Summary
Dead Island 2has finally been released and players have been eagerly getting stuck into some zombie killing. Like pastDead Islandtitles, there are multiple characters for players to take on in this epic new adventure as they attempt to survive in Hell-A.
While these characters all come with their own hilarious lines both in and out of zombie killing it’s important for players to consider what these characters are good for before they make their final choice. In this article, the players will be able to see which of these six Slayers has the highest chance of surviving in theZombie Apocalypseas well as seeing which character might be the best fit for them.
Updated on July 30, 2025, by Megan Smith:The Best Slayer in Dead Island 2 is completely subjective to the sort of play style a player likes to use. However, it cannot be denied that some of the Dead Island 2 Slayers are better than others when it’s time to consider how likely they are to survive. Although the game was originally released in 2023, the zombie-killing title has only expanded since then with the most recent DLC, Haus. This added more content to the game through an entirely new area to explore. Players may feel now is the right time to start Dead Island 2 as well as its DLC, and therefore, Dead Island 2’s best slayer can be found below.
6Bruno
A Fast Heavy Hitter
Many of the other Slayers available inDead Island 2tend to lean towards chaos as they benefit more from getting stuck into hoard combat. Players who are expecting to use Bruno may find themselvessneaking arounda lot more often, especially if they are considering using Bruno while playing solo. All Slayers come with two of their own Innate Skills that will benefit them in Hell-A, and for Bruno, these cards focus on being quick and lethal.
With a skill like Backstab players will want to always be behind their opponent as Bruno gets a moderate damage boost when attacking zombies from behind. This method becomes a lot easier when playing in co-op. His other skill is Rapid Reprisal, which increases his agility and heavy attack charges of Bruno when he avoids an attack with a block or dodge.
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5Amy
A Ranged & Focused Attacker
While Bruno attacks quickly up close, Amy’s skills steer her toward ranged combat. With Amy having the lowest toughness of the six Slayers it’s of no surprise that players will want to use her from a distance. The perk Relief Pitcher benefits this greatly as she will regain stamina when hitting zombies from a distance with a weapon throw. She can then quickly swap weapons to continue attacking.
Amy is for players who are alwayslooking for opportunities. That’s why her second skill of Divide and Conquer gives her a minor damage boost when attacking an isolated zombie. This allows her to deal even more damage when she finds zombies alone, though she will begin to struggle in larger hoards. Thankfully, her high agility stat means she can easily escape the danger if she becomes overrun.
4Carla
Survivalbility In Crowds
For players looking for a character that can withstand alot of the elemental damagethat players will be taking around Hell-A while still standing then Carla is the option to go for. While she struggles to deal any sort of critical damage, she still packs a mean hit to deal with the zombie hoards. Unlike Amy, who benefits from getting zombies alone, Carla’s card of Mosh Pit allows her to have a minor damage boost when she is close to multiple zombies at once. This allows her to quickly dispatch groups of enemies.
Meanwhile, her second innate skill of Dig Deep means that players may risk keeping her at low health during these fights as she’ll gain a moderate toughness boost that allows her to keep attacking with a higher defense stat.
3Jacob
Slayer With The Most Health
As seen on the front cover ofDead Island 2, Jacob is arguably one of the most favored options in the game. His innate skills and stats may reveal why this is the case. Firstly, Jacob has the highest peak health, and therefore he may be a great option for a player who is new to theDead Islandfranchise. However, he also has the lowest resilience. Therefore, players have to be mindful of the elemental damage they take.
Jacob is all about hitting fast with the Feral skill. Whenhitting a zombie in quick succession, the player will receive a minor damage boost. Combining this with Critical Gains means when his stamina starts to get low, Jacob is more likely to do critical hits as well as a boost to this damage and a boost to regain his stamina.
2Dani
Best Melee User
While Jacob has skills that allow his stamina to regenerate quickly, players don’t have to worry about that with Dani as she has one of the highest stamina stats out of all the Slayers. This makes her anincredible melee characteras her innate skills only work towards making her a ruthless weapon. Thunderstruck is by far one of the most violent skills available on Slayers as Dani’s heavy attacks trigger an explosion on impact that easily knocks down zombies.
Combining this with her second skill of Bloodlust means that Dani is another candidate who does great in hordes as she will regain health when killing multiple zombies quickly. The only issue with Dani is that she has the worst healthy recovery, and therefore she will be depending on her skills as well as medkits to keep her alive in battle.
1Ryan
The Toughest Slayer Of All
By far one of the greatest options of Slayers that is more than likely to keep a player alive is the final choice of Ryan, who could easily be seen as the brute of the game. With the greatest toughness stat, Ryan is less likely to be taken down by the average zombie and has a moderate resilience stat to also block elemental damage.
Ryan isonly made strongerby his innate skills as Retaliation means Ryan will gain a moderate force boost after blocking or dodging an attack to easily push down an enemy. Once knocking them down, this will set off his second skill of Seesaw, where Ryan will regain health once pushing over a zombie.
