Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster Review – One Mall’s Trash is A Journalist’s Treasure

While Resident Evil is my all-time favorite series involving zombies, horror, and boulder-punching moments, I’ve always thought the Dead Rising approach to an apocalypse is much more immersive and innovative. Instead of having a linear approach to its plot, Dead Rising gives you 72 in-game hours to do whatever you want. You can follow the main story, rescue people, take pictures or bash zombie heads with mannequin limbs. Sadly, the series took a backseat for many years and remained a classic we only remembered fondly—or so we thought. Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster is a terrific overhaul of Frank West’s debut adventure that brings stunning graphics, modern QoL features, and the good old clunky gameplay we love.

Before I go any further, I must emphasize that Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster is not a remake—as the name clearly states. With that in mind, you can expect most of the game’s original details to be untouched. The story plays almost identically, and the few changes pertain to the wording of certain things. There might be a few controversial changes, like removing the Erotica category, changes in voice acting, and some character design. However, after I finished the game, none of these shifts dampened my excitement. On the contrary, everything reminded me why I loved the original installment when it launched.

The Willamette Incident

For players taking up the camera for the first time, you’ll play as Frank West, a freelance photojournalist on his way to Willamette, Colorado. After getting a tip about something happening in this colorful town, Frank takes a helicopter ride only to land in a mall surrounded by zombies. After a completely avoidable situation, the undead break into the mall, swarming everybody and forcing them to hide in the security mall. Now, Frank has 72 hours to discover what’s happening in the town, save a few people, and escape.

While the story might not be new for everyone, this is as far as I’ll go, especially for those jumping into the series for the first time in Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster. However, I can delve into what makes the plot so engaging and even sum it up in one word: freedom.

Contrary to other games where you have all the time in the world to see the story, optional missions, and gather as many collectibles as possible, that doesn’t happen here. You’re tied to the 72-hour mode, which literally means you only have that amount of time to finish the game. It’s up to you to choose what to do during this time. Do you want to complete the main case files and uncover the secrets behind the outbreak? Would you rather kill the 53,594 citizens of the town to rid it of zombies? The choice is yours.

Even if freedom exists, you need to realize something: you can’t save everyone. Heck, you won’t—at least not during your first playthrough. The game’s timed mechanics are as fun as they are stressful. For instance, while pursuing the game’s main story, I got two scoop opportunities to save people across the mall. Here, I had to evaluate if I wanted to continue the story or take a detour to rescue the survivors. Remember, time never stops in the game, so going for one objective won’t stop the other from progressing. Naturally, I put the main story first because I wanted to get the true ending, but I let dozens of people die.

Still, this is what makes Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster so unique. It is one of the few games that captures that desperate feeling of being in a zombie-infested land. With only three days to do as much as possible, the stakes are higher, and you’ll likely fail. Thankfully, the game encourages you to do more than one run of it, so if you failed to save a couple of survivors the first time, you can try again and look for a better ending for everyone.

A Zombie-Infested Playground

Putting the story aside, let’s dive into the gameplay. Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster takes a goofier approach to the zombie-killing antics. You’re not a special agent with a combat shotgun. You’re a journalist with a camera and mall-made weapons. To defeat the undead, you can use benches, shopping carts, bicycles, buckets, knives, and even canned soda. These are just a few of the items I can name right now, but virtually everything at the mall is a weapon.

Since the game won’t make things easy for you, each item has its durability level. For example, a toolbox will take out a zombie with one hit but won’t last as long as a baseball bat. It’s up to you to decide which items to bring into your limited inventory. Thankfully, many objects are lying around, and they respawn after you reload an area, so you won’t lack any zombie-killing weapons.

However, Frank isn’t just a photojournalist who can MacGyver his way out of any situation. As you level up, his stats will increase and unlock combat moves. From judo throws to knee drops and even flying kicks, Frank is a one-person army with or without weapons. Still, nothing beats the rush of splitting a zombie in half with a katana, but how you return these undead creatures to the grave is up to you.

Lastly, one key aspect of Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster lies in photography, which makes sense as Frank is a photojournalist. To level up, you can either kill zombies, complete scoops, or take pictures around the mall. This gameplay aspect might be the most controversial as it removed the Erotica category. While there’s still a lot of fan service in the remaster, the suggestive parts were toned down considerably. Still, that won’t stop you from taking fan service-fueled pictures, but you won’t get a reward for them anymore.

Modern Without Removing the Classic Feel

Moving on to the changes in this iteration, many might be interested in knowing what QoL features come with Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster. Fortunately, there are plenty that don’t change the game’s classic feel much. For instance, you can now fast-forward time when at a game’s save spot. This is useful, especially when there are no things to do. Furthermore, there’s a new generous auto-save feature that occurs after you enter a new area in the mall or before a boss fight. Long gone are the days of losing hours of progress because you got rammed by a shopping cart.

Also, the combat got a modern rework. Controls are more responsive, and performing certain moves is easier. Beyond that, you can even shoot while moving with a crosshair similar to recent Resident Evil remakes. However, if you prefer the old controls for whatever reason, there’s an option to pick that as well. Yet, I prefer the new additions by a long shot.

In contrast, there are still a few gameplay elements that feel clunky. For example, zombies clip between certain items and even the ground. During the shopkeeper boss fight, he got stuck and stopped attacking. Naturally, I took advantage of that to kill him quickly, but it was clearly a glitch. The enemy AI, especially in Overtime Mode, could be better. Foes will constantly get stuck or wait to shoot you until they are one foot away from you. Still, I never cared for those and never really broke my game or immersion as I played. There are so many great things in this Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster that these clunky happenings are more than forgiven.

Finally, for those wondering about survivors, they all got a much-needed improvement regarding AI. It is smarter and more responsive, and they don’t get stuck around places. The only time they’ll annoy you is when they don’t want to move on, but that only happens now because that’s their personality. I mean, who can blame them? Some have already lost their kids or a sandwich in the mall.

The RE Engine Shines Again

Ever since Resident Evil 2 was remade and we saw some of the best high-quality zombies, I knew Capcom wouldn’t disappoint with this remaster. Zombies, characters, locations, and even the smallest details at the mall never looked better. It just shows how powerful the RE Engine is and how it can easily deliver a smooth experience.

Since I reviewed the Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster on PS5, I was expecting a few frame drops or graphical issues, especially since consoles have not done so hot lately. However, it was almost perfect. The game runs at 60 FPS, with only frame drops happening when there are a lot of dust effects, mainly in Overtime Mode. Initially, I thought the amount of zombies on the screen would make the game lag, but that never happened. Yet, the delay in rendering the undead is noticeable, but only when driving a vehicle—especially at the maintenance tunnels. Other than that, it was a smooth ride from start to end.

Also, the mall got a huge face-lift. While the locations are practically the same, the way the remaster plays with the lighting and certain effects makes this iconic locale stand out. My absolute favorite was the food court. Running around it at night during the mall’s closing hours while the signs of the food signs illuminate your path and zombies was as terrifying as it was jaw-dropping. Even veterans of the series will feel like they’re visiting the mall for the first time in years.

Regarding character designs, a few have some changes to their outfits, but there is nothing that will set the fan base on fire, or so I hope. The most significant changes pertain to voice acting, and I liked the remaster’s direction. Everything is voiced now, and all of them do a terrific job. Hearing Otis’ voice through the transceiver is more immersive, and this time, you won’t lose a scoop if the call cuts off. You can wait for good old Otis to resume the message and pursue your missions.

A Remaster That Does Justice to The Original Game

Remastering a beloved game is always a challenge. We either see a faithful one with few improvements or one with many changes that lose entirely the feeling of what made the original a classic. Capcom struck a perfect balance with Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster. It captures the feeling of the original but modernizes it enough to bring a new generation of gamers to the series.

Despite the changes in certain gameplay features or characters, this remaster reminded me of why I loved the first game back in the day: it offers hours of over-the-top gory fun that other games rarely emulate. Ultimately, I was glad to revisit Willamette under a modern spotlight, and I’m sure everyone will. After all, this is Frank West’s best-seller story and one everyone should experience.

Review copy provided by Publisher.