SDCC 2014: ‘Escape Dead Island’ Steals The Show!

One of my favorite titles out of SDCC was Escape Dead Island. This wasn’t my favorite necessarily because of graphic capability or even gameplay. Escape Dead Island features something that video games today sometimes forget about: Story.

To start, Escape Dead Island takes place six months after the initial events we’re all aware of. The island has been quarantined by the government, sparking a a plethora of conspiracy theories and discussions around the world. The game will feature new characters and a new protagonist, named Cliff. To say Cliff has daddy issues would be putting it lightly. In order to prove to his father he is worthy of inheriting the family company and money, Cliff takes a couple of friends out to sea to expose what the government is hiding on the original island. Luck would have it that Cliff and friends land on a neighboring island that also happens to be the source of the outbreak.

The majority of the demo I played took me through essential tools, stealth, and gameplay mechanics. In all, I probably spent about 15-20 minutes adjusting to the controls and the way the game is played. More on that later. After a series of weird occurrences, such as phones ringing in an abandoned factory as well as large shipping containers falling from the sky, the protagonist then wakes up where the story started, only to realize everything that was shown up to this point was a sort of dream.

The twist was great and reminiscent of LOST. After, I had a chance to ask whether or not this style of storytelling would continue, only to find out that these dreams and disorientation become much worse for poor Cliff.

As far as the gameplay goes, stealth is used much more than the other titles. The zombies in the game are attracted to noise, which forces the player to crouch around objects, create distractions, and move quickly form cover to cover. Some weapons and zombies make a return to this title, but they will not necessarily be back in the same capacity that we all know. There will also be new zombies unique to the game. Each gadget and weapon will feature upgrades that will allow Cliff to be more proficient down the line.

http://youtu.be/0vdi69wEAuM

Escape Dead Island is set to release this fall on Xbox 360, Playstation 3, and Windows!