There’s trouble in paradise. While for the Dead Island franchise that usually means a zombie outbreak, the real world news broke yesterday that publisher Deep Silver was dropping the development studio for the upcoming sequel, Dead Island 2.
“After careful consideration, today we announce the decision to part ways with development partner Yager,” the company announced in a press release. “We will continue working towards bringing our vision of Dead Island 2 to life.
The company did not say which studio would take over development, only that they would have more information “at a later stage” adding that they have “always been dedicated to delivering the sequel that Dead Island fans deserve.”
For its part, developer Yager said that the move was a mutual decision based on a difference of opinion over the direction of the game. Yager had previously worked on the shooter Spec Ops: The Line.
“Our team is made of the best creative minds and tech specialists, who all share a common identity,” Yager managing director Timo Ullman told GamesIndustry.biz. “The team worked with enthusiasm to take Dead Island 2 to a new level of quality. However, Yager and Deep Silver’s respective visions of the project fell out of alignment, which led to the decision that has been made.”
Dead Island 2 was previously scheduled for a 2016 launch on PC, PS4 and Xbox One. It is not clear if that launch date is possible with the changes in development studios.
