Capcom really do love their HD remasters, already in this new gen era, we’ve had remasters for multiple Resident Evil and Devil May Cry games and even good old Mega Man in a meaty collection of bundled joy.  This time it’s the turn of the Dead Rising series and with it being a 10 year anniversary since the original game was released on the Xbox 360 way back in 2006, starring the tongue-in-cheek photo journalist Frank West.  It seems like the perfect time to release the Dead Rising Triple Pack which brings the original game to a PlayStation console and PC for the very first time, as well as including Dead Rising 2 and its spin-off; Dead Rising 2: Off the Record.

 

Let’s begin with where it all began, with the original Dead Rising.  When this was first announced prior to 2006, it was the first game that truly made me feel that the Xbox 360 was a justified purchase; it was without a doubt the first game on that platform that I considered to be a console seller.  Seeing the 100’s of zombies on screen for the very first time blew me away, not to mention the insane amount of freedom that was available, thrown in with its mixture of quirky humour and senseless gore.  In the most part I wasn’t disappointed, as it went down as one of my all-time favourite games of the last generation.

 

 

Now that 10 years have passed, and it’s almost been that time since I last played Dead Rising, the term “Nostalgia Glasses” couldn’t be more fitting.  Don’t get me wrong, Dead Rising is still a very enjoyable game and it looks very crisp with its improved 1080p/60fps visuals.  However, it’s not until you’ve played the later games in the series, when you realise that at least in terms of gameplay, Dead Rising hasn’t aged all that well.  While the Psychopath bosses look like something that has escaped Arkham Asylum, and are very memorable (for a right and wrong reasons), having to come across the three convicts in the jeep is nothing short of torture and it reminded me how much I hated that encounter especially, with a passion.

 

This isn’t helped by the fact that the controls feel very awkward as you frantically try to aim your gun at the trio of bullet spongers, only for you to be gunned down and ran over within an instant.  It’s always wise to perhaps avoid boss encounters for as long as possible, ensuring that you’ve levelled up to a decent level, so that you can withstand a decent amount of damage and carry your fair share of weaponry and health items.

 

So in the meantime, while taking on the main missions, you can gain extra XP by rescuing the many survivors within the Willamette Shopping Mall.  Then you realise how bloody awful the NPC A.I is, it is pure frustration having them annoyingly lack behind or becoming a zombie buffet before you’ve even managed to escape through the first main door.  Oh and to top it all off, do you remember Ottis?  Well he’s back and he’ll continue to piss you off just as much as you remembered.

 

 

If, and only if you can look past these annoyances, then there is still some fun to be had with Dead Rising.  But for me at least, this is a game that wasn’t quite what I remembered it to be.  And it’s a damn shame, because if Capcom had at least updated the controls to be in-line with any of the following games, then I would have found Dead Rising to be far more enjoyable and I believe it’s a game that deserves that at the very least.  Thankfully, we do have the two Dead Rising 2 and Off the Record in this collection to enjoy.

 

For some reason, I never really considered Dead Rising 2 to be anywhere near the quality of the first game, but again, this is where those Nostalgia Glasses come into play.  However, when I finally played the sequel starring Chuck Greene, I realised how undervalued this game was from a personal standpoint.  For starters, while its gameplay isn’t by any means nowhere near perfect, combat of the melee and firearm variety is far more fluid then the first game, though it does feel odd not being able to take some “fantastic” photos of the undead and those that are about to become a zombie fast food snack.

 

Then on top of that, you have the brilliant crafting system, where as long as you have the Combo Card (aka blueprint), you can build some truly wacky weapons, some more usual then others and some of the more comedic variety.  The open sandbox of Fortune City is also a fantastic location which has just about everything that Willamette Shopping Mall has to offer and then some.  From playing fruit machines at the casino, to finding more of its many mini-games and trying out clothes that a grown man should never wear or even cycling around on a child’s bicycle, there’s so much to do in Dead Rising 2 and to be honest, I didn’t initially give Chuck Greene the credit that he deserved.

 

 

If you want to take the action away from the main campaign of Dead Rising 2, then you have its online multiplayer that is Terror is Reality, which is still fantastic fun.  It’s kind of like the TV show Gladiator’s, but with zombies and if you can find friends to play with, you’ll be playing this mode for many months to come.  And if you’re feeling somehow lonely in Fortune City, then unlike the first game, with both Dead Rising 2 and Dead Rising 2: Off the Record, you can not only partake in the Terror is Reality multiplayer mode, but both games can be played in full via co-op.

 

Dead Rising 2: Off the Record is pretty much the same deal as Dead Rising 2, only instead of playing as Chuck Greene, you play as the returning Frank West in an alternative reality, where Frank is that run down, he gives the Max Payne from the brilliant Max Payne 3 a run for his money.  It’s quite difficult talking about this game without having to repeat myself, as the plot also remains very similar (other than a few changes here and there) and a few gameplay tweaks, such as being able to take some “fantastic” photos.  However, for me the most welcomed addition to this spin-off is that unlike the first two games where an NPC would have to contact you via a radio, which meant you having to stop what you’re doing to read some text, NPC communication is now audible.

 

I can’t honestly say which out of the two sequels is the best, because this will be purely down to personal preference to the individual, but what I can say is that both games are still great and have aged rather well.  It’s also worth noting that A.I in both sequels are far better than the original game, so rescuing survivors is nowhere near as much of a chore and in the most part, the NPC’s can handle themselves against the undead reasonably well, especially with a weapon in hand.

 

 

 

All three games come with a variety of DLC costumes, with some giving you enhanced abilities.  Oddly however, Dead Rising 2 doesn’t come with either of its prequel DLC Case: 0 or Case: West, which is set after the events of Dead Rising 2.  I find this to be an odd exclusion, as even though both pieces of content are bite-sized, they do add to the games story and it’s kind of expected to have all DLC in most HD remasters nowadays, especially when part of a collection.

 

If you’re a fan of the Dead Rising series, then the Dead Rising Triple Pack will already be a tempting offer (if you’ve not already bought it that is).  At the moment, the three games as part of a collection will cost you £39.99 or £15.99 individually, so it does save you just short of £8.  While time hasn’t been kind to the gameplay of the original game, the visual enhancements do at least make it look respectable and the two games that followed are far better then I remembered them to be, and with Dead Rising 4 releasing this coming December for Xbox One and Windows 10, this Dead Rising collection is a “fantastic” time to get reacquainted with some old undead friends.

 

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