We already told you about how the Dead Island developers weren’t super happy with the status of the game at launch, but that was just a small portion of the AMA, with Guido Eickmeyer, Creative Director at Deep Silver, talking about the future of the Dead Island franchise, and much more.
Keeping things in line with previous AMAs (recent ones include Saints Row and The Last of Us), we’ll be doing this in a question and answer format, with questions edited for readability, and answers edited for cohesion:
Are there any plans to bring Dead Island to PS4 or Xbox One?
Well, I think it’s time to move on now for Dead Island. A new generation of consoles should be a good point to consider some new, fresh gameplay. Considering what we have in mind right now, I think porting the current titles to PS4 or XboxOne would not suit that well.
Hey! I was just curious. If there were to be another Dead Island, how big would the map be? Would there be the individual little areas to explore then when you want to go to the next there would be a loading screen (like going from the resort to the city in Dead Island) or would it be one huge map with no loading screens when traveling?
Well… IF there were to be another Dead Island… 😉 I would say that exploration in an open-world game is key to being fun. Size is not the only answer here as not every gamer would like to have a DayZ-kind of experience, but you want to feel being part of a world, not a linear corridor of events.
What do you think about DayZ?
Loved it. Different audience of gamers than Dead Island, but absolutely outstanding experience for me. And… inspiring for some future titles. 😉
I just wanted to say that I have thoroughly enjoyed the Dead Island series, and really hope it’ll continue:
Thank you! I think there is a lot of open world and zombie stuff still waiting for you. 😉
Any plans to give future installments of Dead Island a different locale? Dead City perhaps?
I would think so. 🙂 But Dead Island will remain Dead Island; no changes in the name there. That said, there will be always a strong link to ‘islands’, because this is just part of its DNA.
Will there be any more sequels in the Dead Island games? (Will it be Dead World, as once rumored?)
Well, I would expect so. I would not expect it to be named Dead World, because Dead island will remain Dead Island. 🙂 But there is actually a lot (!) in the coming [months].
More Dead Island?
A lot more! Still trying to be wallet-friendly here 😉
What’s coming up for Dead Island and Riptide? any new DLC’s on the horizon, possibly a third installment? How about hitting Hawaii?
Hawaii would be awesome, right? 😀 For now, I can only ask you to wait a bit further, then some really nice things will be revealed about the future of Dead Island. 🙂
What can you take from these past two Dead Island games to make the third one ever better?
Hear what fans are telling us. We screen forums, we have invited fans and continue doing so, having brought in more experienced people and so on. Dead Island was a huge success, but you can always see so many things you would love to be better at.
Obviously, DayZ was a massive hit in the zombie genre, with a lot of people loving the survival element and gruelling gameplay. What sort of impact has that had on the Dead Island team’s vision of the game, and will there ever be a sandbox survival mode implemented into possible future games?
Well, DayZ is inspirational and just a great game. That said, I do not see Dead Island moving into such a super-harcore direction. For future titles, you will find many elements being inspired from this title. Not confirming anything. 😉 But i would say the survival motive is something in the focus for our upcoming [Dead Island] games.
I was wondering if there were any plans for future Dead Island games to have local co-op?
Local co-op? This is always such a nice one, being able to play with a friend at home is such fun. That said, we could not do that within the restrictions we had in the past, and for a potential future title, it comes down to if this is fun, considering the limited viewing range in split-screen. Still, we would love to have this one in.
Is the process too expensive to make Dead Island and Dead Island: Riptide playable on the Xbox One?
It’s not just porting it to a different platform. Both Sony and Microsoft would like to see a bit more – and this is something we feel as being important as well. That said, supporting One features and improving the title versus dedicating to a completely new title might not be the right thing to do.
Will there be any crossover content between Dead Island and Saints Row, like news reports about the zombie outbreak in Steelport?
Haha. 😉 At least nothing planned yet. 😉
What’s your favorite thing about working on Dead Island and Sacred 2? Do you feel like the Dead Island series could become as big as other video game series in terms of creating more than two to three entries?
The best thing about working on these games is the people you meet and work with. There is such a creative spirit around and so many ideas – we could probably work on 4-5 Dead Island’s and Sacred’s right now. 😉
I do believe we will see more entries of both series – whilst pointing out that we really do not want to jump into copying and just updating graphics. We need (!) to come up with new ideas, we need to convince players each time that its worth their time.
Why did you use the exact same engine for the second game? Then only change the map, story and quests? It’s basically DLC.
Using an upgraded but similar engine is allowing developers to focus on content and gameplay. Normal practice and happens around all big IPs. That said, this alone should not qualify for being labeled as DLC. That said, we insisted on always being transparent about Dead Island: Riptide not being a sequel. For a DLC, its far too big though and therefore I do see your point – but would still feel DLC is not the right definition for this game.
So what is this new Dead Island game coming out [Dead Island: Epidemic, a F2P MOBA on PC]? Is it going to like the other Dead Islands? and will it still be within the same story line?
The world of Dead Island is evolving and all (!) of our Dead Island games will be part of this world. Expect new takes on the story, new ways to tell the story – but everything will be linked together.
Is Dead Island: Epidemic going to be a game for the regular gaming systems or just for the PC?
It’s PC only as it’s planned right now. Maybe we will have a closer look at other platforms once it’s out for some time.
Is there any big reason why you guys aren’t publishing Dying Light for Techland as well? And if it’s because they didn’t come to you, are you offended?
Dying Light will be a great game and we really like Techland. No hard feelings, No one is offended. 🙂 I am looking forward to playing it – and it will be a unique experience, not a Dead Island and not close to what is coming up within this franchise.
What are your views on Deep Silver publishing one of the worst PC titles released [Likely referencing Ride to Hell: Retribution]?
Well, some things work out well and some others do not. 😉 Why focus on something that did not came out the way we hoped it would? I am rather trying to learn from such experiences. This does not bother me that much as I am not getting cocky from Deep Silver publishing some of the best titles the last years either.
Any word on some DLC for Dead Island: Riptide?
Right now it would be more a wait and see. Still some things in the thought process, but we are not there yet.
Why did you choose to take the weapons away from characters when Riptide started?
This comes down to balancing reasons. I do understand some frustration here and we tried to avoid this choice, but this was pretty undoable in handling eventually. Sorry about that. :/
Do you think Dead Island’s melee focus was the right way to go with the game?
Totally! I do believe this is one of the core values for Dead Island. There are sooo many shooters out there, but what is more intense, more immersive than close combat?
What were the hardest parts of making Dead Island and Dead Island: Riptide? How did they compare in difficulty?
Depending on who you ask, you will get different answers. 😉 I would say most of us had to deal with a challenge of getting everything together in the given time. A lot of people worked day and night and whilst it payed off eventually, they had to give everything they could, and more.
Is there any chance of seeing Sacred get the next-gen treatment?
Depending on if everyone involved in this process feels this would be more than just a good idea. We are [investigating] every option, for sure. But we won’t do it for the sake of sales numbers, it needs to be a great next-gen game.
Due to some spoilers regarding the end of Dead Island: Riptide, we’ve put two spoiler-filled answers on the second page.
What piece of information stuck out to you during the AMA? Let us know in the comments below.
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