The report specifies that all Dambuster employees, or 194 people at last count, are now working on Dead Island 3. As soon as the Mac and Luna versions of Dead Island 2 are completed, the QA team will also join the project. Things are clearly progressing at a good pace. “Parts of the game are currently in early development, and feature, character, world, and story design are progressing at a rapid pace.”
This new stage in the franchise seems much better off than the chaotic development of Dead Island 2, which passed through several hands before landing at Dambuster. The studio, now stabilized and experienced, seems to have the means to realize its vision.
The zombie apocalypse continues to spread
Last September, a cryptic image posted by Dambuster contained an unambiguous caption: “And the next epidemic is already brewing.” Today, this teaser takes on its full meaning. In the same message, the studio recalled that fourteen years had passed since the original episode, and that the story of the infected was far from over.
It’s still too early to talk about gameplay or environment, but the image revealed showed a character hitchhiking, hinting at a possible new destination. If some speculation is to be believed, Las Vegas could be a plausible setting… but nothing is confirmed.
An ambitious schedule: release planned before summer 2028
The report clearly mentions a release planned for the first or second quarter of 2028, which places the launch of Dead Island 3 between January and June. A reasonable deadline, taking into account the current phase of the project, which would allow the team to deliver a finished game, far from the mistakes of the past.
Dambuster, however, insists that the project is still in its early stages. “This is not the final version. Dambuster Studios is already working on the sequel. For the moment, the details remain confidential, the epidemic is far from over…”
A franchise that rises from the ashes
Dead Island 2, despite a difficult gestation, was a great success with fans, exceeding 20 million players. With this new opus, the series could finally enter a more stable phase, capable of competing with the big names in the genre.
For now, players will need to be patient. But the announcement of Dead Island 3 is already a strong signal in itself: the saga is far from being buried.