Dead Island
=== Setting ===
Dead Island takes place in July 2006 on the fictional island of Banoi, a lush, tropical resort destination located off the east coast of Papua New Guinea, just north of Australia. In recent years Banoi was able to modernize thanks to its tourism industry, but many areas of the island are still wild, primitive and untouched by the modern world. Even though its capital Moresby was founded by Australian settlers in 1895, many of the island's interior areas deep in the jungle have still never been seen by western eyes.
Banoi is known internationally as the location of the popular Royal Palms Resort, a luxurious five-star hotel resort which often attracts high-profile celebrities and throws wild dance parties. Banoi also hosts a Maximum Security Prison off the coast on a smaller island. It was designed as a privately-owned maximum security facility for international terrorists and criminals.
The island has a modern police force and its own military called the Banoi Island Defense Force (B.I.D.F.) in charge of defending and providing security to Banoi.
=== Main campaign ===
The night after a high-profile party, the four main characters (hereafter referred to as "the survivors"); rapper Sam B., hotel receptionist and spy for the Chinese government Xian Mei, former football-star Logan Carter, and ex police officer Purna—are awakened by a voice over the emergency intercom system directing them to evacuate the hotel. They discover that the majority of the population have been overcome by a contagious and infectious plague, turning them into psychopathic, flesh-eating creatures. Briefly overcome by one of the infected, they are rescued by lifeguard John Sinamoi. The four survivors discover that they are apparently immune from infection, and with "The Voice" out of contact, the survivors are tasked by Sinamoi to try to find supplies and contact the outside world. As it becomes obvious that the resort lacks enough supplies to survive for long, Sinamoi instead has them travel to the city of Moresby to find help. The survivors take along Jin, the daughter of the bitten mechanic who modifies an armored car they use to break out of the resort.
Upon arriving in Moresby, after taking down a new special infected known as the Ram, the survivors aid a holdout at a barricaded church. Directed first to the wealthier sections of town, they ultimately raid a supermarket under the control of "Raskol" gangs, then rescue Jin after she tries to offer supplies to another Raskol faction in the abandoned police station, angering Sam B. Upon their return to the resort, the survivors make contact with "The Voice"; he identifies himself as Colonel Ryder White, a Banoi Island Defense Force (BIDF) commander, currently trapped in a high-security prison located on a remote island, only accessible through the jungle. He states that due to the characters' immunity, he may be able to create a cure / vaccine, and in turn save his bitten wife. White directs the survivors into the jungles of Banoi having them find a smuggler named Mowen who can reach the prison.
Mowen stonewalls the survivors on the prison, but does take them to a laboratory studying the plague. The researchers there determine the zombie infection is a mutation of Kuru that originated from the indigenous population. At their behest, the survivors collect a tissue sample from a mummy to better examine the pre-mutation form of Kuru and rescue a native woman, Yerema, who was about to be sacrificed by her tribe.
Mowen finally agrees to take the survivors to the prison. After the survivors complete the preparations he and Jin request, they hurry back to the lab when The Voice reports something has gone wrong; they find the zombies the scientists were studying were accidentally released, with only Yerema still alive. Rescuing Yerema and retrieving what appears to be a prototype vaccine, the survivors proceed to the prison island.
The survivors initially help the surviving prisoners to arm themselves in exchange for reaching White, but when White finally contacts them again he urges them to abandon the prisoners and proceed to him. The prisoners' holdout eventually falls, and Mowen dies helping Jin and Yerema escape the zombies. As the survivors are about to reach White, however, they are hit with a knockout gas inside their elevator. Awoken by a technology-savvy prisoner named Kevin, they find that White has stolen the vaccine and are warned that, with it in his possession, he intends to flee with his wife and call in a nuclear strike to purge the island.
Racing to the roof helipad, the survivors find themselves held by White at gunpoint. Jin, disgusted by White's plan, releases White's now-zombified wife from her restraints, and she bites Colonel White on the wrist. White kills his zombified wife and shoots Jin dead, then injects himself with the vaccine, only for it to accelerate and amplify his own mutation. The survivors kill White, then finally escape Banoi with his helicopter as Kevin intones that things will never be the same.
=== Ryder White's campaign ===
Two weeks prior to the outbreak, Ryder White, a Colonel in the Australian Army, is interviewed by a commanding officer; he is presented with targets and asked if he would kill without question. Agreeing to all including, after some hesitation, his wife Emily. Two people viewing the interview note this and have him reassigned to Banoi, where Emily also works. They speculate that "he won't push the button because of her."
Upon the zombie outbreak, White is overseeing the bombing of bridges to slow the infection, but his helicopter crashes in Moresby when the co-pilot turns. Alerted that the main bridge in Moresby remains intact, he proceeds to recover the demolition charges from the Raskols and carry out the demolition himself. He is contacted by Emily, who has taken shelter inside the prison with the help of a man known as Kevin.
Upon extraction from Moresby, Ryder hears from Emily that she has been bitten by one of her zombified patients. Disregarding her pleas to leave her, he has himself dropped off at the prison, intent of saving his wife before ordering a nuclear strike to purge the island. By the time Ryder arrives Emily has almost turned. Kevin then contacts Ryder over the intercom, offering to help him as well. When they meet, however, Ryder identifies Kevin as Charon, a notorious terrorist-affiliated hacker. However, with no other options, he follows Charon's instructions to restore emergency power and find antibiotics for Emily, fighting off armed escaped prisoners. Charon also tells Ryder he has survivors en route with an antidote.
After administering the antibiotic to Emily, Charon notifies him that a group of prisoners are approaching in reprisal for the ones that Ryder killed in order to obtain the Tetracycline. With the prisoners dead, Ryder travels to the control room in Block C and meets up with Charon. As Ryder approaches Charon, he discovers that Charon was behind the deaths of the scientists, including Dr. West, at the Laboratory but hides his suspicion. He is then instructed to clear the zombies from the shower room in Block C for when the Heroes arrive. With the shower room cleared, Ryder uses the sewers in order to return to the control room. While eavesdropping on Charon's conversation with the group(the main characters), he discovers that Charon has been posing as him (The Voice). Out of rage, Ryder threatens to kill Charon for endangering Emily and making him betray his country. Charon then assures him that the group have the 'antidote' and that the Heroes won't trust either Ryder or Charon if it is revealed that they were never actually speaking to Ryder. Charon then instructs Ryder to store knockout gas above the elevator lift that the group will be using in order to steal the antidote from them to avoid having to make any negotiations. After placing the gas and returning to the control room, Charon and Ryder watch the Heroes pass out from the gas. Before leaving to retrieve the gas, Ryder destroys the control rooms computer in order to prevent Charon from pulling off any more tricks. He then locks Charon in the control room and tells him that he's going to get the antidote for Emily. Charon then replies to Ryder stating that the antidote would only work on people that were only in the early stages of Infection while Emily was already past the first stages. Shaken by his words, Ryder runs off to get back to Emily in the intensive care unit. With Ryder gone, Charon reveals that he had a hidden backup key card and taunts him stating that Ryder should have killed him when he had the chance.
Afraid of being too late, Ryder collects the antidote from the group and frantically fights through countless waves of Zombies to get back to Emily. Upon finding Emily, Ryder finds she has already become an Infected. Ryder then vows to make a complete antidote out of the serum. He brings Emily to the roof where he discovers that Charon has turned the group against him. Jin then releases Emily to attack Ryder, forcing him to kill her and Jin in retaliation. He then injects himself with the antidote only to discover that the antidote was actually an enhanced version of the plague that transforms him into a powerful Special Infected. He is then killed by the group. The survivors then flee to safety using Ryder's helicopter. It is revealed that Charon plans on using Yerema as Dr. West called her, "a walking timebomb" to spread the plague, as he shows a smirk on his face.
=== Characters ===
Sam B (voiced by Phil LaMarr), a one-hit wonder rap star from New Orleans. He was booked by the Royal Palms Resort to perform his well-known song "Who Do You Voodoo" at a high-profile hotel party. He gladly took the chance to play this gig. Once strong, self-confident and proud, Sam B has had a troubled past and a history of drug and alcohol abuse, and his private life became a haze of fake friends and bad advisers. He believed his gig at Banoi was his last chance to get back on top. He also has a specialty of blunt weapons which became very useful during the plague.
Xian Mei (voiced by Kim Mai Guest), a desk clerk at the Royal Palms Resort. Born and raised by a police commander killed in the line of duty in China, she secretly works as a spy for the Chinese Government. To conceal her covert activities, Xian performs menial tasks for the hotel (as seen in the opening where she helps a sick guest). It is assumed that she does well at keeping her espionage a secret, as all refer to her as the desk clerk. However, during the Jin rescue scene Purna claims that she knows Xian's true nature, and several collectibles show that employees knew she was no ordinary employee. She also has a specialty of blade weapons which became very useful during the plague.
Logan Carter (voiced by Troy Baker), a former American football star, spoiled by life and successful in every possible way. Unfortunately, his own ego finally put an end to his bright future. Taking part in a reckless street race with tragic consequences, Logan not only killed a young woman - his unfortunate passenger - but also fractured his knee, putting an end to his sports career. His fall from stardom inevitably followed and he plunged swiftly into a life of bitterness and despair. He ended up letting a blood drive use his name, and in return received an all-expenses-paid trip to Banoi. He also has a specialty of throw weapons which became very useful during the plague.
Purna (voiced by Peta Johnson), an Australian Aboriginal former officer of the New South Wales Police Force, referred to by the game as the "Sydney Police department." After losing her career when she shot and wounded a child molester (the novelization contradicts this by stating that she succeeded in killing him) who could not be prosecuted due to his wealth and connections, Purna then turned to working as a bodyguard for VIPs in dangerous places all over the world. She is mostly hired for her looks (not just her skills), as wealthy men do not mind showing up to parties with an attractive woman like her on their arm. Purna states she wishes to finish off the child molester after leaving Banoi.
Ryder White (voiced by Joe Hanna), a colonel with the Australian Defense Force who communicates with the hero in Chaos Overture, providing directions for escape. Ryder has also been in contact with the survivors at the Pool House, advising they evacuate to the Lifeguard Tower. When the hero is able to communicate with Ryder once more at the hotel with Dominic, it is revealed that he is on the prison island and is dealing with his injured wife, Emily White. In the "Ryder White Campaign", it is later revealed that Ryder was not the voice from the main game, instead Charon, also known as Kevin, has been posing as him and was the true villain of the game, not Ryder.
violence