It’s no secret that Dead Island 2 is in development hell; in fact, it might very well be the definition of it. After Techland moved from Dead Island to Dying Light, Dead Island 2 would 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 early Dead Island 2 gameplay, revealing it was set across many areas in California, weapon modifications, new zombies, four playable characters, and 8-player co-op. Years later, an early build of Dead Island 2 would 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.
On the assumption that, hopefully at some point, Dead Island 2 managed 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, that Dead Island 2 was in development, but it’s really past time for Dead Island 2 to make its mark.
Dead Island 2 Could Gain the Upper Hand Against Dying Light 2
The video game industry feeds off of competition; Dead Island 2 and Dying Light 2 are the open-world zombie games to Call of Duty and Battlefield’s first-person shooters. While CoD and Battlefield have traded blows quite often, the competition between Dead Island 2 and Dying Light 2 rests in history and speculation. Techland is really known for these kinds of games, following Dead Island and Dying 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 Island was released in 2011, Dead Island: Riptide (also from Techland) in 2013, and Dead Island 2’s current state has yet to be seen. Meanwhile, Dying Light was released in 2015, and has finally gotten its sequel after 7 years. It’s an even longer wait for Dead Island fans, 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 reception thus 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 that Dying Light 2 is set for 5+ years of post-launch support, including story DLCs. Right now, it’s a competition of solid content from Dying Light 2 and mere speculative content for Dead Island 2.
Dead Island 2 vs. Dying Light 2 – The Benefits of Competition
But, if Dead Island 2 strikes soon, it could be that Dambuster Studios manages to provide more concrete content that catches more eyes compared to Dying Light 2—especially for those on the fence or waiting to purchase it. Really, the time is now for Dead Island 2 to 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 when Black Ops and Battlefield Bad Company 2 were both released. Dead Island 2 bringing its A-game could hearken back to this time and create lively discussions about innovations, changes, and the potential future of open-world zombie games, following Dying Light 2 and Dead Island 2.
Dead Island 2 is in development.