Dead Rising tells the story of a journalist, Frank, who goes into Williamette, CO to investigate a tip he received. Upon his arrival he sees chaos rules the streets and that the dead are walking. His helicopter sets down at the only safe place, the mall. Once inside, Frank begins to unravel the truth as to what went down in this little mountain town.
First and foremost, let's get it out of the way: Zombies + a mall = cannot miss entertainment. Something about that combination just screams fun. Hell, Dawn of the Dead made George Romero the "legend" he is today despite the horrible acting and storyline. Zombies themselves seem to be overtaking all other movie monsters in terms of popularity. Recently, there have been zombie TV movies, a remake of Dawn of the Dead, 28 Days Later, a sequel to 28 Days Later in the works, the fantastic The Walking Dead graphic novel series, and now Dead Rising.
Back to Dead Rising, the storyline and setting make this whole thing work. Now I can't say the storyline is perfect, as there are a few things one could point to and ask "Why?" or "How?", but overall it really drives you forward and has one of the best angles I've ever seen to set up future sequels.
How good is the story? So good that I could see a movie being based on this game. Not that that says much with Hollywood the way it is, but the storyline is a perfect excuse to film another zombies in the mall movie.
The characters really help the story too. Most aren't exactly fleshed out really well, but they don't need to be as years of conditioning have helped us all realize what types of people will be out there in case of a zombie outbreak. One that I really thought was great the first time I ran into him was Adam. (That is a link to a in-game video. It's a minor spoiler as it's just a character's introduction.)
There is a great deal of goofiness mixed in with the seriousness of this all and it makes the game that much more fun. As you can see if you clicked the link for Adam, most of the characters are way over the top. However, this is still offset by the serious tone presented to you in the story and voice acting. It's all very well done.
The gameplay of Dead Rising is pretty good. You shouldn't find yourself hampered by the controls at all. The way you move, attack, and issue orders all feels very natural after a while.
That brings us to one of the game's problems, the first hour or two. When you start, you're going to be so giddy about the fact that you're killing zombies in a mall that you don't initially notice the problems with your limited moves. The game is tough from the start and can be frustrating due to problem number 2, the save system. You can only save at specific points, your safe area/HQ and restrooms. (More areas are added LATE in the game to keep you from finding the developers and killing them...) With things coming at you full speed initially when you're limited and don't really know what you're doing yet, well, let's just say that people get upset early on is a common theme.
To get past that, explore and have a blast simply killing zombies, then just restart. See, the game actually allows you to level up and then restart so when you come back into the mall, instead of being level 1 with no skills, you could be level 20 and have various skills to help you manuever a lot better in the initial missions.
Normally, I'd be upset by something like that, but this game is so much fun and it does allow you to skip the long cutscene that starts the game, so you can restart right back into the action.
Once you do get going, you just don't want it to stop. That leads us to the final problem, time. There is a lot to do in Dead Rising. There are many, many survivors around the mall that need to be saved, many psychos that need to be lkilled, not to mention the main storyline that needs to be solved, and everything is timed. This is probably my biggest complaint about the game. So much to do, and so little time.
The pace made things a bit too hairy, particularly when trying to save survivors. Some needed help walking and such, so you were limited in who you could save and when. Plus, they just aren't tough enough to fend for themselves. If you left them behind, they quickly died. This becomes a big issue when trying to save multiple survivors at a time because you don't know who needs help moving and who doesn't until you recruit them into your group.
Still, any negatives are pushed aside in the name of a great setting, good story, and good gameplay.
I highly recommend this game and I'll be picking up any sequels the day they hit the shelves.
Not perfect, but it's a lot of fun.
8 out of 10.
Dead Rising - X-Box 360 Review
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DictionaryDave
- Posts: 487
- Joined: Fri May 21, 2004 12:37 pm
I got one too. MS actually did a good job w/ Media Center and the 360. I have Media Center 2005 on my PC back here in my study/PC room. My 360 is on my wireless network and I can access all my Media files on the 360 as if it were my Media Center PC (minus the CD/DVD drives). Works really well.
As a bonus, the Microsoft remote that came with my tuner card actually works on the Xbox 360, which is really good considering how bad it sucks trying to run Media Center with the 360 controller.
As a bonus, the Microsoft remote that came with my tuner card actually works on the Xbox 360, which is really good considering how bad it sucks trying to run Media Center with the 360 controller.
"... and then I was forced to walk the Trail of Tears." - Elizabeth Warren
You have an X-box 360!?! You bastard.
I traded in my Playstation 2, Gamecube, X-Box, Gameboy Advance, and some games. In return, I received the 360 and a DS.
“Every record been destroyed or falsified, books rewritten, pictures repainted, statues, street building renamed, every date altered. The process is continuing day by day. History stops. Nothing exists except endless present in which the Party is right.”
Well then, let me go get my time machine...At the time, you weren't in town yet. Had I even had an inkling that you would have wanted it, I would have given it to you.
Speaking of that, do NOT buy little Gordo (and this applies to all you parents) the V-Tech Smile. It sucks. Not only does it look horrible and sound horrible, but the interactivity is a joke. I understand it's for 2 year olds, but that doesn't mean they should be given shit.
Speaking of that, do NOT buy little Gordo (and this applies to all you parents) the V-Tech Smile. It sucks. Not only does it look horrible and sound horrible, but the interactivity is a joke. I understand it's for 2 year olds, but that doesn't mean they should be given shit.
“Every record been destroyed or falsified, books rewritten, pictures repainted, statues, street building renamed, every date altered. The process is continuing day by day. History stops. Nothing exists except endless present in which the Party is right.”
My mother-in-law already bought him the V-Tech Smile, against my wishes. She knew I didn't want him on computers/video games as an infant. 1 in 166 kids goes autistic these days, and nobody is yet sure why.
He has no interest in the VTech whatsoever. He has more fun pushing buttons on the remote control of the VCR we no longer own.
He has no interest in the VTech whatsoever. He has more fun pushing buttons on the remote control of the VCR we no longer own.
"Be bold, and mighty forces will come to your aid."
