When it comes to thrusting the reader and/or viewer into a brutally unforgiving universe, Robert Kirkman’s The Walking Dead is almost on par with George R.R. Martin’s Game of Thrones. It’s the reason each IP has produced such a deep universe around its source material, with a variety of creatives branching out on each respective core premise. For the former, Starbreeze and Payday dev Overkill will spin out another strand through its own eponymous title in 2016.
Little is known about the in-development game beyond the fact that it place a heavy emphasis on co-operative survival. However, in a recent interview with Official PlayStation Magazine (via GamesRadar), Starbreeze global brand director Almir Listo touched upon the dark tenets of Overkill’s The Walking Dead, and how it plans to shake things up.
“It’s going to be a co-op experience, it’s going to be a survival-horror action-RPG, and there’s going to be various different things that you’re going to see,” Listo said. “Yes, when you sit down and play it you’re going to say, ‘This is a great FPS. This has elements of surprise and stealth and horror.’ But without going into it, we’re definitely going to try and shake up some stuff.”
It’s hardly surprising that Overkill will strive to break new ground in The Walking Dead canon. Not only will it offer something fresh for the ardent fans, but the video game medium arguably affords the studio with a higher creative ceiling under which to explore the darker themes of Robert Kirkman’s post-apocalyptic universe. AMC’s flagship series has its moments of darkness, of course, but the fact that Overkill is aiming to “shake up” the IP is certainly something to be excited about, particularly given the studio’s success with Payday and its beloved sequel.
Tentatively slated for a release in 2016, Overkill’s The Walking Dead will bring co-op undead action to PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC.
