Both theDead IslandandDying Lightfranchises are two behemoths of the popular zombie open-world survival genre, with both franchises long holding a mutual respect for one another given their similar levels of success and times of release. While this rivalry began almost a decade ago around the flagship launches of both IPs, the two franchises will now release long-anticipated sequels at roughly the same time, pushing this rivalry to even greater heights.
Despite the commonalities betweenDead IslandandDying Light, the rivalry between the two IPs has historically paled in comparison to the most dominant forefront examples of direct competition in the industry. However, when looking at the two franchises through a more modern lens, it can be argued that this rivalry is currently the most storied and relevant one that still truly exists to this day.
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Gaming’s Historic Rivalries
Perhaps the most high-profile and longstanding gaming franchise rivalry was historically presentbetween theCall of DutyandBattlefieldIPs. The scope of attention within the genre of first-person shooters is arguably larger than any other video game genre, and this over time has led to a hugely saturated and highly competitive sub-industry in which massively popular franchises were often in direct competition with one another over rapidly releasing installments of games.
For a long time,Battlefieldhas held its own against the massively influentialCall of Dutyand its annual releases, with the likes ofBad Company 2,Battlefield 3, andBattlefield 1providing genuinely compelling unique experiences to the FPS genre that led to serious debate within the industry as to which IP should be crowned as the top franchise.
However, in recent years, this historic and storied rivalry has waned significantly, with theBattlefieldfranchise coming to a relative silence when compared to the continued growth ofCoD. The recentBattlefield 2042has faced sharply dropping player counts, which is back-dropped against the intense success of the recently releasedCall of Duty: Modern Warfare 2andWarzone 2.
With the reduced profile of theCoDversusBattlefieldrivalry,Dead IslandandDying Lightmay surprisingly stand as the current most high-profile rivalry in gaming. The two franchises provide the most comparable and comprehensive level of open-world zombie survival, especially within their first-person gameplay.
Although zombie games have slightly declined from their massive popularity and frequency within the 2000s, the genre appears to be making something of a cultural comeback in more recent years. With fans beginning to itch for another zombie survival experience,Dying Light 2recently released to great anticipation in early 2022, with the upcomingDead Island 2being set for an April 2023 release window.
Despite being almost a year old,Dying Light 2is still yet to release its most comprehensive post-launch DLC. The title is aiming for five years of post-launch attention and DLC implementation, including new events and story DLCs, giving a clear indication from Techland as to the intended longevity and competition of the game. The introduction of this extensivepost-launch content forDying Light 2will come during the anticipated launch ofDead Island 2, as well as the likely post-launch attention that this title will also receive.
With this in mind, and when considering thehuge amounts of attention placed onDead Island 2thanks to its long development cycle, it is likely that fans of the zombie survival genre will see some serious competition between the upcoming title andDying Light 2. With this rivalry only being liable to continue throughout each game’s extensive post-launch roadmaps,Dying LightversusDead Islandmay now be the forefront rivalry in the entire gaming industry, replacing the discourse and attention that was once placed on the likes ofBattlefieldversusCall of Duty.
Dead Island 2launches April 28 for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
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