Deep Silver, the publisher of Dead Island, announced today that its zombie island adventure has sold over five million copies worldwide. Though the game received only lukewarm reviews when it was released in 2011, the teaser trailer for the game remains one of the most memorable in gaming history.

“While others focus on ever-increasing development budgets and driving brand messages via ballooning marketing expenditures, Deep Silver stands for hitting the zeitgeist, innovation and fresh gameplay,” said Klemens Kundratitz, CEO of Koch Media. “Dead Island has an incredibly active and enthusiastic community, and we are thrilled to welcome the five millionth player to the world of Banoi. This once again proves that venturing into new waters in terms of games publishing does matter for success and that even at the end of a console cycle new IPs can be created and nurtured into lasting franchises.”

Koch Media is the parent company of Deep Silver. Last month during the feeding frenzy over THQ Koch scooped up the Metro series and Volition, the studio behind the Saint’s Row franchise.

The announcement of Dead Island sales could be timed to provide solace to Saint’s Row fans who are worried that Deep Silver will not be able to sufficiently support the series. Or, the announcement could simply be part of the marketing run-up to the release of the Dead Island sequel Riptide in April. Whatever the case, the publisher could use some good press after announcing a collector’s edition for Riptide that includes a statue of bloody boobs.