“Capcom’s staple zombie franchise rips its way onto Microsoft’s Xbox One as a launch day exclusive. While it may not pack enough of a punch to wow those looking for a true next generation experience, there’s enough here to suggest that we are seeing just the tip of the iceberg in terms of what the Xbox One can truly do.”
The Gameplay:
Dead Rising 3 doesn’t necessarily bring anything new to the franchise – rather it streamlines some previous issues, making this a much more fluid and enjoyable Dead Rising experience. Set in a city as opposed to your traditional shopping mall complex – Dead Rising 3 has you fighting for survival while following a timed story with plenty of side missions, psychos and secrets to unlock.
Unlike in previous games Dead Rising 3 is a lot more lenient with its mission time frame, allowing players an opportunity to explore the ins and outs of the city without worrying too much about missing key story segments. Nevertheless, you are constantly watching the clock and battling with the desire to continue completing challenges and side missions to earn valuable PP while also ensuring you don’t fail the main story.
A crucial level up system is still in place here allowing you to create your own versatile zombie killer. It’s your choice how you develop, whether melee weapons are your favourite way to smash through hordes of zombies, or you prefer guns or explosives. Dead Rising 3 has you upgrading various elements, speed, health, survivor capacity – you name it and you can pretty much upgrade it.
One of the key additions to Dead Rising 3 is the on-the-go item customisation. Instead of going to work benches you can now combo up weapons and vehicles instantly providing you have the necessary items in your inventory. Although the weapons are just as whacky as ever, there’s definitely an element of seriousness surrounding Dead Rising 3 that wasn’t present before in the series.
The Presentation:
As with all launch games it’s fair to say that Dead Rising 3 is underwhelming. Sure it does provide glimpses of what the Xbox One is capable of – for example the sheer volume of zombies (were talking thousands at a time) on screen at any given time is thoroughly impressive. Yet character models, glitches in movement and other similar issues keep this from being a smooth and standout experience.
Perhaps the best thing is how well Capcom provide fan-service: finding Blanka masks and other Capcom gems is a lot of fun and shows just how in tune Capcom are with their audience.
The Verdict:
If this weren’t a next-generation title then Dead Rising 3 would be a lot more impressive. It just doesn’t possess anything that makes it a worthy specimen to show off a new machine. It’s a good game but that’s it nothing more and nothing less. The incredible power of the Xbox One does allow Dead Rising 3 to show off some impressive features including zombie volume, but it’s by no means a perfect game. Don’t let that put you off because overall Dead Rising 3 is a whole load of fun.
Gameplay – 7/10
Presentation – 7/10
Replay Value – 8/10
Verdict – 7/10
Igor Kharin
Dead Rising 3 at CeX
