Games like Dead Island: 9 zombie games with close combat
If you like Dead Island, start with Dead Island: Riptide, Dead Island 2, and Dying Light. Riptide continues the first game, Dead Island 2 is the direct sequel, and Dying Light comes from the same studio. This list adds more zombie games with close combat, weapon upgrades, and open areas. Each entry says what you do and how close the game is to Dead Island.
What to look for after Dead Island
Techland released Dead Island in 2011. You survive a zombie outbreak on Banoi, a tropical island, with four playable characters. Three parts make it special:
- Melee first. Guns exist, but most fights are close melee fights.
- Weapon upgrades. You repair, upgrade, and modify weapons at workbenches. Blueprints add effects such as fire, poison, or electricity.
- Open areas with friends. You explore a large open world alone or in 4-player co-op.
Each entry ends with a short note on how close it is to Dead Island. Use the table at the end to compare view, weapons, and co-op.
Route 48 (our game)
Full disclosure: we made Route 48, so we put it first.
Route 48 is a first-person game where you fight with guns. You drive into a procedurally generated open world and search abandoned buildings for weapons and ammunition. Then you fight zombies and armed hostile survivors. It is single-player only and in Early Access, so it suits players who liked the gunfights and played Dead Island alone.
Dying Light
Developer: Techland. Released: 2015. Players: Single-player or online co-op for up to 4 players.
Techland made Dying Light after Dead Island, and the two games share a lot. You fight in first person, you craft weapons, and you can play the story in 4-player co-op.
The setting is Harran, an open city in quarantine. Dying Light adds two big systems. Parkour lets you climb buildings and reach remote areas. A day and night cycle changes the zombies: they are slow in the day and very aggressive at night.
How close is it? Very close. Choose it first if you want the same combat with more freedom to move.
Dead Island 2
Developer: Dambuster Studios. Released: 2023 (Steam: 2024). Players: Single-player or online co-op.
The direct sequel moves the outbreak to Los Angeles, about 15 years after the first game. You play one of six Slayers, who are infected but also immune.
First-person melee is again the main focus. A detailed system creates wounds on each zombie that match the weapon that you use. You also have firearms and explosives. Los Angeles is split into ten open zones, so you explore in large areas, not in one seamless world.
How close is it? Very close. It is the natural next step after the first game.
Dead Island: Riptide Definitive Edition
Developer: Techland. Released: 2013 (Definitive Edition: 2016). Players: Single-player or online co-op for up to 4 players.
Riptide is a standalone expansion that continues the story of the Dead Island outbreak. It keeps the first-person melee combat and the story-based 4-player co-op of the first game.
How close is it? The closest of all. Play it if you finished Dead Island and want more of the same.
Dying Light: The Beast
Developer: Techland. Released: 2025. Players: Single-player or online co-op.
You play Kyle Crane from the first Dying Light, in a large area of wilderness called Castor Woods. The combat is physical first-person melee, with many weapons and modifiers.
Crane also has beast powers, and you can switch to a beast mode in fights. You can drive an off-road vehicle through hordes. At night, the infected become far more dangerous.
How close is it? Close. It has the same melee focus, plus parkour and the beast mode. Read our list of games like Dying Light for more games of this type.
Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster
Developer: Capcom. Released: 2024. Players: Single-player.
This is a full graphics remake of the first Dead Rising, from 2006. You play Frank West, a photojournalist, in a mall full of zombies in Willamette, Colorado. Help arrives in 72 hours, and you decide how to use that time.
Almost anything is a weapon, from guns and baseball bats to everyday objects. You also rescue survivors and fight dangerous human psychopaths.
How close is it? Medium. It is a third-person game in one large mall, but it shares the Dead Island love for creative melee.
Dead Rising 3
Developer: Capcom Vancouver. Released: 2013 (PC: 2014). Players: Single-player or two-player co-op.
You play Nick Ramos, a mechanic, in Los Perdidos, an open city full of zombies. You must escape before a military strike destroys the city.
The best part is the combo system. You combine items to make strange weapons, and you combine vehicles too. One example from the game joins a motorcycle and a steamroller.
How close is it? Medium. It is third person, but the open city and the weapon combos suit Dead Island fans.
World War Z: Aftermath
Developer: Saber Interactive. Released: 2019 (Aftermath edition: 2021). Players: Solo with AI teammates, or online co-op for up to 4 players.
This is a co-op shooter where swarms of hundreds of zombies climb over each other to reach you. You pick one of eight classes, such as Medic or Slasher, and level it up.
The game is third person by default. The Aftermath edition adds a first-person mode, so you can play it from the same view as Dead Island.
How close is it? Loose. It is a mission-based shooter, not an open world. Choose it if the co-op was your favorite part of Dead Island.
Zombie Army 4: Dead War
Developer: Rebellion. Released: 2020 (Steam: 2021). Players: Solo or online co-op for up to 4 players.
From the makers of the Sniper Elite games, this is a third-person shooter set in an alternate 1940s Europe. You fight occult zombie armies with rifles. An X-ray kill camera shows what your bullets do, in slow motion.
When zombies get close, you use melee takedowns. You also upgrade your guns at workbenches with fire, lightning, and other effects.
How close is it? Loose. Guns come first, but the workbench upgrades will feel familiar. Reviews note that there are no AI teammates, so solo play is harder.
Quick comparison
| Game | View | Main weapons | Co-op |
|---|---|---|---|
| Route 48 | First person | Guns | No |
| Dying Light | First person | Melee and crafted weapons | Up to 4 |
| Dead Island 2 | First person | Melee, then guns | Yes |
| Dead Island: Riptide | First person | Melee | Up to 4 |
| Dying Light: The Beast | First person | Melee and beast mode | Yes |
| Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster | Third person | Anything in the mall | No |
| Dead Rising 3 | Third person | Combo weapons | Two players |
| World War Z: Aftermath | Third or first person | Guns | Up to 4 |
| Zombie Army 4: Dead War | Third person | Guns, upgraded | Up to 4 |
How we picked these games
We looked for zombie games with close combat, weapon upgrades, and open or semi-open areas. We put first-person games first, because that view is a big part of Dead Island. We checked the developer, release date, and player modes for each game on Steam.
Which one should you play first?
- Play Dead Island: Riptide if you want more of the original game.
- Play Dying Light if you want the same combat with parkour and dangerous nights.
- Play Dead Island 2 if you want the most detailed melee combat.
- Play Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster or Dead Rising 3 if you like strange weapons.
- Play World War Z: Aftermath or Zombie Army 4 if you mostly played with friends.
- Play Route 48 if you want first-person gunfights, a car to maintain, and a new world each game.
For a wider look at large maps, read our list of the best open-world zombie games. If you want to play alone, see the best single-player zombie shooters.