DEAD RISING 2: CASE ZERO Xbox 360
Capcom Meet Chuck Greene and his preschooler
Katey – they are about to become very im- portant to you. So begins Dead Rising 2: Case Zero, a
downloadable prologue to Dead Rising 2, which introduces players to their new hero (Chuck), the drug Zombrex (which Katey must be given every twelve hours in order to survive) and combo weapons (such as the drill bucket – a power drill attached to a pail, which turns undead noggins to mulch when jammed over a zombie’s head). It also serves as a deft refresher on gameplay, much of which has been re- tained from the first outing. Case Zero takes place in a small desert
town over a twelve-hour period, during which you must find Katey her medicine, rescue survivors, reassemble a broken mo- torbike, fight off a crazed zombie hunter who wants your daughter for his collection and smash hundreds of shambling skin- bags into gore-soaked oblivion – all before the military arrives. And trust us, when we say gore-soaked, we mean gore-soaked – Chuck literally turns red from the grue splattered all over him. But while shredding, bifurcating and
bashing zombies is intensely fun and more than a little cathartic, it’s also what makes Case Zero so bloody tough. As with the other Dead Rising titles, players are on the clock here, so don’t waste too much time mowing down rotters. Since it’s likely to take all but the most
savvy gamers a few playthroughs to find the necessary items and survivors, there’s plenty of entertainment value delivered here for a mere 400 Xbox Live Points. Bet- ter still, your progress from Case Zero (during which you can gain up to five lev- els) will be carried over into Dead Rising 2 to offer you a bit of an early advantage. But regardless of whether you’re in it for the head start or simply to see what blood- soaked insanity Capcom has dug up for the sequel, you won’t be disappointed. Things are about to get very, very
messy... MONICA S. KUEBLER 0000
Play To Slay: One of Dead Rising 2’s many detailed and deadly environments.
in and out of your game, and opens the door for even more unique ways to bash, slash and burn the never-ending waves of rotters. “It provides a great opportunity for players to work together
to take out the zombies,” says Ohara. “For instance, one could use a lure item – one that emits sound or light – in order to get a pack of zombies together, while the other lets rip with a homemade flamethrower – super-soaker combined with a gas can. Naturally, we’ve kept the ability to change clothes and it only adds to the fun when you see Chuck roaming the streets of Fortune City wearing a romper suit [a.k.a. footed pajamas] while brandishing a chainsaw.” But chainsaws are likely to feel mundane and ordinary
pretty quick, considering that Dead Rising 2’s new modded weapons system allows gamers the opportunity to build cus- tomized killing devices for maximum carnage. After locating a maintenance room with a workbench, players can try to combine different weapons on their own (though not all com- binations work) or uncover combo cards during gameplay that reveal specific weapon formulas. Players can also use cash to buy arms from one of the city’s illegal pawn shops. Money is equally useful for obtaining Zombrex and can be
converted into Prestige Points (PPs), which are used to level up Chuck’s stats. But the most efficient way to obtain Prestige Points is by decimating zombies with combo weapons, which garner double PPs for each kill. Combo weapons aren’t just for racking up the high scores, though, they’re also handy for ratcheting up the gore. “Dead Rising 2 takes blood spatter to a whole new level of
gruesome,” Ohara boasts. “The combo weapons will keep fans very satisfied with combinations like the paddle saw, where you take a paddle and two chainsaws to create a death baton that leaves no zombie in your path unscathed. Another one of our favourites is the Exsanguinator, a com- bination of sharp blades and a vacuum cleaner that when used on your flesh- hungry foes creates zombie mulch before your very own eyes.” Of course, much of the challenge and
fun – and occasional frustration – comes from the two elements developers inserted into the Dead Rising games in order to keep players on edge at all times. Missions are timed; don’t get too hung up on incidental mobs of zombies along the way or you’ll fail. And if you fail, don’t count on an auto-save, because there isn’t one.
60 “Always having to race against the clock and a save sys-
tem that doesn’t guarantee survival creates a sense of anxiety and dread in the player,” says Ohara. “The series is known for these two elements and it’s what makes Dead Rising a completely addictive and enthralling experience.” Aside from mission-based play, Dead Rising 2 also offers
a selection of multi-player challenges – as seen on the game’s Terror is Reality TV show – where up to four gamers can compete to win cash that they can then use back in their individual story-based campaigns. “All these unique events consist of four players going up
against each other in a gladiator-style arena where the goal of each game is to kill as many zombies as possible,” explains Ohara. “In the super-satisfying Slicycles mini-game, you jump on a bike that has two chainsaws on each of the handlebars to compete in mowing down as many zombies as you can in a set time. While in Pounds of Flesh, you strap on a set of moose horns in order to tackle and throw zombies onto a sec- ond platform. The goal here is to have the most pounds of flesh ejected onto your platform – if you have the highest amount of flesh, you win!” With the change of locale and the new, even more carnage-
friendly storyline, it’s highly unlikely that Dead Rising 2 will face the same criticism from horror fans that was levelled against the original (i.e. that Dead Rising, being set in a mall, pillaged a little too liberally from George A. Romero’s Dawn of the Dead). In fact, the clever updates to both the core game mechanics and the overall scope, as well as the new co-op and splatteriffic multi-player modes, should ensure the Dead Rising franchise re- mains a major player in the world of horror gaming. Now, as Ohara says, “Let the bloodbath begin!”
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