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There are a lot of different tactics for dealing with the zombie hordes in Dead Island 2. Thanks to how open-ended the game keeps things when exploring the undead-infested streets of “Hell-A,” players are able to lean into their favorite mechanics in order to combat the problems that Dead Island 2 throws their way. While keeping an inventory full of powerful weapons can sometimes be all you need to cut through a group of zombies, curveballs are a powerful tool that shouldn’t go forgotten about.
Introduced at the end of Dead Island 2‘s tutorial, curveballs are essential for surviving to get to the end of the game. Here’s everything you need to know about what curveballs do and how to use them as well as a full list of every curveball in Dead Island 2.
More Dead Island 2 guides:
| 5 Most Useful Weapons to Get Early | Character Attributes Explained | How to Play Co-Op | Curtis’ Garage Key Location | Curtis’ Safe Key Location | How to Block Incoming Attacks |
Curveballs Explained
Put as simply as possible, curveballs are throwable items that can be used infinitely in Dead Island 2. While many of them are weapons such as the Molotov Cocktail and Shuriken, others can be used for changing zombie behavior or making them more susceptible to status effects such as with the Meat Bait and Chem Bomb respectively.
Unlike other items in the game, curveballs have unlimited uses, however, after using one, you’ll need to wait for its cooldown to complete before using them again. You’ll see the cooldown timer represented in the bottom left corner of the screen by a circle that’s making its way around the icon for the curveball that you just used.
To throw a curveball, simply hit RB on Xbox controllers or R1 on PlayStation 4 and 5 controllers. To switch between your two equipped curveballs, hit right on the D-pad. While there are more than two curveballs in the game, you’ll only be able to have two equipped at a time. To equip a curveball, open your inventory and then tab over to the curveball section. Slot in your preferred throwables into the two available slots at the top of the screen.
All Curveballs
There are 11 curveballs in total:
- Bait Bomb: an explosive that lures zombies toward it before exploding to damage them
- Caustic-X Bomb: an explosive that deals caustic damage after exploding
- Chem Bomb: puts out fires that are on the ground and inflicts the traumatized and soggy status condition on zombies that are hit by it
- Electric Star: a shuriken that deals shock damage after making impact
- Flashbang: a flashbang grenade that inflicts the traumatized status effect and allows some zombies to be hit with counterattacks
- Meat Bait: a non-damage dealing throwable that attracts all zombies nearby to the affected area
- Military Grenade: a standard explosive
- Molotov Cocktail: a throwable that spreads fire on an affected area burning zombies and dealing fire damage
- Nail Bomb: an explosive that deals bleed damage
- Pipe Bomb: an explosive that detonates a few seconds after being thrown
- Shuriken: three throwing stars thrown in a wide angle that deals regular damage
