Highlights
- Dead Island 2's first story expansion, called Haus, is set to release towards the end of the year and is expected to be a game-changer with new factions and locations.
- Haus expansion will focus on the human element of the post-apocalyptic world, with the introduction of an eccentric billionaire and a techno death cult as major antagonistic roles.
- Players will face their first human enemies in Dead Island 2, requiring a different approach to combat. The expansion may involve infiltrating the faction's base, a neon maze with unpredictable rooms, evoking themes similar to BioShock's Rapture.
The post-launch life of Dead Island 2 is about to be fleshed out with the arrival of its first story expansion, which is set to release towards the end of the year. This first expansion is called Haus, with a follow-up story DLC named SOLA Festival being expected to launch in 2024.
While the finer details of Dead Island 2's Haus expansion are still unconfirmed, fans already have a good overview of what they can expect from the DLC. The assumptions that can be made about Haus already paint the expansion as an utter game-changer for Dead Island 2, with its factions and locations offering gameplay that seems to be a massive departure from the base story of the zombie slasher.
Dead Island 2's Haus Expansion: A Deadly and Deranged Faction
It is clear that Dead Island 2's Haus expansion will have a dedicated focus on the human element of the game's post-apocalyptic world, with the infected perhaps taking a backseat compared to their role in the main story. From the brief official description of Haus, it is confirmed that players will come into contact with an eccentric billionaire who made extensive survival preparations long before the world fell into infected turmoil, with this currently unnamed figure potentially being a tentative ally throughout Haus' narrative.
This alliance can be assumed thanks to the additional presence of a "techno death cult" in Haus, with this being a brand-new faction that will take center stage within the DLC. The description lets fans know that this cult is defined by debauchery and gore, setting the stage for a ruthless hostile group that will play a large antagonistic role in Dead Island 2's first expansion. These themes fit well with the bombastic humor and gameplay of Dead Island 2's base experience, but Haus is still set to offer a range of unique twists to the title.
Interestingly, Haus' faction will be the first human enemies that Dead Island 2 portrays, completely changing how players will have to approach combat compared to standard infected enemies. This faction will likely descend upon the survivors of Dead Island 2, with the name of the expansion perhaps being a hint as to the lengths the player will go to put an end to their terror and destruction.
With Haus being the German word for house, the DLC could easily see the player eventually having to infiltrate the lair of the faction. From the description of the group, it can be expected that their base of operations will be a neon maze with blaring music, with the player having to navigate between unpredictable rooms to snuff out the faction once and for all. The focus on debauchery and gore within the gang evokes themes similar to BioShock's Rapture within their base, giving an idea of what kind of themes and gameplay sequences players can expect to see.
The hype around Dead Island 2's Haus DLC is only growing as players exhaust the main story and as its release date draws closer, with more definite details for the expansion likely coming in the near future. Despite the relative mystery surrounding the DLC, the name of the expansion and its brief accompanying description does excellently set up its ambitious new faction and the kinds of locations that they will take the player.
Dead Island 2 is out now on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
