Dead Rising (Xbox 360)

Manufacturer: Capcom Entertainment, Inc. Part number: xb360dedris

CNET Editor rating:
4.0 stars Excellent
Average user rating: 2.5 stars out of 17 reviews

More product information:: Editors' review; User reviews; Specifications; Manufacturer info

Description:: Dead Rising uses swarm technology to pit players against thousands of undead. Frank West is a hard-edged photo journalist hell-bent on investigating the mystery that has caused an entire mid-western town to be quarantined and its mall overrun by zombies. With an entire mall at his disposal, the action is over the top and the graphics are nothing less than amazing. This game is an absolute must have for any Xbox 360 owner!

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CNET editors' review

Reviewed by Alex Navarro
Review date: 08/07/06
Release date: 08/08/06

When it comes to zombies, few publishers have more experience with them than Capcom. The company has made a mint in recent years off various iterations of the Resident Evil series, and that franchise shows no signs of slowing any time soon. So, it is with some curiosity that we now find ourselves with Dead Rising, an Xbox 360 zombie game produced by Capcom that has exactly zero to do with anything Resident Evil. Where Resident Evil was a series all about horror, tension, and frequent jump scares, Dead Rising goes in the other direction, creating a pure action experience with zombies that are much easier to kill but travel in higher numbers--much higher numbers, actually, with groupings numbering in the hundreds. As a departure from the zombie games of old, Dead Rising is a great success, wonderfully blending campy undertones and visceral, zombie-killing action into something highly playable. It suffers from structural faults, and the game does find itself leaning heavier on repetition than you'd probably like, but Dead Rising overcomes these shortcomings by being a lot of fun to play.

Meet Frank West, wartime photojournalist, and zombie slayer extraordinaire.

The main protagonist of this zombie nightmare is Frank West, a freelance photojournalist that has made his career covering wars and atrocities. In the sleepy little town of Willamette, Colorado, things seem to have gone terribly wrong. Military convoys block off all roads leading into the town, and all communication devices have been jammed. After being tipped off about the events unfolding, Frank charters a helicopter and flies into town to get what potentially could be the story of his career. What he finds is a whole mess of zombies laying waste to the town and its citizens. After snapping away a number of pictures of the carnage, Frank instructs the pilot to drop him off on the roof of the local shopping mall--a huge, decadent shopping emporium that almost seems bigger than the town itself. Frank tells the pilot to return in three days to pick him up, and from there, Frank is seemingly on his own.

Frank's journey through the Willamette Park View Mall is a fairly complicated one. The basic premise of the game is that Frank has 72 game hours to get his story and get the heck out, and how you go about doing so is laid out in a rigid, linear fashion, though also, at least somewhat, left up to you to decide for yourself. Essentially, from the moment Frank first hooks up with some of the key survivor characters in the game, he finds himself on a path to the truth. This path is laid out in a series of case files, which are the game's equivalent of story missions. Each case file takes place at a certain time on a specific day, and it's up to you to get to where those missions take place in at the specific time designated. However, there are also a number of side missions that pop up during the course of the game. These missions are entirely optional but doing them nets you more information about what's going on, as well as some point bonuses for Frank.

The real-time structuring of Dead Rising has its unique qualities, but it doesn't always work particularly well. Specifically, the mission structure and the game's rather punishing save system simply don't get along with one another. Save points are scattered in a few specific spots throughout the mall, and you only get one save per storage device on the Xbox 360. Considering most people probably only have one storage device, that means one save for the whole game. The inherent problem with this is that because the game revolves so heavily on a rigid schedule for the case files, if you save yourself into a corner where you can't feasibly get to that next case file in time, you're screwed. All the case files are connected, and if you fail to get to one on time, the trail goes cold and you're unable to pick up any of the other story missions.

Interestingly enough, if this nightmare scenario happens, you can opt to save the game with Frank's current level and abilities intact and start the whole story over (which you'll basically have to do if you find yourself in this position anyway). Doing this does make it easier to bust through the parts you've already played, but it's still an obnoxious thing to have to deal with. By nature, having to be places on time is not an inherently fun thing. It's especially frustrating when the penalty for not being somewhere on time is the whole story mode ending and you having to start over from hopefully a close enough spot to eventually make it. Thankfully, Dead Rising turns out to be a game you'll want to play through multiple times. But potentially forcing players to replay sections because of an overly punishing save system is the polar opposite of fun.

You'll meet a wide variety of survivors over the course of the game. Some of them are friendly, and some of them aren't.

As frustrating as the save system can be, it shouldn't dissuade you from playing what's otherwise a uniquely entertaining game. You can avoid running into snafus with the save system if you play carefully enough and don't go running off doing every single side mission available before ambling toward a case file. The fact is, there's simply no way to see every mission and pull off all the game's various (and largely difficult) achievements in one shot through the story mode. And one shot will likely take you anywhere from 15 to 20 hours the first time around, so that's quite a bit of content to mess with. There are also some unlockable modes, an online leaderboard, and multiple endings to take into account, as well. Of course, games based within free-roaming environments always work this way, providing so many little Easter eggs and side ventures that you simply can't get it all in one shot. However, Dead Rising's main appeal is less in the sheer volume of content; rather, it's in the ridiculous variety of it all.

(Originally posted on CNET Reviews)

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User reviews

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Average user rating: 2.5 stars out of 17 reviews

Showing opinion 1 to 10 out of 17

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3 stars

fun game, pretty hard to get trough story line

by dumb1962000 on August 10, 2007

Pros: Lots of gore, fun to kill zombies

Cons: cant read most text unless you have a hd tv, timed missions, very hard bosses, few save points, loads too much

Summary: At first i thought this was a fun game. it was fun killing zombies, and using the various weapons at your arsenal. Then it started to get annoying when you ...

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Summary: At first i thought this was a fun game. it was fun killing zombies, and using the various weapons at your arsenal. Then it started to get annoying when you die and pretty much have to go to the beginning of the game because you didn't save. When you level up, you cant choose what you want to level up in, so you get a lot of something when you don't need it.

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2 out of 2 users found this user opinion helpful.
9 stars

Best Xbox 360 game! So far ;-)

by Ex-KGB on August 22, 2006

Pros: Swarm effect = many zombies on screen at one time; original weapons (i.e. excavator); lots o' blood:-)

Cons: Small text; save system; & annoying transciever that you must answer.

Summary: Upon purchasing my 360, I could only think of two games worth buying: Far Cry & Oblivion (I'm not much of a gamer, but waiting out for Halo 3). ...

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Summary: Upon purchasing my 360, I could only think of two games worth buying: Far Cry & Oblivion (I'm not much of a gamer, but waiting out for Halo 3). No other titles grabbed my interest, until this one. IT IS FUN! I've read complaints about the save system, and small text which I agree with, but if your unimpressed because the bosses require more than 1 gun shot to kill than your looking for something else. I'm currently a Level 40, and find that the game just gets better. You learn cool new moves (i.e. pulling a zombies intestines out of their belly, grabbing them by the legs and swinging them into thier buddies, or putting them in a plain old suplex) and can start carrying more inventory. In regards to holding weapons for a limited time, well I think it was a good idea on Capcom's part; this encourages one to scope out new weapons, and remember if you find a book in one of the book stores that relates to a weapon of your choice (criminology=allowing you to hold a blade weapon 3x as long)your all set. Finally I am quite impressed with the story line. It has substance (considering it's a zombie game) and even that campy comedy associated with zombie flicks. All in all, if you think you might like this game, I bet you will once you've played it. If Capcom comes out with another, I'm sure they'll fix the smaller issues, and hopefully impress us with the town as a setting, instead of being limited to the mall (which btw is big enough; especially if your brave enough to venture in the underground parkade = Hell on Earth).

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1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
6 stars

Just getting started, but I'm dissappointed

by rdekoch on August 15, 2006

Pros: Incredible crowds of zombies

Cons: constant transciever calls from a mentally challenged janitor character, confusing structure and level design, very small text

Summary: The device of the benevolent janitor who constantly calls while you're trying to play the game is really annoying. It might not have been so bad if there was ...

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Summary: The device of the benevolent janitor who constantly calls while you're trying to play the game is really annoying. It might not have been so bad if there was voice acting for this instead of tiny text (which I can't read). The zombie hunting part is awesome, but the structure of the game is stifling and doesn't allow for extensive exploration of the environments. It's a shame because there's cool stuff to explore.

Maybe capcom will turn this into a franchise and the kinks will be worked out in the next iteration.

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1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
4 stars

a fun game but it gets annoying

by huzzlebub on May 15, 2008

Pros: The many interesting ways to kill zombies(and time),the way it is different from most zombie games

Cons: You cant save often enough,The endless swarm of zombies can be a pain,rescue missions get tedious, bosses are more annoying then you think

Summary: First off,this game is actually pretty interesting with the whole lvling system and taking pictures is okay.This game is actually a good time killer since you can pretty ...

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Summary: First off,this game is actually pretty interesting with the whole lvling system and taking pictures is okay.This game is actually a good time killer since you can pretty much spend hours completely killing every zombie you see(if you keep withing the time limits it has set up for each of the story case.) the massive collection to weapons and food stuff is interesting since you can use weapons that dnt even hurt zombies but are just there.but the whole weapons break after a while is kind of stupid.since when does a sword break if you cut through some 50-100 zombies?it would get dull maybe but not break.the sheer number of zombies can be fun but is also annoying when your trying to escort a surviver through some huge mob of zomibes and since there are more at night its nearly impossible to do it. The bosses can take hundreds of bullets befor they die!!!i mean how man humans can survie 1 shotgun blast let alone 30??? The saving feature is also a drag when your busy trying to cut through zombies in a last mad dash so you dont lose your scoop and sometimes youll save so far away you really will have to start.the side missions also get maddening when you try to excort two people to safety only to go through a mob then they die and become a zombie.ill agree this game is fun but it just has too many annoying little flaws.i would suggest rentting not buying.

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8 stars

extremly deep

by williamhuds on February 3, 2008

Pros: fun, in a extremly redundent kinda way

Cons: extremly redundent

Summary: good game, only problem is that it gets extremly tedious, and redundent after a while

Summary: good game, only problem is that it gets extremly tedious, and redundent after a while
9 stars

I really don't miss Resident Evil anymore...

by Tomtom545 on September 18, 2007

Pros: Graphics, Gameplay ,Sou--Its a mall full of friggin zombies!

Cons: Some achievments require Xbox to be on all night, and others seem pretty difficult

Summary: This game is fantastic! I can't see anyone who plays through this say, "this sucked"..Seriously I ate this game. Buy it, you'll never regret it.

Summary: This game is fantastic! I can't see anyone who plays through this say, "this sucked"..Seriously I ate this game. Buy it, you'll never regret it.
1 stars

I stopped playing this game because it really pissed me off....

by frost_gothic on September 11, 2007

Pros: good graphic, many thing to kill zombies

Cons: saving,missions,storyline

Summary: I know many many people stopped bothering playing this game such as i myself.

At the begining it was fun, good graphic, nice new idea of gaming and all that

...

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Summary: I know many many people stopped bothering playing this game such as i myself.

At the begining it was fun, good graphic, nice new idea of gaming and all that but it becomes very very annoying when you have to do the same thing over and over again as the 'save' thing in the game sucks.

This game is more fun rather than being a 'game'. kill zombies, enjoy graphic and all that jazz but when you feel like playing video games, you cant take this as a proper choice.

I myself played it like 1 week and i went so far in the game and suddenly now i have to start playing from the very begining because apparently i dropped a mission that i had to accomplish. C'omon , gimmi a chance to try again and not force me back to the very very beginning of the game. no way.

I stopped playing it and i know many many people who decided just the same thing. If you do not own this game, you would probably join the 'very pissed-off-group' of us.

do NOT buy this game. you will be disappointment. Trust us.

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4 stars

All You Can Kill Load Screen Fest

by jones.williamk on August 19, 2007

Pros: All you can kill zombies, beautiful array of weapons, decent enough graphics, all you can kill zombies.

Cons: All you can read load screens, annoying janitor, boss-types break game flow, save games annoying, all you can read load screens.

Summary: This game had a lot of potential and I wanted to love it, but it let me down and feeling used. For all the zombie-slaying joy the game offered there ...

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Summary: This game had a lot of potential and I wanted to love it, but it let me down and feeling used. For all the zombie-slaying joy the game offered there were some catches that killed the game experience for me. So to get the unpleasantness out of the way, the things I didn't like.

First, the loading screens really got to me. It seems like a little thing, but I found them to disrupt the flow of the game. While trying to complete a mission having to sit and watch a still screen was a mood killer. It got worse when the screens would be followed by a clip, and then another loading screen. Some little indicator of the game's progess, something a little more interesting to keep me in the game, just anything to make those loading screens seem a little less like a black and white screen of boredom.

Then there's the janitor. He's not a bad concept, but he's insistent and rude. While wandering around a mall dealing with zombie hordes you can't just stop everything like some teenager and answer the phone. Also, when you have to hang up to stay alive so you can find out what's going on with that next batch of survivors it's rude to be told that it's rude to hang up. Sure, being trapped in a mall with zombies is a stressful situation, but it's more stressful for the S.O.B. actually out with them.

The save game system was also a pain. Friends don't let friends program games with save points; especially when the option is to start the game over from the last save point or the very begining. At least some sort of autosave during the relatively frequent loading screens would have been an improvement. Again, like with the loading screens the save system helped disrupt the flow of the game.

Finally, there's the small text. No options to change the font. Just really small, almost entirely illegible text. I couldn't even tell if it was merely an annoyance, or something that was depriving me of vital information.

Wait, there's another thing that bugged me. Targeting zombies on their hands and knees with melee weapons was (from what I remember) impossible. C'mon, if zombies are crouched over kneeling what could be more fun than to play whack-a-mole with their heads? Alas, it was not to be.

The game has some good points though. The combination of all you can kill zombies and the multitude of ways to kill them did provide me with hours and hours of fun. In fact my favorite part of the game was just seeing how many zombies I could kill before I ran out of weapons. It was also fun watching how the different weapons worked, and how other items didn't work. Plastic swords don't kill zombies, but do make a nice sound.

I also found the levelling system to be a nice touch as well. Though seemingly random, it was something that appealed to my sense of curiosity: what would I gain the next time I levelled?

Unfortunately, I decided that the game ultimately wasn't worth keeping before I could make it very far into it. The loading screens, save point system, and some of the early missions (and how some seemed to have disappeared after I died or restarted) just wore down the appeal of slaughtering thousands of zombies.

It's not a horrible game, but it should have been so much better. In what may be an unfair comparison Oblivion handled the loading and saving issues with much greater aplomb. Also, other games with some seemingly similar combat mechanics seem to have done better for targeting also, and these would even include Saints' Row. I may pick up another copy once the price drops another couple of dollars, until then there's the Fall/Winter 2007 line up coming out.

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8 stars

no point to it really

by bighulk74 on July 14, 2007

Pros: Blood,gore and a great storyline.

Cons: can get old after a little while...i suppose....

0 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
10 stars

If I could rate It higher, I would

by Sumguy08 on December 17, 2006

Pros: Gore, Large number of zombies, Survivors, Phsycopaths.

Cons: Small text, Bad survivor A.I.

Summary: Everyone who says this game sucks is a moron. I can safely say that this is the greatest game ever made by any game company, on any system, by any ...

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Summary: Everyone who says this game sucks is a moron. I can safely say that this is the greatest game ever made by any game company, on any system, by any game type. If you like massive zombie genocide, buy this game. If you like killing phsycopaphs, buy this game. If you like multi level gaming, then for the love of god, BUY THIS GAME!!! This is the greatest game ever so dont beleive anything the people who rate this game badly say. And to all people who dont like this game, U SUK!!!!!!!!!!

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0 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.

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Specifications

Manufacturer: Capcom Entertainment, Inc.
Part number: xb360dedris

Product Basic Spec
Platform Xbox 360
ESRB rating Mature - Blood and Gore,Partial Nudity,Intense Violence,Use of Alcohol,Language
Genre Action
Elements Action - third person shooter
Number of players 1 Player
Connectivity Scoreboards
Difficulty Medium
Learning curve About a half hour
Customization Downloadable Content

Game
Developer Capcom
ESRB Mature
ESRB descriptors Blood and Gore,Partial Nudity,Intense Violence,Use of Alcohol,Language
Release date 08/08/2006