Anyone would think it was almost mandatory to release at least five games that have to do with zombies a year. The original Dead Rising had a great influence on the initial zombie movement for this console generation. While this is the technically the fourth installment, it is actually the second game in a different light. Told through the eyes of the first games main character Frank West the question now becomes have they gave us enough a year later to take a trip back to Fortune City?
When playing with Chuck Greene in the original Dead Rising 2 last year we hadn’t really heard of what happened to Frank West. This explains what happened immediately after the first game on his rise and fall. Trying to risk it all to come back out on top zombies start running rampant again and you need to figure out what’s going on while. Unlike Chuck your a photographer, so taking pictures of various situations is what can come handy to you for XP.
Zombies have definitely expanded their territory here. There are alot more zombies on screen with better AI. It never gets old to mow down a horde of zombies that stand in your way.
Alot of the things that made Dead Rising great like the two player co-op mode which now can be experienced with Chuck and Frank together. Additions to Off the Record are a new sandbox mode. This is something that I’ve always wanted in Dead Rising, none of the pressure from the 72hour limit which now lets you complete challenges at your pace with or without a partner. The new Uranus zone is small but pretty cool to be in, adding new weapons to the mix of old.
Nothing has changed from the original Dead Rising 2 and that might be apart of the problem. There were a couple of issues since the first game that hadn’t been addressed. Load times are still in an issue but are an improvement and a better menu system would have been a nice addition. The prologue dlc and Case West seemed to have done a better job of offering new locations, items story for the price tag which could be an issue for some.
Dead Rising 2: Off the Record is something fans of the series had been asking for. Many would have wanted this as DLC but with the voice work, story dialogue and other additions it does stand out from the original. Fixing some of the issues it is known to have in the series could have been addressed. While not ultimately changing to much it is still very much a solid game for new comers and fans alike to pick up.
