Dead Island 2’s second DLC takes you to a Californian music festival turned gore-splattered rave

Dambuster Studios has announced a release date for the second batch of story DLC coming to Dead Island 2.

Out April 17, the DLC centers around what’s left of the SoLA music festival, built upon ancient grounds by the event’s organizers, who, apparently aren’t a very savvy bunch. Here, LA’s beautiful bohemians ran afoul of a deadly virus sweeping through The Valley, to turn its inhabitants into ravenous zombies as a chthonic rhythm calls from beyond: the beat of the Autophage.

SoLA features one of its biggest and most open arenas yet, with the aesthetic of a summer festival and more than a few dashes of splatter-movie vibes. There’s an interconnected world behind the stages, where you can see the band members, slay said band members, and explore where they’ve stayed and played.

Along with the fields, stalls, stages, and VIP areas of the festival are new characters, and glittered festival goers with flowers in their hair who have turned a bit nasty. Instead of a crowded, ecstasy-fueled Splash House, BottleRock, or Coachella, this festival is rife with shambling hordes after your blood and brains who aren’t into euphoric hugs, pacifiers, glow sticks, or a spot near the main stage.

And it gets worse: the site of this festival is on ancient grounds where the veil between worlds grows thin, and a malevolent presence lurks. Fearsome up close and at range, this brand-new horror is another memorable monster in a game already filled with rotting enemies.

The DLC also brings new weapons, perks, and curveballs to use against the decomposing Clotter and the mutilated Whipper, both of which are Apex zombies. These two are just begging for you to use the new Sawblade Launcher and Ripper on them.

Here’s a list of the DLC’s features:

• New Story. A deadly virus sweeps through The Valley, turning its inhabitants into ravenous zombies as a chthonic rhythm calls from beyond: the beat of the Autophage. Lured to the festival by an enigmatic warning message, players must explore SoLA’s ruins and put a stop to this otherworldly menace.

• New Location. A visceral, gore-drenched music festival in the heart of LA (or HELL-A, as we like to call it) echoing to the sound of The Beat which threatens to turn the living into zombies, and with the potential to be heard across the world.

• New Enemies. Including the Whipper, a new apex variant enemy, driven mad with self-loathing by the Autophage. Their compulsion to self-mutilate has turned them into a horrific nightmare of disemboweled intestines, allowing them to lash out at range. And Clotter, another new unsettling apex zombie, can decompose into a revolting pile of gore, making it immune from damage in that form, and then reform elsewhere to continue the fight. Capable of firing a powerful jet of putrid blood from their heart.

• New Legendary Weapons. Such as the Ripper: a deadly fusion of a baseball bat and circular saw into a percussive machine of dismemberment. And the Sawblade Launcher: a heavy weapon firing rotary sawblades; the perfect weapon for ranged decapitation and dismemberment.

Dead Island 2 is available on PlayStation 4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and through the Epic Games Store for PC. The game will arive on Steam April 22.