Dead Island 2 is a recent release that is noteworthy for a number of reasons, and predictably has garnered a huge amount of attention in recent weeks. While the game has drawn attention as a sequel to a beloved title, the long window of development that the release experienced is perhaps the most significant thing associated with the game.
In all, Dead Island 2 has been in development for around a decade, due to experiencing a huge amount of setbacks and pitfalls over the past ten years. Following a series of delays and switches to different development studios, the April 21 release of Dead Island 2 has come as a sigh of relief to many across the industry. Now that the game has broken the mold of what is often expected of titles that are in "development hell," it can be said that Dead Island 2 is now an example of hope for any other titles in similar situations.
The Development History of Dead Island 2
Following the success of 2011's Dead Island, the game's development studio Techland was set to begin developing a sequel for the game. However, Techland would ultimately go on to instead create the Dying Light series, which follows many of the same gameplay beats as the Dead Island franchise. Following this, Dead Island 2 began development spearheaded by Yager Development, which originally slated a 2015 release for the sequel.
Even this earliest iteration of the game maintained many elements of the final product, such as Dead Island 2's Los Angeles setting as well as its vibrant design and penchant for eccentricity. Yager would soon be dropped on the project due to creative differences with publisher Deep Silver, and so the studio Sumo Digital took the reins in 2016. Following three years of relative silence, it was announced in 2019 that Dead Island 2 had once again changed developers, now being headed by Dambuster Studios.
From here, the development of Dead Island 2 began to properly take shape, with the game being fairly firm on a 2023 release window since Dambuster took the helm. Following a couple of small delays, the game finally released in April 2023, marking the end of a rollercoaster decade of difficult development that seemed inescapable at various points.
Dead Island 2 As An Example of Hope
Above all else, Dead Island 2 can serve as an example to the gaming industry of how games can make it through the slow and frustrating process of a shaky and unsure development cycle. Many other titles have experienced similar development woes over the years, with releases such as Duke Nukem Forever becoming known for their unprecedented development times.
Sadly, many of these titles ultimately earn a poor reception rather than being worth the wait; fans often point to the developmental woes of a title as an indicator of the final quality to expect. Thankfully, Dead Island 2 is getting good reviews in general following its recent release, with many being surprised at the level of polish and breadth of content within a game that has gone through so many conflicting iterations of development.
In this way, Dead Island 2 could be a trend-setting example of how a game can prevail despite developmental issues and the low expectations that can crop up when a game struggles before release. Dead Island 2's reception could only get warmer as it releases its post launch content, but for now, the release has become a paragon of the value of relentless effort in game development.
Dead Island 2 is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S.
