Is Dead Rising 2: Case 0 a short game or a lengthy preview to the full sequel? That’s the question everyone seems to be debating. After playing through it not once but twice (willingly!), I am happy to say that I don’t need a label – all that matters is that this is the best $5 game available for Xbox Live Arcade.
Presented as a prequel to Dead Rising 2, Case 0 tells the 14-hour story of Chuck Greene, a man whose daughter, Katey, has become infected with Capcom’s virus-of-the-moment. This virus, like all the others, will eventually turn the little girl into a zombie. But if Chuck can retrieve a vile of Zombrex, Katey will live to fight another day.
Chuck must also protect his own skin while searching for a way to escape Still Creek, a small town that’s been locked down due to the zombie outbreak. After recovering one vile of Zombrex, he discovers an old motorcycle – the one and only working vehicle in a town full of relics. It’s missing several key parts, however, including the engine, the handlebars, and the back wheel. From this point on, Case 0 shifts into full Dead Rising mode, becoming a game of survival and zombie destruction.
The latter element holds more weight this time around, as Case 0 is considerably easier (or is it just more forgiving?) than the original Dead Rising. Using a host of cool weapons – the assault rifle is more amusing than it is useful but the broadsword is a slicing good time – Chuck has the power he needs to eliminate every zombie that stands in his way. Even better, Case 0 comes equipped with the weapons creation system that’s featured in Dead Rising 2, allowing players to turn a pitchfork and a shotgun into a deadly combo that’ll make every zombie beg for mercy. (Well, not really. But if they had the capacity to understand what mercy was, I’m sure they’d beg for it.)
Other amusing weapon combinations include an electrocution device that’s made of a battery and a rake, a decapitation device that’s made using a drill and a bucket (you have to see it to believe it), and a spiked bat using a standard baseball bat and a box of nails.
Aside from being stronger, cooler, and more fun to use, these weapons are also the best way to earn PP. Though you can gain a ton of PP from rescuing local citizens (most of which are crazy and devoid of a good story), there’s no better way to level up than to hunt zombies.
To ensure that its citizens are stocked with defensive weaponry, Still Creek features a pawn shop that stays open at all times. Yes, that’s right – even during a zombie crisis. But you will have to free its owner (who is standing on a van that’s surrounded by zombies) before the shop can be entered. After that Chuck can take home another vile of Zombrex for $25,000, which he’ll need to rescue a woman in one of the many side quests. The most important item, however, is the motorcycle tire, which retails for $5,000.
At first, these items seem to be priced exorbitantly high. That is, until you discover the cash registers, ATMs and slot machines, which are found throughout nearly every location in Still Creek. You can choose to waste your money by playing the slots or bust the machines open to watch the cash flow out. In a matter of minutes, you should have all the money you’ll need. If not, you can always re-start from the beginning while retaining the cash and PP earned in your previous adventure.
For $5, Case 0 provides a lot of bang for your buck. The game offers a solid amount of replay value, with or without the multiple story endings. (FYI: They aren’t worth your trouble. Play Case 0 because you enjoy the Dead Rising style of gameplay or don’t play it at all.) More importantly, the controls and the action elements just feel so much better than the original. I loved Dead Rising 1, but I only played through it once. It was too frustrating, both in terms of the semi-clunky controls and the ultra-painful difficulty. Case 0’s controls are greatly improved, and the difficulty setting is no longer cheap and unforgiving.
However, not everything is right in the town of Still Creek. Most notably, the scavenger hunt is ridiculous. This isn’t Mario or Sonic, or an RPG for that matter, so why would I want to spend several hours scouring the city for five motorcycle parts? The reality is that I didn’t, and if it weren’t for the fact that the zombie battles and weapons creation system rocked, I wouldn’t have wanted to continue.
Worse yet, the final part (handlebars) can only be obtained by talking to two biker thugs, who only appear after a certain time on the clock – supposedly 3pm. Even worse than that, they will only appear at that time if you first go back to the game’s safe zone (an old garage/gas station) and then re-enter the town. I only know this because, after several failed attempts, and after 30 frustrating minutes wondering why I couldn’t complete the game, I searched for some information online. The answer was that, if players aren't lucky enough to get it right the first time, they'll likely be forced to endure hours of trial and error – or cave like I did and search for help online.
Other than that, Case 0 is only disappointing in the area of story, music, and visual presentation. These elements lagged behind Resident Evil 4 back in ’06 when the original Dead Rising arrived, and they aren’t much better today. That’s the (arguable) price we pay for having so many zombies crammed onto one screen. But considering what game developers have done with Xbox 360 since its ’05 launch, Case 0 should have been able to crush the visuals of Resident Evil 4, if not the fifth installment.
Obviously, Case 0 isn’t the download for eye candy-seeking gamers. But it’s an easy buy for anyone who loved the original Dead Rising. The controls and gameplay elements are exactly where they should be, making it the perfect prelude to the long-awaited Dead Rising 2.
Rating: B
