It’s no secret thatDead Island 2is in development hell; in fact, it might very well be the definition of it. After Techland moved fromDead IslandtoDying Light,Dead Island 2would be put not development at a studio called Yager Development. It was officially announced in 2014, but come 2015, Yager Development would be replaced by Sumo Digital. Then, Dambuster Studios would become the main developer in 2019.
Back in 2014, Deep Silver showcased earlyDead Island 2gameplay, revealing it was set across many areas in California, weapon modifications, new zombies, four playable characters, and 8-player co-op. Years later, anearly build ofDead Island 2would leak online, but unfortunately, not much is known besides that. Indeed, it could very well be that most, if not all of it, was scrapped at some point during these tumultuous years.
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On the assumption that, hopefully at some point,Dead Island 2managed to pick itself up and dust itself off, there’s a strong case for Dead Island 2 to show up soon. Deep Silver recently confirmed, yet again, thatDead Island 2was in development, but it’s really past time forDead Island 2to make its mark.
The video game industry feeds off of competition;Dead Island 2andDying Light 2are the open-world zombie games toCall of DutyandBattlefield’s first-person shooters. While CoD and Battlefield have traded blows quite often, the competition betweenDead Island 2andDying Light 2rests in history and speculation. Techland is really known for these kinds of games, followingDead IslandandDying Light, and the question is can a new upstart studio rock the boat and do something Techland can’t?
In looking at this as competition, both games are long-awaited sequels.Dead Islandwas released in 2011,Dead Island: Riptide(also from Techland) in 2013, andDead Island 2’s current state has yet to be seen. Meanwhile,Dying Lightwas released in 2015, and has finally gotten its sequel after 7 years. It’s an even longer wait forDead Islandfans, meaning Dambuster really needs to come out swinging. In a way, Techland made its own competition, and it’s going to come down to how each game compares.
Dying Light 2’s launch has received a mixed receptionthus far. Many have praised its parkour system, but everything from its story and mechanics to bugs and more has made as many fans as it has driven away. Still, the competition is in Techland’s hands, as fans know thatDying Light 2is set for 5+ years of post-launch support, including story DLCs. Right now, it’s a competition of solid content fromDying Light 2and mere speculative content forDead Island 2.
But, ifDead Island 2strikes soon, it could be that Dambuster Studios manages to provide more concrete content that catches more eyescompared toDying Light 2—especially for those on the fence or waiting to purchase it. Really, the time is now forDead Island 2to really show what it’s bringing to the table, and it needs to go all-in with its content. That doesn’t mean it needs to be haphazardly released if it isn’t ready yet, but marketing can do quite a bit in terms of public reception.
At the end of the day, though, this isn’t a case of which game should “win,” which should be better in the long run, or anything like that. While there’s always debate among fans over which similar franchise is better, the truth is—there was a day when FPS lovers were simply winning with excellent, competitive content like in 2010 whenBlack OpsandBattlefield Bad Company 2were both released.Dead Island 2bringing its A-game could hearken back to this time and create lively discussions about innovations, changes, and the potential future ofopen-world zombie games, followingDying Light 2andDead Island 2.
