Editorials
[Premature Evaluation] ‘Dead Island Riptide’
If you’re aching for more cooperative zombie pummeling action, the Dead Island series has you covered. The first game might not have lived up to many fans’ expectations after seeing that heart-wrenching trailer, but it was still an incredibly fun post-apocalyptic RPG. Riptide promises more of what we loved about the first game, along with tweaks to the multiplayer and new features like a new playable character, dynamic weather system, flooding, and Left 4 Dead style crescendo moments.
What do TJ and I think about the next entry in the Dead Island series? Read on and find out!
Adam: I enjoyed my time with the first game, perhaps more so than most gamers. Sure, it had an alarming number of bugs — most of which I was lucky enough not to have to endure — but its four-player co-op, weapon crafting, and big, open world drew me in and refused to let go. With Riptide, they have that same focus on a massive, explorable world, only this time it’s a little more unpredictable. The dynamic weather system, which can cause flooding in some areas, all sounds very exciting.
TJ: I also enjoyed the first game. I was able to look past a lot of its faults for the awesome time I had playing it. I did however, end up playing a large amount of the game by myself, and for that I was disappointed because I was really looking forward to trekking through with friends. I have a big fear that Riptide won’t receive the treatment it needs, and the plaquing bugs won’t get fixed.
Adam: I’m going to hope that Techland (and Deep Silver) know by now that they have a hit on their hands, so they’ll invest more into the vanquishing of bugs than they did last time. This series is strong enough to be the next big zombie franchise, and Deep Silver is growing fairly rapidly — spurred by the success of Dead island and their recent purchase of Saints Row dev Volition — so I expect them to throw more resources into it. The only thing that’s keeping me from getting really excited for it is they aren’t calling Riptide a sequel, so they’re undoubtedly working on the “real” sequel, with this being more of a way for fans to whet their appetites in the meantime.
TJ: Yes true, this title is also being released at a discounted price ($50). That always makes be a bit nervous, though Deadly Premonition put those worries to rest. I know you’re worried a bit about the DLC, have they announced that they will be making some for Riptide?
Adam: I wouldn’t say I’m worried, so much as it being a budget title lowers my expectations for it. As for the DLC, as far as I know nothing has been announced on that front outside of a special weapon and costume that serves as a pre-order bonus. I’m sure they’ll do more than that, and I sincerely hope they do a better job with it than they did with the original game.
TJ: One of my biggest issues with the first game was the characters. I mean, not the characters themselves, but the fact that I felt nothing for them. They were just there. Like robots we controlled. They never spoke to each other during the game, they never expanded on them as people. They seemed so lifeless. I’m seriously hoping that they change that this time around.
Adam: I could not agree more. Character development was an area where Dead Island really failed. I’ll even go a step further and say I hate the current cast. Every one of them is entirely forgettable, or extremely annoying (I’m looking at you, Sam B.). I don’t think they’ll do much to improve on this, seeing as the cast has returned for this outing, so I’m just going to hope that they move on with “Dead Island 2” and let us create our own characters. Let us choose who we want to be, what we look like, and what class or skills we possess. Unless they come up with some insanely likable characters, that’s really the only way to make me actually care about the character I control.
TJ: It was almost a slap in the face after seeing the reveal trailer for the original game. I thought, wow, there is going to be some rich character development in this game. I was thinking I would grow very attached, and possibly have them ripped away from me like my children in the night. But alas, nothing. For Dead Island 2 I would love to see a kick ass cast. But maybe they never wanted that at all. Let’s talk about something else, I’m depressed.
Adam: Okay, then let’s chat about the exciting new stuff. With Riptide, we’re getting a few new features, like a dynamic weather system — something I requested in my wish list a few months back — flooding, and Gears of War style Horde-Lite sections where you’re forced to survive against waves of zombies (and miscellaneous other creatures, I’m guessing).
TJ: YES! Remember in Dead Island, they made SUCH A BIG DEAL about this storm that was coming. The sky would grow darker and darker, and I was like yes, yes, a huge storm is coming and it’s going to be nuts! It never came. I can’t flippin’ wait for dynamic weather. I think more games need weather changes. It makes the game feel so much more real. Rather than sunshine all day. Or worse than that, looking up at a sky that is pretty much painted on. Not even a moving cloud. Lame.
Adam: Yeah, Dead Island was such a tease. I’m surprised more games don’t implement some sort of dynamic weather system. Instead, it’s either scripted — so it’s predictable — or it’s just not there. Or, I suppose in the case of Far Cry 3, it’s random, but it looks awful. Weather can make a game unpredictable, and that’s scary. As a whole, Dead Island isn’t particularly scary, so I think this could make its world feel a little more alive.
TJ: Back to the horde like sections, I personally can never get enough. I’m pretty sure you said you were burnt out on other games attempts at it and failing miserably. I think in the campaign that will really change things up, and it definitely fits. Especially when you’re forced to make tons of noise. I would like to try a horde mode in Riptide as maybe a DLC, but if it isn’t well thought out it would probably end up a catastrophe.
Adam: Yeah, I’d say I definitely have a problem with developers that implement (poorly, I might add) these wave survival modes just so they can slap that feature on the back of the box. Games that do it well, like Gears of War, Left 4 Dead, and Halo are fine. Even Alan Wake had an interesting take on it. Then there are games like The Walking Dead: Survival Instinct, that do a half-assed job of it. That’s never good. Looking at what they’ve shown of it so far, the wave survival sections in Riptide look mildly bare-bones. You have fences, mounted turrets, proximity mines — it looks fun, but it also looks like they’re experimenting with it here so they can flesh it out a bit more later on.
The Verdict:
Adam: Riptide will be fun. I’m sure of it. Will it be a contender for 2013 Game of the Year? Not a chance. Will I spend dozens of hours exploring its world and curb-stomping its denizens with a few friends? Most definitely.
TJ: I know I should be more excited for Riptide, but I’m not. All signs point towards “better than the original”, but I still find myself not as excited as I was for Dead Island. I’m sure they will improve on a lot of aspects of the game that annoyed me in the original. But I still find myself thinking, just give me the third game.
Have a question? Feel free to ever-so-gently toss Adam an email, or follow him on Twitter and Bloody Disgusting.
It’s been 75 years since The Thing From Another World first warned us to “watch the skies”, and filmgoers have done just that by showing up to multiple instances of extraterrestrial contact on the big screen. This makes sense, as a recent CBS news poll estimated that 63% of Americans believe in intelligent life on other planets, and the ongoing disclosure movement aims to raise that number with each passing day.
With Steven Spielberg’s Disclosure Day leaving many genre fans hungry for more alien footage (preferably of the spooky variety), today I’d like to share a list recommending six underrated alien invasion thrillers for your viewing pleasure. After all, regardless of whether or not you believe that we’re alone in the universe, it can be fun to dream about the worst-case scenario if our cosmic neighbors ever decide to visit.
For the purposes of this list, we’ll be focusing on lesser-known invasion stories rather than the popular extraterrestrials of franchises like Alien and Close Encounters of the Third (or even Fourth) Kind. That being said, don’t forget to comment below with your own alien favorites if you think we missed a particularly thrilling movie.
While it won’t be featured in this article, I’d highly recommend checking out Dean Alioto’s UFO Abduction/The McPherson Tape if you’re up for some ufology-inspired found footage thrills.
With that out of the way, onto the list!
6. The Arrival (1996)
Not to be confused with Denis Villeneuve’s Academy Award-winning Amy Adams vehicle about learning to communicate peacefully with extraterrestrial life, David Twohy’s The Arrival is a much more straightforward (but no less entertaining) genre romp where Charlie Sheen faces a global conspiracy involving hostile alien invaders.
It’s not exactly up there with Close Encounters or even Independence Day, but Twohy’s conspiratorial thriller plays out like an exceptionally fun episode of The X-Files that I’d recommend to sci-fi/horror fans who don’t mind a little bit of wonky CGI and 90s excess alongside their alien thrills.
5. Extraterrestrial (2014)
The Vicious Brothers made a name for themselves with the success of 2011’s Grave Encounters, but that was far from the Canadian duo’s only collaboration. And while it’s not exactly a fan favorite, I always point out 2014’s Extraterrestrial as one of their most underrated projects simply because I agree with the filmmakers’ opinion that there aren’t enough ‘cool alien abduction movies’ out there.
Admittedly, the majority of the picture functions like a run-of-the-mill creature feature with paper-thin characters and familiar horror tropes, but I’d argue that the cosmically-terrifying final act elevates the experience to new and memorable heights. The movie also boasts great performances by both Michael Ironside and Emily Perkins – a combination that more than makes up for the occasionally janky CGI.
4. Alien Raiders (2008)
Director Ben Rock has gone on record lamenting how his John-Carpenter-inspired creature feature was forcefully renamed from Supermarket to the painfully obvious Alien Raiders (a change which likely resulted in many potential viewers skipping out on the experience), but the new title doesn’t change the fact that this single-location thriller is something of a hidden gem.
Taking place entirely within a supermarket, Alien Raiders tells the story of an ensemble of customers and employees who are taken hostage by a group of armed men looking for something far more dangerous than an easy payout. I won’t get into details in order to avoid spoiling the experience, but I’d highly recommend this criminally underseen flick to fans of John Carpenter and the Resident Evil games.
3. Phoenix Forgotten (2017)
You’d think that a Ridley-Scott-produced retelling of one of the most infamous real-life UFO sightings of all time would have a bigger following, but I rarely see Justin Barber’s Found Footage period piece brought up during discussions about extraterrestrial-focused horror movies.
This is a huge shame, as Phoenix Forgotten is just as spooky as it is convincing, with this well-researched dive into the Phoenix Lights incident benefiting from surprisingly believable special effects as well as an appropriately horrific finale.
2. Communion (1989)
I wouldn’t blame you for disregarding Whitley Strieber’s controversial book about his alleged close encounter as sensationalist slop, but I’d argue that Phillipe Mora’s 1989 adaptation of these events is much better than the source material. After all, the movie works as a standalone piece of speculative fiction while also benefiting from an incredible performance by the one and only Christopher Walken!
Mora’s take on Communion may not be particularly scary, but the film is still an unforgettable character study regardless of whether or not the abduction really happened. Not only that, but the flick also paved the way for plenty of future sci-fi stories where the extraterrestrial invaders aren’t as evil as they initially appear.
1. Altered (2006)
Originally envisioned as a Sam Raimi-style horror-comedy titled Probed, Eduardo Sánchez (of The Blair Witch Project fame) eventually realized that it would be much more interesting to turn the film into a serious exploration of the emotional aftermath of a traumatic abduction incident.
That’s how we got Altered, a clever inversion of the standard abduction narrative that follows a group of troubled friends as they capture and experiment on an alien in order to enact revenge for their own abduction years prior.
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