Capcom's remake of Resident Evil 4 that saw classic gameplay sections removed in their entirety. That is not the case in Dead Rising Deluxe Remastered.

A few things have been lost to time and changing tastes within Capcom as a company, but it's nothing that any new players would look for and nothing returning players should miss. A quick splash screen at the beginning of the game states that apart from a few select situations, Dead Rising's story will be presented as-is. All the ridiculous bosses, in-your-face satire, plot twists, and basically every line of dialog from the original game remains. As far as I can tell, the only thing missing is that (much like how Capcom changed one interaction with Ashely in RE4) taking candid upskirt photographs of women no longer grants an "Erotic!" PP bonus.

That's not to say Dead Rising's original brand of satirical American culture has been sterilized in the least. The thematic elements that tie consumerism, gluttony, government overreach, and xenophobia to the overarching zombie outbreak still work just as well (if not even more so) in the present day, and there are a lot of small gameplay adjustments which culminate in a much less frustrating gameplay experience. When compared to both the original and the 2016 re-release, it's no contest: this is the best-feeling Dead Rising game yet and the definitive version of a classic.

Fleshing Out Your Memories

There's an art to making early PC, PS2, and Xbox 360 environments look the way players them. You don't want to drastically change too much unless you are going for an all-out remake like Silent Hill 2, and you don't want to change too little (or too wrongly) and end up like the odd-looking Grand Theft Auto: Definitive Edition. Dead Rising Deluxe Remastered sits somewhere between the non-Xen portions of the Half-Life remake Black Mesa and the slavishly loyal Metal Gear Solid Delta, with the level design and structure remaining mostly unchanged but containing a number of quality-of-life (QoL) improvements and detailed, beautiful environments.

It's the areas behind the counters that stood out the most in Dead Rising's remastered world, apart from the most obvious graphical improvements in character models and facial/finger animations. What was once just an empty rectangle with a cardboard box for flavor now looks like a counter where someone would actually work, sometimes even complete with cubical-style desks, chairs, computers, and random debris. What was once a small fountain housing a submachine gun and a dumbell (you know which one I mean) is now a large water feature.

...Undeniably the best way to play Dead Rising.

Catching the morning sun peek through the glass windows of the dusty, dimly lit Willamette Mall Dining Area was a gorgeous sight to behold. I was worried about how a more realistic Frank West would look (and sound, now that someone other than Terence Rotolo was voicing him) when the original version is so burned into my memory, but those fears were quickly put to rest. Frank and the rest of the cast of Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster are just as unique, ridiculous, dramatic, and camp as they always have been, and the new voice actor fits Frank's personality well.

An Act Of Photographical Mutilation

The original Dead Rising almost felt like it reveled in punishing players with its design choices, specifically its save system and countdown timer mechanic. Saves had to be made manually at specific points inside the mall, and it was very easy to make meaningful progress but then lose it instantly because you got overwhelmed. Many people (including myself at the time) found this kind of tension enjoyable, but I have multiple friends who gave up on the game because they got tired of doing the same thing over and over while forgetting to stop and save.

In Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster, saves can still be done manually, but the game also provides a separate auto-save slot which saves when traveling between areas of the mall and before boss fights. The first time I died and was able to utilize this feature, the fact that I didn't have to restart my game over and do that whole helicopter intro again was glorious. There is a new (and remappable) control style more in line with modern games, along with the classic control scheme, and lots of completely optional HUD elements to make the game more accessible to different playstyles

A brief list of my favorite Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster additions:

• Any clothing you wear in the mall will be added to a wardrobe in the Security Room, which you can access at any point without returning to that particular store.
• In addition to the DLC costumes (a Capcom mainstay at this point) lots of new outfits have been added and are unlocked after certain challenges are completed.
• There is a blender in the Security Room next to Otis!
• Paradise Park really has a proper theme now, instead of just hints of one.
• Driving vehicles is still incredibly janky in a fun, don't-think-about-it-too-hard way.
• There is no attempt to add item crafting (a sinkhole that ended up dragging the series away from all this fun).

Crucially, the floating arrow waypoint marker which could get so confused in the original Dead Rising has been replaced with a Bethesda-style line at the top of the screen, with objective icons moving left and right on the line depending on where they are in relation to the player. Objective markers even have distance indicators on them; if you are, for example, trying to knock out three survivor rescues before the next case starts, you can plan your route to minimize the amount of backtracking you'll need to do. Again, all of this is completely optional, and can be turned off for a more pure experience.

Final Thoughts & Review Score

While it's hard to call the Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster entirely necessary considering the 2016 re-release is available on modern consoles and still holds up well, this new version is undeniably the best way to play Dead Rising. Nothing of value has been lost, and so many nice touches have been added. The core experience remains so similar that one could, theoretically, use the same Bradygames strategy guide they purchased in 2006 and follow it to ensure they achieved the best ending possible.

Dead Rising isn't a game for everyone. It's violent, occasionally vulgar, and parts of it are supposed to make you feel uncomfortable. Unlike later entries in the Dead Rising series, however, the original has something to say. Like Romero's best movies, Dead Rising uses its zombies to tell a compelling story about society (in this case, American society) at large, and this is filtered through the outside perspective of the game's original developers and writers. If you've never played it, or if your only experience with the franchise relates to the other titles, Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster is the best place to start.

A PlayStation 5 code was provided to Screen Rant for the purposes of this review.

Source: Capcom USA/YouTube