Dead Island 2 tier list: Who are the best Slayers in the game?

All the Slayers in Dead Island 2 can be useful and fun to play as, but some are simply stronger than others. While the entire roster is useful in multiplayer, some definitely bring more pain than others if you’re looking to go solo. When considering who is the best, I thought about a few factors. I took their base stats, skills, and general survivability when playing alone into consideration. Unfortunately, some of these characters, even if I like them, aren’t fun to play solo.

It’s also important to play whichever Slayer you want in Dead Island 2. Having fun is far more important than simply picking whoever is the strongest. Several ethnicities and personalities are represented in the game, so if someone resonates with you better, by all means, pick them and have fun.

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Detailed Dead Island 2 Slayers tier list

S-Tier Slayers

• Ryan
• Dani

While Ryan and Dani are both in S-Tier, I’d put Ryan a little bit higher on the Dead Island 2 tier list. Personally, the latter is my favorite character for loadouts and personality, and the one whom I played through the course of my review of the game.

When considering who the best characters are, you want survivability first. Ryan is incredibly tanky, and he also heals when he knocks zombies down. Just give him a heavy weapon and a knockdown ability and watch him thrive.

Dani is in S-tier because she packs amazing AoE damage potential, despite being not as tough and having the worst health regeneration. She creates AoE damage thanks to Thunderstruck, and Bloodlust heals her when rapidly killing zombies in Dead Island 2. As long as you don’t jump into fire or electricity, she can be a devastating force of nature.

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A-Tier Slayers

• Jacob, Carla

Out of all the Slayers, the other I saw the most in Dead Island 2 was Jacob. All of my multiplayer experiences featured him. He has excellent peak health and decently high stamina and an excellent look and style as well.

His skills Feral and Critical Gains help him deal more damage. He’s not as tough as the S-Tier Slayers, but he’s got damage like nobody else. If you like aggressive gameplay, he’s your man.

There's also Carla, who has the highest resilience in the game. She combines that with skills that increase her toughness at critical health, and also the damage she does near multiple zombies.

The only real downside she has is the worst critical damage out of everyone in this game. You’re trading that for plenty of sustainability though, and that’s perfectly fine.

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B-Tier Slayer

• Bruno

For players that like stealthy Slayers in Dead Island 2, Bruno is definitely going to be your go-to. He’s built for sneaking around and slaying zombies without being seen. There is one major downside though - he has the lowest health and one of the lowest toughness stats.

When faced with swarms of zombies, Apex or otherwise, Bruno is going to really be challenged. It’s not going to be enjoyable to deal with these kinds of situations. He’s more for experienced players, not a beginner’s choice in solo play.

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C-Tier Slayer

• Amy

I want it to be clear that I love Amy as a character. The Paralympian is a great archetype for a zombie-survival game, but her having only one point in toughness really hurts her overall playability. She’s the fastest, most agile of all the Slayers in Dead Island 2. She’s like Bruno in that she wants to take zombies down without being caught.

She has poor damage and low health, which can make your overall gameplay experience frustrating in a solo encounter. In multiplayer? I really think Amy can shine. It’s difficult for her to get zombies alone to really take advantage of her benefits, though. The game can be long, and playing as solo Amy can feel even longer.

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All the Slayers in Dead Island 2 are fun, without a doubt. They all have skills that are worth considering, and in multiplayer, everyone has a chance to stand out. For solo experiences, some are just better than others.