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Dead Island 2 avoids Star Wars Jedi clash by bumping up its release date

Dead Island 2, a game that never seemed like it was going to come out, has gone gold and even had its release date moved up by a week. Originally slated for April 28, Dead Island 2 will now be released on April 21. That means it’ll launch one week before Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, which just had its release date pushed to April 28.

The developers of the LA-based zombie game revealed the news via a tweet with a video that highlights a bunch of comments asking if the game was polished and if it will actually ever be released before it confirms that Dead Island 2 has gone gold and is coming out a bit earlier than we currently expected.

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You asked for it, you got it. Dead Island 2 went gold and it's coming out a week early. 
See you in HELL-A on April 21, 2023.#DeadIsland #SeeYouInHELLA pic.twitter.com/8Gu28bIcUS

— Dead Island (@deadislandgame) February 13, 2023

Release dates moving up instead of being delayed are a rarity, with one of the only recent examples being Xenoblade Chronicles 3. Still, the delay makes sense now that Star Wars Jedi: Survivor is coming out on April 28. This announcement also feels cathartic after Dead Island 2’s rough development. The zombie sequel has notoriously been delayed significantly more than most games. Originally announced in 2014 with a Q2 2015 release window, Dead Island 2 got pushed back again and again, switching developers multiple times and slowly seeming more and more likely to become vaporware.

Deep Silver Dambuster Studios’ new version of the game finally reemerged as the big final reveal of Gamescom Opening Night Live 2022, but even after that, the game got delayed one more time to April 28. Even if it’s moving its release date up by just a week, the fact that Dead Island 2 has gone gold and even moved its release date up a bit feels like the satisfying end to an excruciatingly long journey. Whether it’s good or not, we finally don’t have to wait much longer to actually play Dead Island 2.

Dead Island 2 will be released for PC, PS4, PS4, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S on April 21. 

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Dambuster studios and Deep Silver have announced that Dead Island 2 has been delayed to April 28, 2023, from its original February 3, 2023, release. The game is set to launch on PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.

"The irony of delaying Dead Island 2 is not lost on us, and we are as disappointed as you undoubtedly are," Deep Silver explained in a statement on Twitter. The delay is just 12 short weeks and development is on the final straight now; we’re going to take the time we need to make sure we can launch a game we’re proud to launch."

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