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‘State of Decay 2’ Lumbers to May 22nd Release
Undead Labs’ State of Decay 2 was announced back at E3 2016, and after again showing up at last year’s E3, the release date has been set for May 22. The game will be released for the XBox One as well as PC in two versions: The standard edition ($29.99USD), and the Ultimate Edition ($49.99USD). The Ultimate Edition will include early access to State of Decay 2 on May 18, a free XBox One copy of State of Decay: Year One Survival Edition, as well as the Independence Pack and Daybreak Pack DLCs, which will be released at a later date.
The reasoning for the lower-than-expected price points, according to Microsoft GM of Games Marketing Aaron Greenberg, is to “build a long-term relationship with the State of Decay community and to foster deeper experiences with the franchise. We believe State of Decay 2 accomplishes this goal by immersing fans in the ultimate zombie survival fantasy, and we want to give more players the opportunity to join in and experience this unique game.”
Separately, in an official livestream late last week, Undead Labs answered several questions about the game, including questions about multiplayer (which will be 4-player co-op), as well as confirming that the game at first will not have microtransactions. Of course, things regarding the latter might change as the game goes on, but that’s a “wait and see” thing.
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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