Dead Rising

It's really refreshing sometimes to play a game that doesn't take itself too seriously nor does it provide any philosophical, deep, moral messages or even thought-provoking. What it does is entertains and sometimes that's all you want.

Inspired by the likes of the George Romero zombie flicks of yore, Dead Rising tells the tale of Frank West, a no-nonsense photographer who has landed, quite literally, into a living hell of a story. And that hell comes from the mindless hordes of zombies that seek to devour nothing but human flesh as well as generally moaning and groaning. He gets more than what he bargained for as he uncovers a conspiracy that goes far deeper than he has expected.

With that premise in mind, it's easy to see the parallels to past zombie flicks and here it works really well. The Resident Evil games without a doubt are MUCH more intense than this game, but Dead Rising spices things up by game-play variety. Not only do you get to take pictures, but you also must time them right to get the perfect shot which earns you points that level up your character. You can also take on side missions ranging from rescuing civilians and killing bosses. And man, some of the boss fights are really good and inventive with a wide assortment of lunatics to defeat and once you defeat them, you get rewards like key cards and even new weapons. Some of the weapons are really cool; especially the ones that impales zombies and have them spinning around and around are darkly humorous and you can even use a lawn mower!!! Add to the fact that you can drive vehicles to mow down zombies and you have yourself one entertaining game.

The controls are tight and sound effects are top-notch, crisp and clear. Nothing is more pleasing than bashing the living daylights out of zombies with the sound of gushing blood and it helps to have a rocking sound system that adds to the experience. And it looks really good too; with detailed graphics that are so real looking, you'll be left agape with mouth in tow. As for the story, I thought it was pretty good although it doesn't really offer anything new in terms of plot, but the character development got me invested in the proceedings as things went along. There are some hilarious moments, though not in a lighthearted sense. All in all, stellar production values make this one a treat.

However, the biggest flaw in this game is the save system. Simply put, it is not well-developed or though out in any way shape or form. You can't save anywhere nor are there any multiple save slots for saved games; I found myself very frustrated by not being able to save anywhere. There are some moments where the game saves automatically and it lessens the frustration somewhat, but the save system really sucks the life out of this otherwise stellar game. I also found it rather short. I beat it in a couple of hours which is a little disappointing but the amount of variety in zombie disposal makes up for this in some ways than one.

So is Dead Rising the best zombie game? it's quite close but Resident Evil is much better. However, If all you want is a nice, entertaining zombie game that doesn't take itself too seriously, isn't very deep and offers a variety of killing zombies, then get this game. Just don't expect Resident Evil-like quality and you're all good.

Capcom is one of the best, if not most popular 3rd party developers of all time. They've developed a lot of popular series and have created some interesting game characters, including the ones from street fighter, and resident evil.

But then comes Dead rising, which puts you in the shoes of a young freelance photographer looking for his big scoop to put his name into history. What he doesn't know is that for 3 days, from September 19th, to the 22nd in the year 2006, He's in for a blood-soaked, fear-inducing, adventure filled with excitement.

Frank West is tipped off about something big happening in Williamette, Colorado, a fictional town of about 50,000 people. He hires a low budget chopper pilot to fly him in so he can snap some pictures of the town. it's not long before the national guard come and chase the chopper away, but not before Frank is able to land on the mall's roof, and get in. He soon discovers that it's not a civil disturbance, but a zombie apocalypse. And for the next 72 hours, it's him, a few survivors, and nearly 50,000 blood-thirsty, flesh-starved zombies.

I got this one very late in the Xbox 360's lifespan, and i'm still not sure why I waited so long to pick this one up. It's a lot of fun and worth whatever you pay for it.

The main idea of Dead rising is to collect as many Prestige points (PP) as you can, while helping 2 particular people discover why the zombies have risen up in the first place. You collect prestige points by using your camera to take photographs of people, zombies, anything that's happening in the disaster zone of Williamette. You also collect points by killing zombies with whatever is at your disposal, including knives, sporting goods, tools, Electronics, and my personal favorite so far, the Chainsaw. You get the biggest PP boost by rescuing survivors and guiding them to the only sanctuary left - The security room.

The best part of the game, is the fact that you have a lot of freedom. for 72 hours, you can do whatever you please. Want to be a zombie-killing machine with whatever is at your disposal? You can. Do you want to rescue survivors? you can. Do you want to take pictures for your big story? do it. And are you sure you want to know why the zombie apocalypse is happening in the first place? stay close to 2 particular people, stay alive, and you might just learn exactly why there is a zombie apocalypse in the first place.

For anyone who hasn't picked up a copy of Dead rising yet, I strongly suggest you do so. The replay value is great.

9/10

The idea is great. Go around kill zombies in massive numbers, and do whatever you want. Sounds like fun? It is, but it could be so much better, and the errors are so glaringly obvious that the game developers could in no way miss them. It makes you wonder, but that's okay it's still a great game.

The problems are numerous, the only thing the game does completely right is with combat and the shear amount of zombies. Everything else is need of fixing. The first problem is the fact that you only get one save file, but that isn't too bad, seeing as you can start the game over and over again with the same file. But the save system is weird at best, and is a tad annoying. Save points are hidden away, and can be hard to find, especially since you'll want to save often, as the game is quite difficult and you can easily find your self playing an hours worth of game play over again. Save often! The main problem with the game is the lack of any originality with missions, their either main missions, called case files, or escort missions, tons of escort missions. But thank god they are skip-able, you don't have to rescue a single person if you don't want to, however if you want to level up fast you may want to check them out. Also the case files must be done before a certain time in the 72 hour period your there, if you miss one it's game over, but you start with all you skills and abilities. The game isn't actually 72 hours, the time is accelerated.

There is also the fact that you have to unlock the mode that I was most looking forward to, complete freedom, you don't get that when you have to do a case file. That annoys me, as sometimes I just want to go around and just have fun. You'll have plenty of time to do it, but you're always worrying about how much time you have left. Also if you decide to do this you miss out on those annoying escort missions.

Weapons are fun and intuitive, they make the sounds they are supposed to make when you hit them, and killing the zombies never seems to wear, although you could theoretically get through the whole game without hitting a single one. The game is hilarious! It's not going to scare you, it's going to make you fun. This is a casual game, I just wish some parts of the game were made to fit the casualness of the rest of game.

The photo part of the game can net you some cool pictures to show to your friends but that's about it. And it feels rather useless. Their are a few other problems that I noticed but nothing major, a few collision problems, and there is a minor amount of repetitiveness. Also the text is freakishly small. But all the problems are out done by how much fun you are going to have. If you are looking for a good fun game, this game is for you, but it will annoy some, make some extremely angry, and give everything others wanted. If the developers are going to make a sequel, they better fix some things, it's the only thing holding it back from greatness.

When I picked up Dead Rising at the local video game retailer I expected a pure and simple zombie bashing game. As a fan of the zombie genre, that was what I had wanted as well. While the game delivered the buckets of blood and pointless killing that I had craved at the time it also supplied a little more.

There is an actual plot line that involves multiple endings for the player to unlock. Of course the player can ignore the story which constricts them to a strict time track to stay on top of in order to complete each of the missions arrayed. Ignoring the plot line does not detract from the game as it lets the player simply run through the mall killing at will, or having a more noble streak and rescuing survivors.

The mall itself holds plenty of weapons to use, food to regenerate health, and clothes to change into. The graphics are well done, featuring great sound effects (especially the blood splatters), and some great killing moves.

The game also features some small RPG elements which allow your character to upgrade and gain more health, stronger attacks, and some new hand-to-hand attack moves to use against the zombie horde.

The only true gripe I have with the game is with the difficulty one can have with non-zombie enemies, and with the saving system, which requires you to run out of your way in order to find a save point which are scarce and scattered.

The game also only lets one keep one profile, which I believe makes it easier as you really only have one game to worry about, and lets you keep a single character which transfers from game to game so you don't have to start with a wimpy character like you do when you first pick up the game.

Overall I believe Dead Rising was an enjoyable zombie romp for those who enjoy the zombie genre. However if you are completely impatient, loath difficulty, and feel the developers must make a game comfortably around your own little mold that you have in your head, don't pick it up because you will merely get frustrated and annoyed.

Upon reading the basic plot for this genre I was intrigued, and thought how can you go wrong with a game based on a mall full of zombies with well over 150 weapons at your disposal? Upon actually playing it, I admit to being impressed as there is much to see and do in the game. It pays homage to the famous "Dawn of the Dead", but is not an exact copy, only the scenario is the same.

There are different ways to go about this game. You play as Frank West, a freelance photographer who is dropped off a small town mall on midday, and have 72 hours in the game (which translates to around 10.3 hours real time) before the chopper returns to collect you. In this time, you can either follow the story, and complete the set missions, or just go berserk with whatever weapon you can find on a mindless zombie rampage. As far as weapons go, they range from the brutal and devastating such as the small chainsaw, shotgun, katana, machine gun...to the downright useless and comical items like teddy bears water pistols, dinner plates and CD's! The more effective the weapon, the more satisfying the zombie death, ermm "re-death?" is. Alongside the vast range of weapons available, there are a series of hand to hand moves Frank can master upon levelling up. Levelling up happens when you collect enough points to progress to the next level, which is always rewarded with with an extra health bar, an extra inventory bar, or a skill. Best thing is, you can carry your skill onto the next game, so don't worry about not reaching level 50 as you can simply start again and continue building.

I find this game super addictive with massive replay value, as you can never get bored of laying into the hordes of literally never ending undead with your insane arsenal of grizzly tools. The zombies re spawn constantly and in the same numbers, so don't be shocked when you re-enter a room to find it packed wall to wall with zombies after clearing it out afew minutes before. If the walking corpses aren't enough, you have human dangers to deal with. Whether its felons tearing round on a armed jeep, a Vietnam vet with a machete, a disgruntled food store owner with a spiked shopping trolley or much worse...they are just around the corner. Survival takes a new meaning in this game, as there are very and I repeat VERY few places you can let your guard down. There are human survivors around the mall, who have to be not only located, but persuaded to come back to the security room and then escorted. Escorting survivors can be very irritating, as many are slow at moving and just run into crowds of zombies, meaning you have to keep going back to rescue them.

You are given time limits for everything; psychos, missions, survivors etc. You can easily check when the cut-off line is for each objective by checking your watch, you will need to do this in order to plan out an order of tasks, starting with most urgent.

All in all, an immersive, blood soaked, no holds barred rampage worthy of its 18 certificate. Just remember to get hold of Adam's chainsaw and the 3 books which boost its impact if you REALLY want to do some crowd controlling.