Visceral open to old IP, Dead Space sells 1.4 million
With the renaming of EA Redwood Shores to Visceral Games came the announcement that the rechristened studio would focus on generating new intellectual properties. While the studio is working on new IPs, Visceral's general manager Glen Schofield told GameSpot, "If the right license came along--the right movie, the right book or whatever--we'd do that as well." Stating that Visceral wouldn't just be "The New IP House," Schofield pointed to Capcom as a good example of a company that produces great original IP that can be turned into franchises, something he hopes to see happen for Dead Space.
Dead Space, according to Schofield, has moved 1.4 million copies across the Xbox, Playstation and PC. Schofield is satisfied with the numbers given the economic conditions when the game launched last October. He adds that used sales and rentals probably add up to 3 or 4 million people having played the game. Schofield has high hopes for the upcoming Dead Space: Extraction for Wii, saying that both Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles and Resident Evil 4 sold very well.
Regarding Dante's Inferno, Schofield says turning the epic poem into a video game has been fairly simple, noting that the nine circles of Hell translate perfectly into nine different game sections. Adapting the story, said Schofield, is simply "a writing exercise." Remember that, kids: Turning a 14th century Italian poet into a sword-wielding badass is a writing exercise.
