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[Review] - Dead Rising 2: Case Zero


Kevnvek
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Dead Rising 2: Case Zero

Developed by: Blue Castle, Capcom

Published by: Capcom

Players: 1

Rated M (Mature) by the ESRB

The Breakdown

Are you a bad enough dude to save your daughter from turning into a zombie? The zombie outbreak that started in Dead Rising has spread beyond Willamette, Colorado, and Chuck Greene, a former motocross champion, finds himself in search of a temporary cure called Zombrex for his infected daughter. Is Dead Rising 2: Case Zero able to stand on it's own as a good game, or is little more than a paid demo? Read on to find out.

The Important Stuff

Dead Rising 2: Case Zero is a prologue to the upcoming (you guessed it) Dead Rising 2. You play as Chuck Greene, a former motocross star who must find Zombrex, a medicine that delays zombification for 12 hours, for his infected daughter Katey. Chuck and Katey find themselves stranded in the small town of Still Creek which has been overrun by zombies. With the military set to arrive by nightfall, and quarantine in effect, Chuck must find a way to escape with his daughter before the military takes her away from him.dr2cz1.jpg

The first thing you'll notice is that the environment feels much more open than the first Dead Rising. Sure Willamette Mall was huge, but it just feels different to be able to actually walk around in an outside environment, in the streets of Still Creek. Though most of them are boarded up for obvious reasons, you can explore many of the houses and shops to find items of varying usefulness.

One awesome new feature is the ability to combine items to make special weapons. To make a special weapon you simply place two items that can be combined together on a work bench. For instance, if you use nails and a baseball bat, you can get a spiked bat. Kills with these weapons earn you PP, the oddly named experience points that originated from the first game. Holding the attack button to perform a special attack is much slower but earns you a large PP bonus. Some of the other special weapons include the Paddlesaw (chainsaws duct taped to a boat paddle), an Improvised Explosive Device (a nail covered propane tank), and the Boomstick (a shotgun attached to a pitchfork). Combo cards, which can be discovered in the story and earned by leveling up, allow you to do the special attacks with your crafted weapons, while Scratch Cards, earned by simply making the corresponding weapon, are nothing more than reminders of how to make that weapon.

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One thing that bothered me was Chuck's movement speed. For a guy trying desperately to find a cure for his daughter, he sure has a leisurely gait. Fortunately, a quick look at the Stats screen reveals that you will be able to increase your speed, among other things like inventory slots, just like you could in the first game. You increase these stats by gaining enough PP to level up. You can only get to level 5 in Case Zero, but your levels, experience and combo cards can be transferred into Dead Rising 2 when it is released. Sadly, your speed doesn't get upgraded by level 5, but you will certainly be able to move faster in the full Dead Rising 2.

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You no longer have a camera to take pictures and gain PP with, but the combo weapons earn the points just as well. Basically all of the gameplay features of the first game apart from that are in tact, and improved. There are still survivors to rescue, but rather than having to answer an annoying old man on a walkie talkie, you just have to climb up to a safe rooftop and talk to a guy with an assault rifle, who points out any survivors he's seen. While I was playing I even found a blender and was able to make the old Spitfire drink that makes you, well, spit fire, reminding me of some of the wackier things in Dead Rising.

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The graphics are decent, but some of the textures are a bit weak if you look at them too closely. Most of the time you are trying to avoid zombies, and the third person camera doesn't usually get too close for you to notice, so you can only really tell in cutscenes. The music sets the mood well, and the game features an awesome ending credits song, similar to the first game.

Tips and Tricks

- If you need money, you can smash up the slot machines and ATMs at the casino. They respawn when you enter and leave the safe house. You can also get a hefty sum of money by rescuing Gemini from the bar and finding her jewelry for her.

- Unless you are trying for the zombie killing achievements, it is best to avoid them. You get much more PP for completing objectives and rescuing survivors. And since all of your objectives have a time limit, you don't want to waste too much time fighting zombies.

- Combo weapons are almost always more effective than regular items you find lying around (with notable exceptions like the Air Horn and Beerhat), and always earn you PP for kills. It is advisable to keep a spiked bat in your inventory at all times. The materials to make it respawn next to the work bench in the safe house.

- Always carry at least one healing item (preferably orange juice, since it heals you fully). At first this may be a pain with only a few inventory slots, but by the time you level up to 5 you will have plenty of slots to hold them.

Reaction

Though it only lasts a few short hours, I had loads of fun playing Case Zero. The story is good, and very emotional. The little bit that it let me play left me wanting more. Though it can be considered to be a teaser for the full Dead Rising 2, Case Zero has enough content and replay value to stand alone as a proper Xbox LIVE Arcade title. It's simply too big to be considered a demo, and with the tiny $5 entry fee, you'd be hard pressed to find a reason not to get this game if you consider yourself a fan of zombie games.

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Other developer's should take note of what Capcom has done. This XBLA title is a great way to build interest in Dead Rising 2, and make some profit at the same time. While I certainly don't think they should be rid of normal, free demos altogether (the Case Zero demo was literally a cutscene and a quick walk across the town for me), standalone prequel adventures like Case Zero are a great idea if the developer's can provide enough content in them so that they are more than just demos, and keep the price low so that consumers don't feel ripped off.

AudaciousKevin gives Dead Rising 2: Case Zero a 9 out of 10!

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