Best Slayers in Dead Island 2: All characters & abilities ranked

Dead Island 2 has six different Slayers to choose from, but which one should you choose before hitting the streets of Hell-A? Here’s our ranking of the best Dead Island 2 characters based on their abilities.

After being touted as one of the most-anticipated games of 2023, Dead Island 2 is finally here. 12 years on from the original, the sequel takes players on a bloody story through the City of Angels, which can be enjoyed alone or in co-op.

Before hitting the streets of Hollywood, players must first choose from one of the playable characters, each with their own unique abilities. However, picking the character that maximizes your chances of survival can be difficult.

Here’s a breakdown of every Dead Island 2 Slayer, ranked from best to worse.

Best Dead Island 2 Slayers ranked list

There are six different Slayers to choose from in Dead Island 2, all of which come with skills and abilities that suit a different playstyle. Once you’ve made your choice, there is no way to switch mid-game, so making the right decision is key.

With this in mind, here are all of the Dead Island 2 Slayers ranked:

1. Ryan
2. Carla
3. Dani
4. Jacob
5. Bruno
6. Amy

Best Dead Island 2 Slayer

6. Amy

While still extremely fun in the right circumstances, Amy is arguably the worst Slayer in Dead Island 2. This is mostly because her abilities are ideal for situations that don’t occur too often in the game’s combat.

Divide and Conquer buffs her damage when attacking isolated zombies, but the undead mainly travel in larger groups. Meanwhile, Relief Pitcher increases her stamina after throwing a weapon, which is far from the most effective way to deal with enemies.

There’s no doubt that Amy is still a solid option if you play to her strengths, but it likely won’t be a style that too many players go for.

5. Bruno

Bruno is a high-risk, high-reward character in Dead Island 2, who again fits a very specific playstyle. His main strengths lie in getting behind zombies and dishing out big damage with heavy attacks.

Backstab buffs his damage output when attacking from behind, while Rapid Reprisal offers extra mobility when blocking or dodging, which both work very well in tandem.

However, despite the buffs, getting behind the zombies is no easy task, as they travel in crowds and can easily overwhelm you if you aren’t careful.

4. Jacob

If you like nothing better than pummeling the undead in quick succession, then Jacob is the man for you. His Feral skill gradually increases his damage with every attack, which is perfect for dealing with huge groups of flesh-eaters.

His second skill, Critical Gains, provides another handy boost when Jacob’s health gets too low, allowing him to quickly get out of a tight spot.

The only downside is that he has a naturally high health stat in Dead Island 2 to begin with, so this secondary skill comes into play less often, hence his position on this list.

3. Dani

For any beginners hopping into Dead Island 2, survival is the most important thing. Luckily, Dani is a pro at regaining health thanks to the Bloodlust innate skill.

This useful ability restores a large portion of health when slaying zombies one after another, which you’ll be doing constantly throughout the campaign. This means she’s always topping up her own health bar on the fly, keeping you in the fight for longer.

Throw in Thunderstruck, causing a small explosion with every heavy attack, and you’ve got one of the most fun and easy-to-use Slayers in Dead Island 2.

2. Carla

Much like Dani, Carla is another Dead Island 2 character that’s fairly simple to use, only the no-nonsense stunt rider revolves around damage instead of health. Mosh Pit makes her attacks more powerful when close to multiple enemies, essentially giving her a permanent damage buff.

She’s not completely attack orientated, though, as Dig Deep gives her extra toughness when her health is critical.

With these two abilities combined, Carla is the most well-rounded Slayer in Dead Island 2, and won’t steer you wrong when times are tough.

1. Ryan

Many of the Slayers on this list have built-in skills that work well together, but none more so than Ryan.

Seesaw regains health whenever an enemy is knocked to the floor, while Retaliation rewards blocks and dodges with a buff to the force stat, which in turn makes it easier to knock zombies over.

With these two abilities working together, Ryan becomes a one-man wrecking crew in a satisfying cycle of offense and defense. For this reason, we think Ryan is the best Slayer in Dead Island 2.

There you have it, that was our ranking of the best Slayers in Dead Island 2. Now you have all the information you need to pick the right character and hit the Sunset Strip.

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For more on Dead Island 2, be sure to check out our other guides:

How to get Goat Pen Master Keys in Dead Island 2 | How to get Dead Island 2 Twitch Drops: Fenrir’s Howl Shotgun | Is Dead Island 2 coming to Steam? | Is Dead Island 2 be crossplay? | All Dead Island 2 voice actors |  Dead Island 2 PC requirements

Image credit: Deep Silver Dambuster Studios