While DR2 remains a worthwhile experience half a decade later, in some ways it’s the worst of the Dead Rising remasters because Capcom’s desire to re-release without tweaking or fixing anything but the graphics causes them to miss a huge opportunity. In addition, any zombies killed with combo weapons offer a significant experience boost, emulating the leveling curve of the first DR despite the removal of points awarded for photography. This indicates that Chuck can combine them with other wrench-marked items to create a variety of weapons that are more effective at slaughtering the undead than anything Chuck can find lying around. Trying to catch a snapshot of psychos or zombies was always better in theory than in practice, so I was pleased to see it replaced with weapon-building as the new hook.Īmong the random tools, weapons, and foodstuffs scattered throughout Fortune City are items marked with a wrench icon. The franchise is all about saving people and fighting psychos, but the interesting-yet-awkward photography mechanic that former protag Frank West employed (he was a photojournalist, remember) has been given the axe. It’s a better story than a game like this requires, and it’s one of the best in the genre.Īs for gameplay, this one hews fairly close to its predecessor. Seeing the differing reactions in this context is part of what makes the story so special - there are people with PTSD, there are people struggling to survive with the zombie disease, and yes, because it’s America, there are plenty of people trying to turn a profit. Most of the characters in Dead Rising 2 have an ‘out of sight, out of mind’ attitude towards the living dead, and don’t give much thought to the disease until it’s (figuratively or literally) biting them in the ass. There have been plenty of stories about zombie outbreaks and apocalypse scenarios, but DR2‘s main innovation is to imagine a world where zombies are real, but largely controllable - no one considers them to be a particularly big threat. Chuck is a more sympathetic, interesting character than Frank West, and the story goes to fascinating places that the first was unable to. Right away it’s clear that DR2 has a stronger hook and bigger stakes than the original. Naturally, things go awry and Chuck is left to slaughter zombies, seek out survivors, and track down medicine until the government arrives to set things right. He arrives in Fortune City looking to make enough money to keep buying his daughter the drug that prevents her from turning, and the only way to do that is by appearing on a game show where contestants battle the undead for the pay-per-view masses. DR2 remains a great example of focusing on what worked in the previous iteration, while being willing to throw out everything that held it back.ĭead Rising 2 introduces players to Chuck Greene, a motocross star whose wife was killed and daughter infected between DR1 and 2. However, now that horsepower is no longer an issue on PS4, the biggest question surrounding this re-release of Dead Rising 2 is whether the design compromises made for smoother operation seem like mistakes when there’s no longer a need to be conservative with system capacity. The answer? No. This issue was obviously a priority in the development of DR2, as it’s an assemblage of choices made to avoid the same pitfalls - for example, large open spaces have been replaced by narrow, claustrophobic ones designed to get an equal amount of challenge out of a smaller number of zombies. The original Dead Rising was so obsessed with creating huge areas packed with zombies that the developers didn’t stop to confirm that the Xbox 360 would be able to display them with a stable framerate. And lose the jacket.ĭead Rising 2 was built by people mindful of its predecessor’s shortcomings. WTF Chuck, you’ve been framed for mass murder, so stop telling people who you are. LOW That last boss fight somehow manages to be a worse version of Dead Rising‘s worst boss fight. HIGH Chainsaw + Kayak Paddle = the most fun you’ll ever have navigating a horde of zombies.