Intonation Inflection.
Arrrrrrrrrrrrgggghhhh!
16/05/2011 at 23:46 therighttoarmbears says:
“have a great weekend” is australian?
17/05/2011 at 00:04 magnus says:
I did say ‘or anything’ I didn’t mean of that list of 3! :p
16/05/2011 at 19:36 mkultra says:
Finding irony in the fact people are crying samey-same-old because of weapons and corridors in a zombie game.
16/05/2011 at 20:02 diebroken says:
Zombies – check!
Bikinis – check!
SOLD!
16/05/2011 at 20:07 El_MUERkO says:
I DECRY! BULLSHOTS!!! BULLLLSHHOOOOOOTTTTTSSS!!!
17/05/2011 at 05:08 Dave L. says:
Nope. They’re pretty representative of what I’ve seen of it (i.e. more than just screenshots).
16/05/2011 at 21:07 thesundaybest says:
“Decaytion” surely…
16/05/2011 at 21:19 BreadBitten says:
These are some surprisingly beautiful visuals…
…NEXT.
16/05/2011 at 22:05 Scandalon says:
Apparently, .ban isn’t a top level domain. (purescuba.ban from the billboard.)
16/05/2011 at 22:39 Schmung says:
Normal mapping is a bit XTREME. Rather worryingly so in some of them. Lovely screenshot and then there’s a beretta apparently made of clay right in your face or a woman whos skin is hewn from sandstone standing four feet away. I’m generally not nitpicky about these things and the other screens look fine, but why did they release that one? It’s horrid.
17/05/2011 at 00:27 Hatsworth says:
Jumped out at me too.
17/05/2011 at 11:34 SuperNashwanPower says:
For me those shots look like pre-rendered cutscene, am not 100% convinced thats in-game engine
17/05/2011 at 12:51 hadrianw says:
This is part of horror.
16/05/2011 at 22:40 Peggle20 says:
Was hoping this would be third-person. Alack.
16/05/2011 at 22:55 Matzerath says:
This may end up being a good game, but definitely not in the way many of us were envisioning, and that early reports seemed to suggest. The mere presence of huge zombie-dude in custom straight-jacket pretty much dashes that dream.
17/05/2011 at 09:24 Ovno says:
He was in the first screen shots we got ages ago…
ffs this whole community seems to have become very negative over the past month or so, have we been invaded or are we just depressed?
16/05/2011 at 23:09 Saul says:
Get ready to be hit with the Australian ban stick, Dead Island. Or at least the ban Wheel of Fortune.
16/05/2011 at 23:55 JFS says:
If anybody really wants zombie survival, Dead State and Project Zomboid are probably going to be the horses to bet your money upon. This is shinier, but it also looks more mass market. Except for Australia. They don’t have said market there. Poor guys.
17/05/2011 at 06:01 sassy says:
Way to rub it in.
That’s why we should all have a pet American to gift us games that are banned/censored/overpriced. If my pet American is reading, thanks as always!
17/05/2011 at 18:30 JFS says:
:) I’m sorry. And I feel your pain, I’m German. While things are not as x-treme as down under, our pricing and censorship seems to aspire to become like its bigger brother and role model from Aussieland.
17/05/2011 at 01:02 Basilicus says:
Could it be that they’re pushing screenshots with guns to build hype among the considerably-sized FPS crowd? I mean, hype-building, that’s what releasing five screenshots is all about, right?
I’m surprised every shot doesn’t have eighty guns around the corners with marines made of guns shooting guns at the zombies of long-deceased muskets.
17/05/2011 at 06:03 sassy says:
You may have just described the premise for the best game ever!
17/05/2011 at 11:56 Matt says:
with marines made of guns shooting guns
Gunlimb perhaps?
17/05/2011 at 02:50 DeathRow says:
I’ll be having a hard time killing zombies with those bikini clad women around me.
And yes, that includes the zombie ones too.
17/05/2011 at 05:34 Torgen says:
Don’t be fooled.
She only loves you for your brains.
17/05/2011 at 17:20 Hensler says:
I didnt even realize Dead Island was 1st person till these screenshots.