Given the large variety of titles that are currently out in the gaming space, one might inaccurately assume that anyone can just go to a publisher, pitch a game, and then it can be made. Sure, it can seem that way due to how numerous titles get made and are terrible, but every AAA game has to be approved by a higher-up, either within a developer or within a publisher itself. That means that certain “passion projects” can be rejected or delayed due to the developer/publisher not thinking it’ll make money for them. For Dead Space 4, that is indeed what happened.
The space horror franchise has a truly unique history. It came out of nowhere to become one of the definitive horror experiences in gaming but then slowly lost its quality. It then got a full-on remake of the first entry, enhancing and expanding the game’s overall experience. Yet, it’s not continuing on, as series creator Glen Schofield revealed in an interview you can see below. Apparently, the creator went to EA alongside other key franchise directors to pitch the 4th game, but it didn’t work out.
“We tried actually, you know, the three of us yeah, we tried Dead Space 4. All three of us sat there and wanted to do it. Well we didn’t go too deep, they just said no, we’re not interested right now, we appreciate it, blah blah blah, and you know, we know who to talk to, so we didn’t go take it any further, and we respected their opinion you know, they know their numbers and what they have to ship and all that.”
One of the directors, Christopher Stone, added:
“The industry is in a weird place right now. People are really hesitant to take chances on things, so you’ve got to you know, take it with a grain of salt, who knows, maybe one day, I think we’d all love to do it.”
He’s not wrong about the “weird place” that the industry is in right now. Many fans are furious with EA over not continuing on with Schofield’s series after the remake sold over two million copies. Apparently, in EA’s mind, that’s a “failure,” even though many would be happy with two million in sales. Sadly, EA, like many others out there, has their minds focused on getting the maximum amount of money possible, and that’s why so many live-service titles keep getting made, even though narrative-driven ones are still selling incredibly well.
