Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster Review

One thing you can bank on in this modern era of Capcom is a respectful nod to its storied past. Remasters and remakes are now a key part of its release slate each year,  and the level of quality across the board has been nothing short of impressive. I say that, but there’s still no sign of that Dino Crisis remake, the cowards.  Still, at least we’re talking about Dead Rising again. The zombie survival franchise died an unfortunate death when it flirted too much with change in Dead Rising 4, resulting in a studio closure and a series hiatus eight years ago. Colour us all surprised when Capcom announced Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster earlier this year, a welcome return to the original game with a fresh coat of paint. It’s an efficient return, one that thankfully leans on a “less is more” mentality and remembers what made the original game so good in the first place.

Not familiar with Dead Rising? Imagine your classic zombie survival situation— a bunch of strangers stranded at a local shopping centre (or mall, if you’re so inclined) that use whatever they can at their disposal to survive the oncoming hoards of undead. Except here you’re in the shoes of one Frank West, a freelance photojournalist looking for his next big story, who voluntarily jumps into the weird events surrounding the fictional town of Willamette, Colorado. A few wild encounters and an unfortunate attempt to save a pet dog later, Frank must survive not just the zombie legion that waits around every corner of the mall, but a wild assortment of characters and mysteries all within a 72-hour period.

Have you heard of Raccoon City? It’s nice this time of year.

That last sentence is key to the original Dead Rising’s success. When it first dropped on the Xbox 360 back in 2006, its inventive, time sensitive gameplay loop across numerous objectives and multiple potential endings felt like nothing else on the market. Its 3 in-game days meant you had pressure on every minute you played, whether you stuck to the main objective or went off the beaten path to rescue as many survivors as possible. Or in my case, how long I could scramble around Willamette’s brightly lit corridors in complete confusion as to where to go next, grabbed by almost every zombie I came across and scampering to the nearest food outlet to down a gallon of milk before eventually returning to the helipad to escape. Oh, the memories.

Dead Rising was a breath of fresh air that unfortunately ran out of steam by third entry,  but being back within the first game’s  colourful interiors on a modern console feels just right. Thanks to the RE Engine, every corner of Willamette has been given a new lease of life with higher-res textures and greater levels of detail flanked by improved lighting and shadow effects. The results are impressive, despite a few bugs here or there, leftovers of what’s otherwise the same general framework of the existing experience. More important than that, Frank’s wonderfully expressive face (and comically big nose) remain intact and has never looked better.

There are a couple of other major quality-of-life improvements that have been implemented, outside of the obvious visual updates, the most important of which is the ability to move while aiming. That might sound weird to say, but much like the Resident Evil franchise in its infancy, Dead Rising originally limited your ability to move around freely while aiming, resulting in some awkward moments when handling a pistol. Granted, most of your time taking out zombies will revolve around swinging axes, poles, benches, pretty much anything you can pick up and brandish. This small change does, however, make certain encounters (namely bosses) feel a little more intuitive than originally designed.

Best part of DRDR. Hands down.

Likewise, Capcom have wisely added a quick save function, meaning fewer instances of replaying large sections of the game if you die (and you will, repeatedly). The original release limited where you could save to certain points on the map, and any unfortunate interactions with the undead during important missions would result in losing a chunk of time when loading back in. Losing that level of frustration is a massive win for new and old players alike, as the game auto-saves whenever you enter a new area. The old save places still exist, but it’s such a load off the shoulders knowing I won’t lose as much progress as I used to.

Most of the other changes are UI based, improving the transceiver calls Frank gets to point out key areas of interest, allowing you to skip time, or just generally cleaning up the menus and inventory. One element that hasn’t changed (from what I can tell) is the character AI. On many occasions you’ll have to lead fellow survivors back through the mall to the roof in order to escape, which can lead to some comical situations where they get stuck on walls, pause for maddingly long periods for no reason, or get left behind when you enter another area. It doesn’t feel like anything’s changed here, in fact it’s fair to say that it’s exactly the same levels of frustration I felt the first time around all those years ago. At least they look nicer when they suddenly appear in front of your chainsaw swing for no reason and die in one hit. Oh, and they’ve added a small set of stairs in front of the rooftop escape vent, so at least you won’t have to relive the era of ‘just get over the damn wall Natalie’.

That obvious annoyance aside, the experience of being Frank West has never been better. The NPC AI strangely played into the mad nature of running around with nothing but basic directions and a myriad of problems blocking your path, heightening the stress levels as the clock ticks down and another survivor’s sudden demise flashes across the screen. As it did before, Dead Rising rewards you through multiple playthroughs, unlockable extra modes that change the rules of the game and a sense of accomplishment by completing every possible ending. I’ll also happily shoutout the new costume packs, not just because they’re a wild inclusion (playing as a Resident Evil 2 Licker, giant tongue and all, was not on my bucket list until now) but the added inclusion of new background music that plays through-out the mall depending on the costume you’re wearing is a neat touch. Also, Frank in a dress never grows old.

Shop till you drop

Final Thoughts

Is this new version of Dead Rising worth the investment? As a long-time fan, it’s an easy yes from me. The original experience still holds up to this day, despite some obvious problems that remain, and as much as I’d have loved if Capcom had tweaked other key areas or perhaps added some new modes or characters to the existing package, the visual overhaul and  UI improvements make for the most polished version of Frank West’s escapades to date. I’m glad that the franchise wasn’t completely swept under the rug after all these years, and the hope now is that the respectful work put into this rerelease will lead to a full revitalisation in the future.

Reviewed on PS5 // Review code supplied by publisher

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