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EA Isn’t Finished With ‘Dead Space’ Just Yet
It’s no secret that Dead Space 3 wasn’t quite as successful, both critically and commercially, as EA would’ve liked it to be. It was an ambitious game, though its clever use of optional co-op didn’t seem to win over many new fans. EA hasn’t been too vocal about the future of the series, outside of their decision following Dead Space 3’s reception to put the franchise on the back burner for the time being.
To me, that sounds like they’re giving Visceral Games, which spent a majority of 08-13 developing four Dead Space games — okay, five, if you count the abysmal Ignition, which I’ve tried my best to forget — a chance to do something different, starting with Battlefield: Hardline.
In a recent interview, EA Studios executive vice president Patrick Söderlund confirmed they’re still considering pursuing another Dead Space game, even though one is not currently in development.
“Do I think that we will create a Dead Space game again? Yes, I think so,” Söderlund told Polygon. “But when we do so, we have to think about what made the previous ones successful and how we go about envisioning Dead Space for a new generation.
“Now, I’m not announcing a Dead Space game. We’re not building one just to be very clear, but I’m saying is there an opportunity or possibility to do one in the future? Absolutely.”
I hope they’ve learned after Dead Space 3 that fans of the series don’t want another action game. To put it bluntly, we don’t want another Resident Evil. How about you? What would you like to see from a potential Dead Space 4?
Oh, and because I keep hearing that honesty and openness is the best policy, you should know that I worked under contract at Electronic Arts on Dead Space 3. I don’t feel that my time at Visceral Games (a scant six months) altered my opinion on the game in any significant way, but whenever I report on it here, I want to make sure all of you are fully aware of this.
Sam Neill, the New Zealand actor best known for his role in 1993’s Jurassic Park, has passed away this week at 78 years old. In a statement shared on Neill’s Instagram page this morning, the actor’s family said that his passing was “sudden and unexpected.”
Neill had been diagnosed with a rare blood cancer in 2022, but stated the following year that he was in remission. The family notes that he “remained cancer free” at the time of his passing.
The family statement reads, “It is with immense sadness that the whānau of Sam Neill share the news of his passing on Monday 13th July, in Sydney Australia. Sam was surrounded by family and passed with the dignity that has characterised his whole life. The loss was sudden and unexpected but blessed by the fact that Sam remained cancer free.
“They would like to express their deepest gratitude to the staff at St Vincent’s Private Hospital for their incredible care. More details will be shared later, but for now, on behalf of the family, we ask that you respect their privacy as they navigate this immeasurable loss.”
In addition to his iconic role as Dr. Alan Grant in the original Jurassic Park and the sequels Jurassic Park III and Jurassic World: Dominion, Sam Neill left an indelible mark on the horror genre with memorable roles in Andrzej Żuławski’s Possession, The Omen: The Final Conflict, John Carpenter’s In the Mouth of Madness, and sci-fi horror favorite Event Horizon.
Sam Neill’s vast resume in film and television began in the early 1970s and also includes the films Sleeping Dogs, Enigma, The Good Wife, A Cry in the Dark, Dead Calm, The Hunt for Red October, Memoirs of an Invisible Man, Hostage, The Jungle Book, Snow White: A Tale of Terror, The Horse Whisperer, Bicentennial Man, Daybreakers, Escape Plan, and Thor: Ragnarok.
Sam Neill is survived by his four children and eight grandchildren.
Steven Spielberg said in a statement to Variety, “I owe a debt of gratitude to Roger Donaldson, Gilliam Armstrong, Graham Baker and Phillip Noyce for casting Sam Neill in the roles in which he was so brilliant that brought him to my attention and led to his playing Dr. Alan Grant in Jurassic Park. Sam was exceptionally collaborative. It was a stretch for him to play a character who acted as though children were messy and smelly because this was the opposite of the loving father he was to his children. I adored making all the Jurassic movies with him.”
Spielberg adds, “Along with Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum, we will always have our Jurassic family and Sam will never be forgotten by us or his many millions of fans around the world.”
Sam Neill in ‘Event Horizon’
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