Dead Island 2, similar to the past game, allows the player to choose from six Slayers to take on the world of Hell-A; this character comes with their own perks and stats that make them better or worse in certain situations. However, once again, these characters find themselves infected with the zombie virus, but they don't appear to be turning yet.
Through playing the main story, the player will unlock the ability to tap into this zombie virus, and through their fury, they will be able to tear zombies to shreds as if they were themselves undead. Players can improve how lethal these abilities are by equipping perks, especially Autophage perks.
What Are Slayer Perks
Before exploring the undead side of the Slayers, players should first consider which perks to begin with. The usual Slayer perks allow players to refine their character's build to make them more lethal in certain situations. As players advance throughout the story of Dead Island 2, they will be rewarded with new cards as well as being able to find them while freely exploring the rest of Hell-A.
These perks come with no setbacks, as the only goal of these skill cards are to give the player slight buffs to their combat efficiency, from increasing their attack speed to improving their toughness. While some of these skills are shared across Slayers, others are exclusive to only a few of them.
What Makes Autophage Perks Different
Autophage perks can be equipped just like skills are and are also unlocked gradually through the main story of the game. Players will need to think carefully about what skills they wish to have equipped, as these Autophage perks take the place of a Slayer's regular skill cards.
While normal perks give moderate boosts, Autophage cards are more likely to make a difference in combat. For example, cards like 'Volatile', as seen above, allow the Fury attacks of the player to cause explosions, though when this card is equipped, attacking in Fury Mode will drain the bar quicker. It is up to the player to decide what risks they wish to take, as some of these cards have even bigger risks to a player's gameplay.
The Tiers of Autophage
Besides these dangers, when a player equips more Autophage perks, they fall deeper to the side of the undead, and this in itself has some repercussions. There are three tiers to the Autophage meter that, similar to the skill cards, will both reward the player for becoming more like the undead while also taking a lot away from their humanity.
By tier three of the Autophage meter, players receive an incredible boost to their health and damage every time they kill a zombie while also increasing the duration of their Fury Mode. However, they no longer regenerate their health.
Players must experiment with all their skill cards to find the right balance that fits them, as well as debating what tier of Autophage is really worth it.
Dead Island 2 is out now for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.