Dead Rising 2: Case Zero
The first dead rising was the first xbox 360 game I ever played. I was stunned by the graphics, but the strange pace, frustrating save system and moronic AI made it so it lost it’s lustre fairly quickly.
As a result I wasn’t very excited for Dead Rising 2. I knew I would play it, but I was afraid all the annoyances would be back. Instead of a demo, capcom decided to make a short XBLA prequel to Dead Rising 2. I really liked the idea behind it. They were able to provide a hefty dose of gameplay (worthy of a good sized post release dlc) and provide it on the cheap (400 pts).
Because of my cautious interest in Dead Rising 2 and wanting to support this inventive new model of promotion - I snapped up Case Zero on release day.
I definitely was rewarded. Case Zero is a wonderful bite sized chunk of dead rising. It has all the elements there, but the smaller map and limited weapon selection make learning the basics a whole lot easier.
Case Zero is a little wonky in the graphics department (doesn’t seem to have kept up with the pace of 360 visuals), but it gets the job done. Hundreds of zombies are on screen most of the time, and all the weapons have appropriate feel to them. Crafting combo weapons is neat, and their ridiculousness adds a lot of fun to the game.
Almost all of the annoyances of Dead Rising are gone. Save spots are easy to find and the pacing seemed a lot better. Survivors actually do what you tell them and try to avoid zombies.
I’m really glad capcom made this game because now I’m really excited for the proper Dead Rising 2. For 400 pts, this game is one of the best values on XBLA - and despite its glorified demo roots, it does feel like a complete game.
