 D3 provided the development team with more focus groups , and as a result , the game slowly incorporated more combat and less platforming and puzzles . Fred 's combat capabilities were revamped to give him more attacks , counterattacks and combinations . D3 also gave Vicious Cycle more time to develop the game , with the hope of receiving better reviews and potentially turning Dead Head Fred into a franchise . The delay pushed back the game 's release from January to August 2007 . D3Publisher bought Vicious Cycle two months before the game 's release , but the company 's headquarters remained in North Carolina and the staff was retained . 
