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| Source // Moby Games |
I don't really care for zombies. Yes, I've seen a few films and games about the shambling monstrosities, but I don't seek them out above anything else. I'm not drawn towards them in any way like they're drawn towards the living. If a game about zombies wants to get my attention, it needs to be damn special, and probably focus on anything but zombies.
All that means Dead Rising has a bit of work to do...
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| Source // Moby Games |
Fun Times
Meet Frank West, a freelance photojournalist with a desire to see why the town of Willamette, Colorado is under some kind of military lockdown. They say that hiding behind a camera makes you feel invincible, and we'll soon be putting that to the test as we fly in and observe some rather unusual scenes.
I'm playing the Xbox 360 original, complete with awful screen tearing, so screenshots have been cobbled together from the Internet.
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| Source // Moby Games |
Our first task is to grab some photos of interesting events. A guy fending off zombies from the roof of his car? That's got to be worth something to someone. The more stuff your camera finds, the more points you score. You'll have the opportunity to capture images of all kinds of scenes on your helicopter flight in, from exploding gas stations to people falling off roofs, for which you will be rewarded with 'Perfect Brutality' rankings. Gruesome.
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| Source // Moby Games |
We get to the rooftop of the shopping mall and are welcome by this Spanish-looking fella who makes little sense. Was he expecting us? Does he know something we don't? Why are the shots framed weirdly? That's not an important question, to be fair.
These cutscenes are voiced, which is surely a phrase I need to type less of as this 1001 list goes on - I think most games are capable of vocal characters by now. While they don't do too bad a job of giving these models some character, the animations leave a bit to be desired. Something not quite right with them.
Anyway, let's get inside and see what's going on.
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| Source // Moby Games |
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| Source // Moby Games |
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| Source // Moby Games |
Full-on zombie uprising, of course. You'll have to excuse the health bars in these images. If it's not cheating, it's New Game+ or something.
There are a lot of zombies in Dead Rising. A kill counter in the lower right of the screen might seem tempting, but while they are slow to roam the floor, if they get a whiff of your presence they'll make a beeline for you, and you won't be doing much unarmed. Attacks are basic and defensive until you rank up and learn new moves.
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| Source // Moby Games |
The whole game takes place under a 72-hour time limit. If you're not back on the roof by then, you're not getting rescued. You can keep checking your watch if you want, but the game is more than happy to remind you of how long you've got left when it's trying to hide some loading screens. Besides, that's days away, we got this.
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| Source // Moby Games |
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| Source // Moby Games |
Dead Rising will have you meet up with and safely escort survivors of whatever is happening here in a string of missions that are a mix of opportunities and storyline. Whether you've got a goal or not, though, the mall is basically one giant playground to kill zombies in, which is primarily the appeal of Dead Rising.
You're not here for the plot. You're not here for the characters. You're here to drive through zombies and cause an awful lot of blood loss in seemingly any way imaginable.
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| Source // Moby Games |
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| Source // Moby Games |
From hurling mannequins to kicking footballs, from chopping with axes to mowing down with lawnmowers - even all the way to picking up and throwing lawnmowers - the sky is the limit when it comes to dealing with zombies.
And you don't even have to kill them. You can take photos of them. You can avoid them. You can play Dead Rising a few ways - in whatever way you want, really. It's not an open world, as such, but you're freer than you might think you are, locked in a shopping mall.
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| Source // Moby Games |
Frustrations
I didn't feel so free, though. I have some problems with Dead Rising, and they're the kind of first-world problems that put me off playing, first of which are the dead-as-the-zombies characters we meet.
I can't even remember this woman's name. She's some 'more important than you' type who clearly knows more about events than she'll tell us. The camera in the cutscene seems fascinated with checking her out, though I can't work out why.
At one point, we bump into her, literally, where she twists her ankle a little and then decides that we, the photojournalist who doesn't know what's going on, is deserving of her pistol. She's not willing to give out information, but she'll give over a firearm because she can't walk.
I never expected anything major from the plot for this massive zombie shooting gallery, but that's kinda silly.
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| Source // Moby Games |
Speaking of plot, cutscenes will lead to snippets of information about the background of these events and uncovering them all gives you a greater understanding of why there are a load of zombies in a shopping mall.
There are also moments where characters hit you up on your walkie talkie to give you some gossip about potential leads. Another guy wandering the mall with a camera like me? If I'm in the area, maybe I'll check it out. As it happens, I've got to go meet up with someone caught in a firefight with an actual human being. How strange.
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| Source // Moby Games |
Carlito is the guy from the rooftop, and for some reason, he's armed with a P90 and is spraying it at us. I didn't have a hunting rifle or masses of health in my playthrough. I had a pistol with rapidly dwindling ammo and another guy whose name escapes me shooting Carlito too, or trying to.
The fight was a joke. Carlito's pathing had him stuck in loops, and most of my shots did absolutely nothing of note. Aiming wasn't amazing, and there wasn't any form of a cover mechanic to save yourself from being shot. After a few minutes, I was running around with no ammo, failing to hurl chairs towards him. I was put out of my misery and killed not too long after that.
In a game with thousands of zombies, I was killed by the first human I encountered.
Final Word
And that's Dead Rising. Or more to the point, that's my experience of Dead Rising. Running through a mall, fumbling a little with the controls, not really caring about the people involved, not caring about the story, forgetting I had a camera to take photos with - I don't know why I should even bother taking photos, to be honest with you.
I wasn't having fun. I suppose I could see glimpses of fun. Running around with a mannequin looked daft, and having it shatter into pieces after taking damage and then running around with a mannequin's leg made for a sight to see, but not one to write abou-oh.
I clearly haven't gone into Dead Rising prepared for what it actually was. It's a different kind of survival horror. It's not about jump scares, it's about preparedness. Do you have the supplies to make it to your objective? Do you know a safe route back for these survivors to follow? Have you saved in your one save slot recently?
The more you play and unlock new skills and fighting moves, the more improvised weapons you make use of, the more situations you make the most of, the more Dead Rising might start to appeal. But I'm not the kind of person to really be interested.
Maybe a highlight video, maybe a crazy showoff of ridiculous moments, but for an entire game? Not likely. And there's what, four of these games now? Can the gameplay really be that good?
It's unlikely I'll be bothered to find out. I'm not sold on this (re)incarnation of the tale of zombies in a shopping mall, no matter how wacky it may be.
Fun Facts
I read that as many as 800 zombies can be on screen at once. For all I don't really care about them, that is an impressive technological feat - especially given the myriad of ways you can then attempt to thin the herd.
Dead Rising, developed by Capcom Production Studio 1, first released in 2006.
Version played: Xbox 360, 2006.