Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster (Xbox Series X|S) Review

Capcom’s other zombie title has its original installment return to consoles with Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster.

Rising again

Originally launched in 2006, I’ve always looked at Dead Rising as something of an oddity. The open-world zombie series comes from Capcom after all, and the company is inarguably better known for another undead-fueled series, Resident Evil. Just for that reason, it always struck me as odd that Dead Rising even existed. Exist it does though, and it’s also flourishing with what’s become a set of four games (and then some), spread out across several generations of gaming.

But even so, for me it never clicked. I played that original release, but didn’t give it much of a chance before moving on. Likewise, Dead Rising 3 and the relatively recent fourth game, didn’t really do it for me either, and had me drifting away before too long.

With that in mind, it’s especially puzzling to me that I even wanted to try Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster, a remastering of the 2006 original which saw release late last year. For some reason I did though, and the result has me contemplating a trip back through the rest of the series.

Mall rats

Dead Rising has something of a more lighthearted reputation than Resident Evil, at least that’s the sense I always got. There’s reason for it too, since it includes the ability to dress the main character in oddball costumes, and the series’ zombie killing gameplay is fairly arcade-y overall. But while Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster is possibly a little more ‘B-movie’ in tone as the aforementioned survival-horror classic, it’s decidedly just as dark. Maybe more so in some ways.

Things open up with photo journalist Frank West catching a helicopter into Willamette, Colorado. The small and unassuming American town is home to a massive shopping mall and seemingly little else, so why would a freelance war correspondent be interested? Well it seems that Frank was tipped off to something highly strange.

We find out what’s happened pretty fast, as the military has all roads cordoned off, and there’s seemingly a riot going on, city-wide. Thing is, these rioters are of the rotting and undead variety. Zombies are everywhere, chasing down people and causing rampant destruction. Several gruesome scenes play out as the airborne Frank makes his way to that mall.

His chopper is chased off by black helicopters just as he makes landfall on the roof, and what he finds lurking within is a true horror show.

Starting the insanity

Frank meets up with several characters who’ve survived the initial slaughter, and is fast introduced to the facts: the mall (and the city at large) has been overrun with the recently dead. Nobody knows what’s happening beyond that, but that’s music to his ears.

The meat and potatoes of the game is the 72 hour mode, which tasks players with surviving until the helo is scheduled to return. Within that time, fans guide Frank on his mission to track down clues, take loads of photos, and solve “cases”. Doing the latter at specific times will result in the full story being told, and all the narrative’s mysteries being uncovered. Or not. While I fully enjoyed the missions and story, players don’t technically have to really engage with any of that.

Frank can ignore all the main story points, slaughtering zombies willy-nilly, or he can literally just sit around and wait until the magical hour arrives. It’s up to the player as to how they want to play out the time period. While it’s not terribly long though, there’s a surprisingly good story to be had, complete with a few pretty big twists, so I’d encourage playing it. Oh, and save often. That too.

It’s very easy to lose track of the time in Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster, and if you miss a main goal, that’s kind of it for the story. As mentioned above, players can still technically ‘finish’ the game, but a good ending won’t be on the other side. The point being that you’ll not only want to check Frank’s watch often, but you’ll want to have the ability to reload a save with minimal backtracking if you have to.

Playing the apocalypse

Frank’s a photog, and that means he comes complete with an always-ready camera. One of the core components of Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster’s gameplay is grabbing images of stuff. Doing so will nab Frank extra PP, or Prestige Points. Essentially experience points, PP can level the big guy up with more moves, inventory space, and more.

It’s pretty darn easy to grab ’em too, as Frank gets PP by snapping shots of just about anything that’s moving. That means zombies (the more the better), survivors, scenes of brutality and horror, and specific photo ops scattered about the mall. Taking pics is super easy and can be pulled off fast, which is good since Frank isn’t exactly safe in too many of the Willamette mall’s locales.

Zombies are everywhere for the bulk of the game, and yes they respawn. Fortunately Frank can dispatch them just as fast as he can take a pic, and most drop dead (again) with just one hit. There’s a bevy of options on just how you’d prefer to engage with that dispatching as well, with everything from firearms, to knives and bats, to kooky options like lawnmowers and hedge clippers. Some are better than others, and I found it best to keep more fast-attack options as a standard, with a few pieces of heavier stuff as a backup.

A few notes there too, as strategy is required not only with managing time in Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster, but also with its arsenal. Weapons will break after repeated use, and there’s no way to repair or otherwise save them. I didn’t find that to be a huge hinderance in the majority of the campaign, since new weapons are pretty much everywhere, but you’ll want to pay attention to what you’re carrying and how damaged it all is.

Making things easier is that Frank can stow several weapons and items at once, so make sure to stock up when you can. And don’t be afraid to ditch stuff that’s pretty much had it when needed.

Looking good… kinda

Okay, at the risk of repeating myself, I wasn’t all that familiar with Dead Rising when I fired up Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster. I could safely say that the game is a wholly new experience for me, but if you’ve played previously, there isn’t much that’s changed. Aside from a few minor things here and there, fans will mainly find that the game differs from its original launch in the graphical arena.

Capcom overhauled the graphics on the whole, making Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster‘s day of the dead look that much better. The mall looks fantastic with its diverse set of locations, but the alterations are particularly noticeable when it comes to the zombies, as well as the major characters and bosses. Both of the latter sport improved looks and animation, and the zombies look way more detailed than what I remember. But that’s not to say that the game is visually flawless.

I noticed a few glitchy elements in my play-through, the most glaring of which was a cutscene where Frank was in a pic that he himself was snapping. And no, it wasn’t a selfie. While there are loads of zombies too, if you’re going too fast (like when driving a vehicle) you’re gonna see some fading in of said rotters in the distance. On top of that, longer hair tends to clip through bodies, something I found to be particularly distracting in big story-centric scenes. Is any of that game-breaking? Not for me it wasn’t, but it’s still worth mentioning since the main draw here is the visual ‘remastering’.

Overall

If you’ve played the heck out of Dead Rising in the past, then Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster could be a hit or miss for you. Yes, it looks a lot better than it did in 2006, but it’s also basically the same game. So those who are itching to play it again should have a great time with the improvements, but it’s not exactly the draw that the Resident Evil remakes have been.

That said, as someone who’s barely played DR in the past, I loved my time with it, and it’s actually propelling me to want to play the rest of the series. So if you’re like me, or are a ‘zombie’ fan who’s never given Frank West a shot, you might find a lot to like about Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster.

Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster
Release date: September 18th, 2024 (digitally) | November 8th, 2024 (physically)
Platforms: Xbox Series X|S (reviewed), PS5, PC
Publisher: Capcom
Developer: Capcom
MSRP: $49.99 USD