Deep Silver has announced that its tropical zombie game Dead Island has reached the five million sales milestone. This includes all retail and digital sales since its release in September of 2011, and appears to be one more sign of a rapidly growing publisher.

Undoubtedly, sales of Techland's zombie game has given Deep Silver and its parent company Koch Media the ambition (and cashflow) to expand its gaming empire. The publisher recently acquired the Saints Row studio Volition, and the rights to Metro: Last Light. The company will also be releasing Dead Island Riptide later this year.

"Dead Island has an incredibly active and enthusiastic community, and we are thrilled to welcome the five millionth player to the world of Banoi," Koch Media CEO Klemens Kundratitz said in the announcement. "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."