While the Dead Space remake released last year was met with critical acclaim, it seems that wasn’t enough to make the game a commercial success. With the horror remake’s lackluster sales, a new rumor has cropped up stating that this has led to Motive Studio cancelling the Dead Space 2 remake.
This bit of info comes from Giant Bomb’s Jeff Grubb in a new video where he was discussing EA’s announcement yesterday that Motive Studio was now building a team internally to help shape the Battlefield universe. According to Grubb, the Dead Space 2 remake was in the pre-production phase before Motive pivoted away from it, and adds, “They were working on Dead Space 2, and they are no longer working on it…it is on the shelf because the first game had lackluster sales.”
Aside from Battlefield, Motive Studio is also actively working on a new Iron Man game, though that one has remained in the dark since it was announced to be in development back in October of 2023.
As someone who just loved the Dead Space remake, this is very sad news indeed. I’ve played the original game from Visceral, and the remake, and this wasn’t just a faithful remake from Motive, but it actually surpasses it, as they also added new content to the horror re-imagining.
While it doesn’t seem a sequel is incoming, you should still play the Dead Space remake, as it’s just a fantastic game overall. Go read my review of it here where I state, “Simply put: It doesn’t matter if you’ve played and finished the original Dead Space or not, Motive Studio’s remake is a perfect reimagining of the franchise. This is how remakes should be, and I’m very glad Motive nailed it.”
Do note that this is not an official announcement from EA, and as such, should be taken with a grain of salt. That said, the fact that EA didn’t announce how well it sold is (almost) a sure sign that it didn’t do as well as they would have liked. Let’s hope EA changes its mind with the Dead Space 2 remake in the near future.
Update: EA has sent a statement to IGN debunking the story stating, “We don’t normally comment on rumors but there is no validity to this story.” Furthermore, a source tells IGN that the Dead Space remake was considered to have “done well.”