Review

Dead Rising 3

When there is a new generation of consoles you need established IP’s to help with the launch. Of course, new experiences are expected. But, a sequel to a popular series will push more systems out the door than an unproven game (most of the time). With the Xbox One launch, Capcom was one of the developers tasked with motivating gamers to side with Microsoft. Dead Rising 3 was their answer. Did their game sell a lot of gamers on an Xbox One? It’s certainly possible. Speaking for myself, I can safely say that Capcom didn’t disappoint with the latest entry in the series!

In Dead Rising 3 (DR3) you take control of Nick Ramos in the city of Los Perdidos, California. Ten years have passed since the events of DR2 and despite things dying down (pun intended), history seems to repeats itself. For some reason there’s another zombie outbreak, this time spreading across the city. Los Perdidos is evacuated and then hit with airstrikes. Unfortunately, not everyone is evacuated in time. Nick being one of the unlucky ones, it’s up to him and a group of survivors to find a way out of the city before the military comes back to finish what they started!

The first thing you’ll notice about DR3 is that the visuals aren’t exactly what you would call “next gen’…at first glance. Yes, it isn’t a pretty looking as say Forza 5; there are issues with objects popping in and the character models aren’t the best. But, don’t let that turn you away. Shortly after starting the game, you’ll begin to realize why it looks the way it does. There has been a significant increase in the amount of zombies that can be on screen at one time. And they aren’t a bunch of walking clones either; Capcom was able to fill the screen with enemies without resorting to using the same model over and over. There’s no lag or frame rate issues, even with massive explosions and bodies falling from the sky. Basically, this isn’t something that could have been done on the last generation of consoles. Furthermore, with all the enemies on screen Capcom has enhanced one of the main selling points of the Dead Rising series – the mass killing of zombies.

Zombie killing in DR3 is better than ever. Wading through groups of zombies with your favorite weapon never gets old. Coming from DR2, you still have option of combining normal weapons into ridiculously lethal super weapons. Not to be outdone by the past, Capcom has introduced combo vehicles. You can now take two vehicles and combine them together in the same way you do weapons. You can combine just about any two vehicles you could think of as long as you’ve leveled the right things to do so. The Roller Hog is my personal favorite – it’s what you get when you combine a steam roller with a motorcycle. Being able to crush hordes of zombies at high speeds never seems to get old.

If walking through the infested city is too intimidating to do alone, you have new options there as well. One is that survivors you’ve saved around the city are able to join you on runs by becoming a part of your posse. Different survivors have different stats so you have to pick the best one for the job. You also have to take care of them a bit. A survivor without a weapon is basically zombie food so give them something nice. Feeding them when they’re running low on health is also a good idea. Just like in DR2, you can invite a friend or search for another player for some co-op fun. The joining player will take control of Dick, one of the main characters from the story. When you join a game, Dick’s clothing and level will match the clothing and level of Nick in your solo game. What I like about searching for players is that it’s broken up into categories. If you want a casual player who isn’t concerned with anything but completing the campaign, you can search for that. If scouring every building and dark alley is your thing, you can search for other completionists like yourself. This way you’re never stuck with someone who may ruin your experience because of a difference in play styles.

It wouldn’t be a Microsoft produced game if it didn’t feature Kinect and Smartglass integration. The good news though is that their involvement genuinely adds something to the game. The Kinect allows for voice commands and physical gestures to offer more options during play. For example, if you get grabbed by a zombie you can just shake them off by waving your arm. I wasn’t a fan of the physical gestures but I like the voice commands. It’s now possible to lure zombies to you by speaking to them. If you’re on one side of a broken bridge and want to clear the other side just say “over here”. Then watch as they plummet to their death trying to reach you. This mechanic adds a layer of depth I wouldn’t expect from a game that’s based around killing zombies in most silly of ways; it’s a smart, realistic way of handling the walking dead.

The voice commands play a role in another important aspect of Dead Rising and that’s the Psychos. The boss battles are just as difficult as they’ve ever been. What’s cool though is that the game will prompt you with something you can say that’ll make them upset in the heat of the moment. Making them crack causes them to become vulnerable for a short period of time. It’s cool to see which phrases set them off as it usually gives you some insight as to why they went crazy. The posse I mentioned earlier can also be controlled via voice commands which are much quicker than trying to go through menus to find a particular action for a given situation. The best thing about the Kinect integration is that you can turn certain parts off. If you like the gestures but don’t like the voice commands or vice versa you can just shut off one of the features or both.

The Smartglass integration really surprised me. I figured it would be just some simple additional information or something small like a portable map of Los Perdidos. I’m happy to say that it’s actually more useful than I originally gave it credit for. Sure, you can do things like setting waypoints on the map. However, the fun comes in the extra missions that Smartglass provides. For instance, while exploring the city you’ll come across these locked boxes housing useful items. They can’t be opened without completing certain side missions. Being able to call in an airstrike or drone support are other abilities unlocked via these missions. For me this extended the game quite a bit; having something to do while exploring new parts of the city on top of all the other stuff is great!

After completing the campaign, DR3 it isn’t over. You have the option of trying the mode you didn’t start with (either Story or Nightmare). Nightmare mode features the normal gameplay DR fans have grown accustomed to; zombies are more deadly, places to save are limited to safe zones or porta potties and there is a lot less time to finish side missions and escape the city. While it isn’t considered the “easy” option, Story mode does allow for more freedom which is especially good for those completionists out there. A good thing to note is that you get to keep your current level, weapons and clothes. So there’s no need to start from scratch (that option is available if you want to start fresh though).

Overall DR3 is a great game that can keep you occupied for hours. The graphics aren’t top notch, especially for an Xbox One title. That said, with so much going on I definitely understand why it looks the way it does. The sound effects where better; the voice acting was good and the splatter of zombie guts sounded great in a disturbing kind of way. One thing I didn’t like was Nick’s personality. He seems scare all of the time and isn’t as memorable as Frank West or Chuck Greene. The story is still interesting though and the game is fun. Like I said before, Capcom did a great job of bringing an established IP to the next generation of gaming. If you have an Xbox One or plan on getting one, I would definitely recommend grabbing this title!