Of course, what good are
ridiculous weapons without
something to fire them at? In this
Dead Rising, the Horde has been
revamped.“We’ve always had the
regular zombies – I just like to call
them a herd of cows. They’re not too
terrifying, they’re slow, and you can
mow them down like bowling pins.,"
says Nickolls, who wanted to amp
it up a bit this time around.“We’ve
now introduced the ‘freshly infected’
– it’s very 28 Days Later. If they bite
you, it’s game over. Don’t think you
can climb onto cars or anything to
get away; they’ll just climb on after
you. They’re a lot more athletic and
agile. It’s gonna be crazy. They can
then go one of two ways – they can
become a part of the general horde,
and just wander off meaninglessly,
or they can become a lot smarter
and more perceptive. Kind of like
the raptors from Jurassic Park. They
wear you down and finish you off. It’s
awesome.”
In case you hadn't already
guessed, the recipe for a Dead
Rising game is simple – zombies and
outlandish weapons. To those still
struggling with the concept, Nickolls
likens it to a nice meal.
“The analogy I give to a lot of
people is if you look at a serious
survival game or a serious zombie
game, I equate that to a steak dinner.
It’s like a nice steak dinner. You make
an appointment to have this dinner,
and it’s an important commitment.
We, on the other hand, are a greasy
cheeseburger. You bite into that
cheeseburger and it goes all over
your shirt, and it’s super satisfying,
dirty and messy – and it’s amazing.
A couple of days later you go ‘yeah
man, I want to do that again,’and
that’s what Dead Rising is. We’re this
guilty pleasure that you just love to
keep going back to, again and again. I
think that’s because we know exactly
who we are, and what we are – we
don’t try to pretend to
be something else.
That’s what keeps
us fresh.”
•
Dead
Rising 4
is out
Dec 6
Frank West and the Dead Rising franchise have been around for 10 years.
This month sees the release of the fourth game in the series, and you
can expect the guys at Capcom still have a few surprises up their sleeves.
Words Alesha Kolbe
D
ead Rising was first released
back in 2006, with Frank West
quickly cementing himself as
the lovable protagonist of the series.
Not unlike Evil Dead's Ash Williams,
West's light-hearted take on the
looming end of the world, combined
with the simple beauty of completely
dismembering bodies, has made him
something of a cult hero.
But now, in a market saturated
by zombie/survival games, movies
and television series, some might
wonder how the Dead Rising series
has managed to remain both relevant
and revered. If you ask Joe Nickolls,
studio head for Dead Rising 4, it’s
thanks to players’relationships with
the game.
“The series has evolved so much,
and everyone that’s been on that
journey has felt as though they were
a part of Frank’s world. We felt we
really had to invest in the Dead Rising
brand, because we hoped it would be
around for a very long time. Everyone
has a different relationship with the
games, and it’s important that we
embrace that in order to grow the
series.”
The Dead Rising franchise has long
been known for its ludicrousness.
Sending the living dead flying with
whatever long, rigid item you can
find lying about has always drawn the
masses, and with DR4 introducing
the exo suit, you can be sure the
insanity will continue.
“One of the hallmarks of the
game has always been putting
things together with duct tape that
otherwise shouldn’t be near each
other,”offers Nickolls.“You’re always
thinking, ‘what’s the next stupid
thing I can do?’So we came up with
the idea that maybe you could just
combo yourself,”he laughs.“We
designed this suit that you could build
upon; it lets you punch cars, and rip
up parking meters – all it really does
is make you more powerful. But of
course, you can then combo that
again. You can walk up to a slushie
machine that makes frozen drinks,
and combo that with your suit, which
gives you this ridiculous weapon that
shoots ice tornadoes and ice pellets
and icicle bombs. It was the dumb,
logical progression.”
visit
stack.net.au68
jbhifi.com.auDECEMBER 2016
GAMES FEATURE
You're always
thinking, 'What's the
next stupid thing I
can do?'
Terence J. Rotolo
(TJRotolo),thevoice
of Frank West in the
originalDeadRising,
is also a prolific
stuntmanappearing
in the likes of The
Scorpion King and
Power Rangers
Jesse Metcalfe
(JohnTucker,HeWho
Must Die) played
the lead role in the
Watchtower film
based on the games
JoeNickolls(studio
director) thinks a
DeadRisingsetDown
Under would only
workiftheprotagonist
was voiced by Hugh
Jackman
The original Dead
Risingwasconsidered
toographicallyviolent
in Germany andwas
unrated, therefore
deeminginunsellable
in the country due
to Microsoft
guidelines