Dead Island Riptide follows the immediate aftermath of Dead Island, with survivors escaping on a ship to foreign lands. In this installment, gamers gain access to more weapons with various mod additions as they fight for the surviving characters to find a haven amid the growing zombie outbreak. As the remaining survivors make it to the shores of Australia, they learn the plan of an elitist survivor, Frank Serpo, to harness and weaponize the Kuru zombie virus for malicious intent.