Dead Rising is a name most zombie gaming fans are familiar with by this point, with Capcom's title using the Dawn of the Dead-esque premise of survivors trapped in a shopping mall during an undead apocalypse to boast the rendering power of the Xbox 360 back in 2006 with hundreds of zombies appearing on-screen at once. The series is also known for giving players the freedom to use a variety of items from sporting goods to electric guitars or even plastic laser swords to fend them off.

HD Remasters of the first three games, Dead Rising, Dead Rising 2, and Off the Record, were released in 2016 to coincide with the launch of Dead Rising 4 that year, bringing the original title to multiple platforms for the first time after spending so long as an Xbox 360 exclusive. The 2016 version is still available on PC and is playable on Xbox Series X/S and PlayStation 5 through backwards compatibility, so when Capcom announced the Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster, I was skeptical, thinking, "What makes it worth buying the game for a third time?" especially when the announcement teaser even seemed to rub it in players' faces that this was a third release of the game.

I am normally an advocate for game preservation, but when the game's already available on modern platforms, I couldn't see the point, and when combined with the general industry practice of just re-releasing the same old titles over putting out something new at the moment, I groaned at the reveal instead of thinking about its potential. Fortunately, after recently having the opportunity to get hands-on with Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster, I can safely say my initial skepticism may have been too harsh, as a lot of work has been put into the new version that makes it a significant improvement over its predecessors.

The preview covers the section between Day 1, 12:00 pm, and Day 2, 11:00 am in the game, so there was a decent amount of exploration, as well as main story missions, and boss battles included in my playthrough.

Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster Is A Visual Improvement

With More Expressive Character Models And Dynamic Lighting

Something that has been promoted since the announcement trailer is the visual overhaul for Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster, and it's clear that the Deluxe Remaster is a huge improvement in of looks, having been developed in the latest RE Engine that powered Resident Evil 7 and 8, the remakes of Resident Evil 2, 3, and 4, Street Fighter 6 and more. The title now runs at native 4K 60FPS with more detailed textures and dynamic lighting that makes areas such as the food court with its many hanging lights or the streetlights of Al Fresca Plaza at night look far more stunning than the original.

The character models have undergone varying degrees of change but have all been enhanced in some capacity to make them far more expressive. While everyone could see Frank West's model has changed with a different hairline and facial structure - although the original version is a playable skin - other characters like Jessie or Brad appear to have just been updated slightly to add more detail.

The cutscene featuring a mother and daughter, Connie and Dakota, trapped in a car as zombies approach - which would play if the menu was left idle for too long in the original Dead Rising - now serves as the opening to Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster before Frank's arrival, and the new character models' terrified expressions make it even more gut-wrenching than ever.

The biggest, most jaw-dropping character update for me, however, was the chainsaw-juggling Adam the Clown. While the original design was relatively smooth and not that detailed - he was only an optional Psychopath mini-boss, after all - this new one has far more facial features, such as deep laughter lines around his eyes and painted-over stubble on his jaw. This was highlighted in the close-ups from Frank's perspective, which truly showed how menacing his opponent was.

One thing that did occasionally seem out of place to me, however, was some of Frank's idle animations. While he's not the most sensitive guy by any stretch, casually checking his camera while a grieving mother, Leah, tells the story of how her baby was eaten alive by zombies in front of her felt a bit insensitive. I do wonder if maybe the game would have been a bit more immersive if, after all the work that's been done to make character models more emotive and expressive in general, different idle animations could be used depending on the kind of conversations being had.

Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster's Gameplay Is Smoother Than Ever

Particularly Where Shooting Is Concerned

While some aspects of the gameplay haven't changed much - survivor AI may not be as clunky as before, but it can still be frustrating, as despite shouting at them to follow me or directing them to a zombie-free space, they would occasionally gravitate to another crowd of the undead, forcing me to jump in and save them - others have been greatly improved. Although Jessie does give Frank a gun relatively early in the campaign, the main way many will likely fend off the zombie hordes will be through melee attacks with whatever they can get their hands on throughout the mall.

These melee items all break eventually, and in earlier versions, there would be some guesswork involved as to how many more hits were possible. Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster features a small but much-appreciated improvement, as a damage bar appears beneath each weapon, showing how much longer players can bash some zombies with each item, letting them plan ahead and not get left empty-handed as often.

Of course, that's not to say the shooting hasn't been improved as well, as the ability to move while aiming made the experience far smoother. I had three main sequences where I had to use my gun in my preview: a shootout in the food court between Brad and Carlito, rescuing Sophie from a group of prisoners driving a vehicle around the central courtyard, and my showdown with Adam the Clown.

While the boss fight against Carlito featured plenty of cover, and the food court hadn't become overrun by zombies yet, providing one target to keep an eye on, the battle with the prisoners was far more intense, with large groups of zombies and a survivor to be aware of. In the original game, stopping and starting to get in some shots after luring the prisoners into crashing into a tree would leave Frank open to getting attacked by a zombie or shot by the turret on the back of the kart, but in Deluxe Remaster, being able to dodge and weave between obstacles all while having my reticle aimed at the target made it a far more fluid gunfight.

While I definitely welcome these changes, for those who find themselves preferring the original Dead Rising gameplay over Deluxe Remaster's, there is an option to toggle between the new and classic control scheme in the pause menu. However, a warning did suggest that once "Classic" controls have been selected, they can't be changed back in that playthrough.

Frank's Photojournalism Is Still A Great Way To Level Up Quickly

But One Element Has Been Cut

Of course, despite knowing how to handle a gun from covering wars, Frank's main job is to shoot the zombie outbreak with his camera, and this is still a key way of boosting Prestige Points (or PP) to level up. This involves getting specific types of shots that reward players for gore or drama or even documenting specific locations. This mechanic hasn't really changed all that much, but originally there were five main "genres" that players would be rewarded for: Brutality, Drama, Erotica, Horror, and Outtake, and one of them, Erotica, has been cut from Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster.

ittedly, it took me a while to notice this change, as most of my shots naturally fit into the Brutality or Horror genre due to the nature of zombies in general, with a couple of outtakes involving putting a horse mask on a zombie or finding one pushing around a shopping cart. It's definitely for the best that Capcom has cut the Erotica genre from Deluxe Remaster, though, as it always felt a bit creepy in the original, with a hint of necrophilia when that reward popped up on the screen.

There's Far More Customization In Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster

From Vanishing HUDs To Background Music

Something that often goes overlooked by fans is the number of different ways they can tweak the game experience from the Options menu. The version I played was on PC through Steam, so naturally, there were various resolution, HDR, and frame rate settings that I automatically set up from the start. However, nearly every element of the Heads-Up Display (HUD) can be tweaked through this Options menu at any time, including the option to have the HUD fade and disappear entirely, with this either being an extremely quick process or a more gradual one depending on preferences.

Personally, I found some of Dead Rising's HUD could get cluttered at times, even in the original game, as Frank would get asked to help more survivors. Therefore, I did eventually toggle the setting so that the HUD would disappear quickly, but then I found myself wanting to check the com along the top of the screen to make sure I was going in the right direction without constantly opening up the map, so I turned this back on when first exploring newer areas - even though the map itself seems not to have changed from the original game - just for the sake of comfort.

Another thing I liked in the Sound tab in the Settings menu was being able to change the music playing in the mall at any time. While only a fraction of the possible songs were available in my preview session, it was fun blasting out a more energetic track before diving into a full-on zombie-slaying rampage instead of the slightly more serene music one might expect from a mall.

The game also quicksaves after each story moment or upon entering a new location, and while I thought this would make the experience too easy, the only way to manually save is through the traditional method of using the beds in the security room or the toilets around the mall, rather than through the main menu to create some balance.

It's Easier Than Ever To Change Frank's Look

The Costume System Has Been Streamlined

The way Frank can change his attire in the game has also been streamlined. The preview I played featured several skins representing both the wider Dead Rising franchise, as well as other Capcom IPs such as Resident Evil or Mega Man, with the following being available and plenty of other options - like the prisoner jumpsuit - being unlockable as I progressed through the game:

Pre-Order Bonus

• Chuck Greene
• Frank West 2006
• Willamette Parkview Mall Bee

Digital Deluxe Edition Bonus

• Leon S. Kennedy
• Creepy Rabbit
• Licker
• Rikuo
• Mega Man

Whereas the previous version of Dead Rising involved going to different lockers around the security room to put on different outfits, while these still remain as assets, most are no longer functional. Instead, there is one main costume locker in the monitoring room where Jessie and Brad are often situated, and a menu appears that makes it far easier than before to scroll through and select the desired outfit.

While the overall story of Dead Rising hasn't changed - if you enjoyed the game in 2006 or 2016, the odds are high that you'll also enjoy Deluxe Remaster - it's clear that Capcom's approach to Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster has been to provide a far smoother overall gameplay experience alongside its more updated look, and in that regard, from my time with the game I would say the studio has been successful. While its changes aren't too revolutionary, they certainly make it the best way to play the classic zombie title, and it is a great introduction to the series for newcomers.

Screen Rant was provided with a Beta code of Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster on Steam for the sake of this preview.

Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster releases digitally on September 19, 2024, for the Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC, with a physical release coming at a later date.