Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster is the third iteration of the goofy zombie slaying classic, this being an update to the 2016 HD revamp which itself was a re-touched version of 2006’s original. However, this time Dead Rising is being treated to its most lavish rework yet: reborn graphics courtesy of the RE Engine, a smorgasbord of quality-of-life improvements, and subtle tweaks to character design and demeanour. Still present is the mid-noughts brand of quirk and humour, but the overall experience has been moulded by nearly two decades of technological advancement. Dead Rising has changed; given the footage shared and the testimony of preview players, it’s changed for the better.
To bring those unperturbed up to speed, Dead Rising plunges players straight into the thick of a zombie apocalypse. In command of once-loutish-now-grizzled photojournalist Frank West we enter Colorado’s Willamette Parkview Mall on the hunt for clues to crack the mystery behind a clandestine military quarantine, coming face-to-face with hordes of lurching zombies. A hundred-plus-strong bounty of weapons – some impactful, some comically useless – can be plucked on a whim to wield, anything from baseball bats and chainsaws to fish and cacti can be unleashed in varying degrees of brutality. Dead Rising has always relied on its gore factor to score points amongst its bloodthirsty player-ship, and this Deluxe Remaster certainly doesn’t disappoint in this regard. There’s enough blood and viscera here – delivered in vibrant 4K detail – to enrapture hardcore horror junkies. Of course, thwacking the undead with TVs and handbags ensures any potential queasiness is allayed in slapstick fashion.
A combined interpretation of comedy and horror could be that there’s a thin line dividing the two. Dead Rising encapsulates this sometimes-paper-thin relationship more brilliantly than most. Its subject matter is macabre for sure, but the sheer absurdity of the situation Frank finds himself in – elevated further by players opting to don a Mega Man helmet whilst pummelling brain-dead meat sacks – ensures there are plenty of laughs throughout.
Choosing whether to pummel grittily via sledgehammers as your principal weapons of choice or as an oaf with a showerhead is supported by Dead Rising’s rogue-like structure. See, Frank has seventy-two in-game hours (read, two real world hours per day) to survive Willamette Mall’s blood-splattered shopping complexes before he’s rescued, the game ends and resets for another run. As Frank is there on official journo business, you’ll likely opt to discover the origin behind this crawling mass of zombies. Alternatively, you might decide to rescue a handful of freaked-out survivors hiding within the mall’s depths, or you could spend your time mowing down as many undead as the clock allows; choice really is in your hands beyond deciding how you’re going to kill things.
Sure, the mall’s a veritable playground if you want it to be, but with endless new game plus’s available come each run’s end, with each offering to carry over Frank’s experience and abilities, you’d be missing out if you didn’t try a few different approaches.
Quality of life improvements – of which there are plenty – further cement Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster’s intention as a multi-playthrough experience. Some events such as the multitude of in-game boss battles, for instance, only occur at certain times, so it’s a relief that the developer has decided to implement a time-skip feature via Frank’s wristwatch. An ever-present complaint with Dead Rising’s prior versions is the restrictive game saving; now, autosaves are plentiful, usually before marquee story moments to boot. Mid-run saves also spill into the game’s Overtime and Infinity Modes, the latter of which tasked Frank with continually munching food to maintain a healthy status, but with food a scarce resource in this mode the prior inability to save hindered what was arguably the most enjoyable way to play Dead Rising.
Player time isn’t the only thing the developers are respecting in this remaster, but the tendencies for frustration prevalent in past versions have been homed in on too. Simple things, things that are a given in modern day gaming, such as simultaneously shooting and moving are finally a part of Frank’s skillset. Similarly, the gameplay disrupting annoyances surrounding the ever-reliant transceiver, whereby Frank would receive updates from Otis the janitor, have been eradicated.
NPC survivor AI has been overhauled too. Now, they behave much more realistically, can overcome obstacles unattended, and are generally much more observant of Frank’s directions to sanctuary, alleviating a common frustration in Dead Rising’s prior guises when survivors are lost through no fault of the player. Frank, for his part, can signpost to safety more effectively thanks to a dynamic UI which presents directions in a more readable format to the player. NPCs are liable to attack Frank too; accidentally smash a plant pot on their head and see what happens. No, it isn’t just the zombie hordes and psychotic bosses that pose a threat to Frank’s survival, NPCs can deal a swift, deadly blow too if they feel threatened. Also, on-screen weapon durability means you can get on with a pummelling rather than worrying if your baseball bat is about to snap.
Frank being a photojournalist with an ever-present camera hanging around his neck, photography is still the primary way to level up Frank’s stats – and there are plenty of opportunities to earn Prestige Points all over the mall by snapping a range of photos – with access to skills and abilities incoming with every perfect shot across a variety of genres; gory mess for Brutality points, story-specific scenes for Drama, Horror points when lots of zombies are present in an image and so on. The Deluxe Remaster expands Frank’s camera controls allowing him to capture an even wider array of pictures too. Plus, there’s a suite of Instagram style filters to superimpose on your captures.
Graphically, the game looks the best it ever has, with smooth performance no matter the over-numerousness of scuttling zombies on-screen. Some shaky facial animations aside, character models are rich in detail, and the mall itself has received a crisp, clean overhaul with some areas undoing wholesale renovations for this remastered version. Lighting is integral in Willamette Mall’s newfound visual aplomb, simultaneously adorning shop-adjacent plazas and food courts in vivid sunlight with dimly lit corners consumed by barely a gloomy glow. It’s refreshing too that the developers have reworked the game’s audio, converting the sound to 3D, remastering sound effects, translating dialogue into multiple languages, and, oh, recording voice parts for every character – an immersion boosting feature sorely missed previously.
Dead Rising’s original, oddball appeal has been maintained throughout the Deluxe Remaster, but with the extensive list of quality-of-life improvements, bolstered playability, sleek, modern graphics, and audio, plus a careful consideration towards modern ideals, Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster’s contemporary, user-friendly reworking makes the previous two incarnations feel positively ancient. This will be the definitive way to experience the game, and there’s no doubt it’ll end the year as one of the year’s hottest properties. Dead Rising proves there’s still ample room for zombie survival horror leaning towards a schlocky, B-movie aesthetic. Dead Rising Deluxe Edition is coming out on September 19th, with current gen consoles and PC the platforms announced.
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