Remember the Psychopaths from Dead Rising 3 and how they were the anti-thesis to survivors, acting for their own nefarious purposes? Unfortunately, the bosses in Dead Island 2 aren’t that. They’re still pretty formidable, so you shouldn’t underestimate them. All of them are Apex Zombies, found in the game’s world among the regular zombies, but there are a few differences.
Let’s go over each boss and how to slay them.
How to Defeat Becki the Bride
Found in Halipern Hotel, Becki the Bridge is essentially a Crusher Zombie. She’s strong and tanky, throwing heavy punches and ground slams that knock players off their feet. The most effective strategy is circling and attacking, draining her stamina. When her stamina is depleted, she’ll drop to one knee, letting you inflict more damage. Use a fast weapon for quick strikes and switch to a heavy weapon when she’s on the ground.
How to Defeat Alesis Hernandez
While trying to save Michael, you’ll run into this Slobber. Avoid attacking from the front since Alesis will stand in one place and shoot a stream of caustic bile. Explosives and throwing weapons also help. After dealing enough damage, other zombies will show up. If you’re careful enough, you can set off various pyrotechnics and even the spider attraction to deal damage to them and Alesis. They will overwhelm you if ignored, so clear them out. Alesis should be defeated before you know it.
How to Defeat Nikki Gutte
Nikki falls into the Screamer archetype of Apex Zombies. One scream allows her to shatter glass and momentarily stun players if they’re too close, but she can also use to attract other zombies to your position. Try setting off some flame lamps nearby. These will detonate and damage enemies (and you, if you’re not careful) while leaving a trail of flames.
Some water-carrying zombies can also wander into the fight, so electrify any puddles they leave for even more environmental hazards. Otherwise, use curveballs to deal damage from a distance, attack whenever possible to reduce Nikki’s stamina (which also goes down every time she screams) and then go wild when she’s stunned.
How to Defeat Dillon
Dillon looks like a Crusher type at first until a tanker explodes and sets his arms on fire. As such, he’ll slowly walk towards you, making it easy to get behind but don’t be fooled. Dillon’s main tactic is a ground slam that creates a flaming shockwave. Keep your distance and jump when possible, plinking away with any firearms you may have.
Other zombies will join the fray and run through the lingering fire, so ensure you deal with them before they get too close. Keep the pressure on Dillon – he’ll be down before you know it.
How to Defeat Butcho the Clown
Butcho, if the name wasn’t a clue, is a Butcher. These double-arm-bladed zombies are agile and feed on corpses when their health drops. You’ll need to be quicker fighting Butcho than the other bosses – after he slashes a few times, strike and then back off. Be careful when circling behind since he can turn quickly and react.
Skills that can momentarily stun Butcho are also helpful, as are curveballs like Shurikens that you can quickly throw out. When he loses some health, Butcho will scurry to feed on a corpse and recover. Follow and interrupt him, ideally with a gun – one or two shots should be enough. Once interrupted, Butcho will resume the fight.
It may seem like a good idea to keep fighting with guns, but he can block your shots with his blade arms. Either time shots carefully or stick to melee weapons. Some other zombies may join the fray, but they won’t be as plentiful as in other fights, so don’t worry.
How to Defeat Specimen Noah
Though he seems innocuous at first, Noah is a Mutator. Upon escaping his bindings, he’ll mutate, splitting his chest open and gaining a massive claw arm. Be careful not to get too close, or Noah will grab you (though you can escape with the on-screen button prompts). Detonate any explosive barrels nearby to damage Noah and other zombies wandering in.
Unleash with any firearms you have – shotguns are particularly effective. When Noah is stunned, you can use Fury Mode to unleash more damage, though it can also serve as a decent survival tool if you’re overwhelmed. Either way, you should have him dead to rights quickly.
How to Defeat the Reubanator
The final boss of Dead Island 2’s campaign is…another Mutator. Sort of. The Reubanator launches projectiles from its chest, so side-step at the right moment. Explosive curveballs and firearms will do wonders here, so if you’ve been saving up ammo, now’s the time to unload.
Use the pillars as cover to avoid incoming projectiles, taking potshots whenever possible. Of course, other zombies will quickly jump in – use an assault rifle or shotgun to kill the Hazmat Zombies. If you’re low on health, they’ll drop Medkits, which is helpful.
Be especially careful of the Screamers – take them out as quickly as possible, lest they cause more havoc. Flame jets also start shooting out from different corners of the room, so avoid them. More zombie types will join the fray as the room heats up. Clear them out while avoiding damage from the Reubanator, and then finish him to complete the game.
Dead Island 2 is available on Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5 and PC. Check out our review here and for more tips and tricks, head here.