It was bound to occur sometime. The magical trailer captured many imaginations and shot the game into the collective consciousness of gaming's finest publications. To say the media and fans were mesmerized would be an understatement. Three minutes of a little girl's last waking moments with emotional music to boot is apparently all that's needed to get everyone exorbitantly excited. And now the announcement trailer rests comfortably at seven million views.
With Deep Silver and Techland outdoing themselves, both companies succumbed to overbearing hype once the release date came around. A botched PC release, hilarious third-person animations and difficulties saving plagued the zombie survival title and the massive expectations weren't met (which was well documented).
But, to Lionsgate's credit, only game enthusiasts will know of the terrible launch. The common movie-goer will likely witness a middle-class family's struggle for survival against an onslaught of mindless zombies on a beautiful island just outside Papua New Guinea. I'm no movie buff, but the concept does sound unique. Maybe Dead Island's film adaption could save the ailing genre. Or maybe not. Considering the family shown plays no integral part in the overall story (only making a cameo), it'll be interesting to see what direction Lionsgate takes while trying to appeal to gaming fans.
Regardless of the brand's faults, a movie could be hugely successful. According to Joe Drake, the co-COO of Lionsgate, the non-linear plot will focus on the human factor and the emotional struggle for survival, a first for the horror genre. Now would be the perfect time to adapt Dead Island to the silver screen, too, considering the extreme popularity with anything zombie-related (or supernatural, for that matter). The Walking Dead, the hit TV series on AMC, and Techland's new franchise have been mentioned plenty of times in the same sentence. That's enough evidence to believe a movie could be profitable.
We'll have to wait until next year to catch a glimpse of another trailer. Although the idea might be cheesy, it would be awesome to see the studio recreate the original trailer using real actors. Ryan Reynolds playing the father, a younger Halle Berry as the mother, and some unknown child actor cast as the daughter. Oh, and Lionsgate, I'm always open to becoming an extra. (I'm not looking to start a film career; I just want to point myself out and brag.)