By KEVIN HOOVER
The well has run dry for another asymmetrical horror hit, as Saber Interactive has announced that EVIL DEAD: THE GAME will receive no more content. This comes just months after word broke that Gun Media’s Friday the 13th: The Game would also be shutting down at the end of the year.
Released last year for previous and current-gen consoles (sans Nintendo Switch, which has seen its planned port killed off as part of this announcement), EVIL DEAD: THE GAME received generally positive reviews. What makes this all the more surprising is a relatively short life span, especially when compared to Friday the 13th: The Game, which, even after having its legs cut off due to the franchise’s legal battles, endured for nearly six years. DLC had been steady since the game’s release, interjecting characters and skins from Army of Darkness, 2013’s Evil Dead and Ash vs. Evil Dead. A Game of the Year compilation and Steam port also materialized back in April. The recently released Texas Chain Saw Massacre and the forthcoming Killer Klowns from Outer Space: The Game should help fill the gaping wound left by the exit of two of Dead by Daylight’s most notable titles.
While Saber Interactive seems committed to keeping servers up and running for the foreseeable future and patching issues as they arise, the lack of new maps, characters and other assets certainly diminishes the replayability of a multiplayer-forward title, begging the question: If a developer puts forth the effort of securing the rights to a particular franchise, why not release a proper, single player experience?
