Dead Rising 4

Dead Rising 4
Developer	Capcom Vancouver
Publisher	Microsoft Studios Capcom (Steam)
Platforms	Xbox One Microsoft Windows PlayStation 4
Release date	Xbox One, Microsoft Windows WW December 6, 2016 PlayStation 4 WW December 5, 2017
Game modes	Single Player Online Co-Op
Ratings	ESRB: Mature 17+ PEGI: 18+ CERO: Z

Dead Rising 4
Missions • Characters • Maniacs • Weapons • Vehicles • Clothing • Food • Locations • Achievements

Dead Rising 4 is the eighth installment in the Dead Rising series, released on December 6, 2016. The game features the return of Frank West, the protagonist of Dead Rising, Dead Rising: Chop Till You Drop, and Dead Rising 2: Off the Record.

Dead Rising 4 returns to Willamette, the setting of the original game, during the Christmas season. The game is a sequel set in 2022, sixteen years after the events of the first game, and one year after the events of Dead Rising 3, though it also acts as a soft reboot of the series. Dead Rising 4 also does away with the restrictive time limit, much like the Wii port of the original; Dead Rising: Chop Till You Drop.

A PlayStation 4 port for the game was released on December 5, 2017, titled Dead Rising 4: Frank's Big Package.

Plot

Further information: Story Mode (Dead Rising 4)

Frank West, a former photojournalist who is now working as a college teacher, is approached by his student Vicky Chu to investigate a military compound on the outskirts of Willamette, Colorado, the site of the first zombie outbreak. They discover the compound is used for zombie research, but are forced to flee when discovered, with Frank falsely accused of terrorism. Months later, ZDC agent Brad Park convinces Frank to investigate a new outbreak in Willamette during the Black Friday sales, offering to help clear his name. Upon arrival, their helicopter is shot down, and they find that the zombies are infected with a new strain of the virus.

Frank learns that an organization called Obscuris is searching for a monstrous creature named Calder, a former human soldier turned intelligent zombie carrying crucial data from Dr. Russell Barnaby, the scientist behind the original outbreak. Despite several confrontations with Vick, who has her own agenda, Frank uncovers Obscuris' plan to use the intelligent zombies for cheap labor. After rescuing survivors around the town and battling Obscuris and Calder, Frank retrieves the data, but is betrayed by Vick, who destroys the disk; she later reveals that she saved a backup of the data. They reconcile and plan to share the story. During their final escape, Frank sacrifices himself to ensure Vick and Brad can leave safely, securing the evidence needed to expose the truth behind the outbreak.

Frank Rising

After falling from the helicopter, Frank was half eaten by the evo zombies but suddenly after all the zombies had gone away, the experimental wasps entered Frank and converted him into an evo zombie which gave him new abilities like acid spit, pouncing, and roaring. After getting all of these new abilities, Frank starts to eat humans. In the Willamette Mall, Frank is shot and taken to Barnaby's lab where he is given control of his body back but loses all of his powers. Blackburne tells Frank that the military is planning to firebomb Willamette and the only way to survive is to get on the evacuation helicopter which would arrive shortly.

Blackburne also tells Frank that he could regain all his powers by absorbing the wasps which were present in evo zombies. Frank asks about a cure, which Blackburne agrees to help him with, granted he gathers supplies for her. Blackburne later double crosses Frank, but he threatens her in order to get her cooperation to continue. Blackburne explains that she needs to get into Barnaby's lab but is unable to due to the high levels of radiation. Frank is eventually successfully cured back to a human and is able to escape with Blackburne in the evacuation helicopter. 

The DLC has three endings:

• TIMEOUT: This triggers when Frank fails to complete all the missions in the given time.

• GOOD ENDING: This triggers when Frank captures all the princess wasps and enters Barnaby's lab. Hammond and her team survive the onslaught and joins Frank and Blackburne aboard the helicopter. The epilogue message reveals that with the help of Vick Chu, Frank exposed the government’s involvement with Obscuris as well as publishing a book detailing his experience as a zombie, becoming a best-seller. He once again, gains popularity and his name becomes a household name again.

• BAD ENDING: This triggers when Frank fails to capture all the princess wasps. In this ending, Hammond and her team are killed while Frank and Blackburne are the only survivors. After this, the epilogue message reveals that Frank quit his job as a photojournalist and disappeared from the public eye, with nobody learning of his experiences as a zombie and towards his dying day, he was plagued with nightmares of blood and insatiable hunger.

Development

"Looking forward, we’re just giddy with excitement. What can we do next?"

—Mike Jones from Capcom, stated while talking about a possible sequel to Dead Rising 3

Capcom announced interest in developing a fourth entry in the series shortly after the release of Dead Rising 3. One of the producers of the third game, Michael Jones, stated he was not entirely satisfied with the third game. He mentioned that the team wanted to make Dead Rising more interactive through Xbox Kinect and SmartGlass, such as integrating player actions to escape zombie grapples. He also noted the success of the multiplayer system in Dead Rising 3, suggesting that the next installment could potentially include a four-player multiplayer option. However, the development team elaborated that achieving this would be significantly more challenging than the traditional two-player co-op that the series has featured since Dead Rising 2, stating that "nothing is set in stone."

The game was formally announced and showcased at E3 in 2016. The trailer confirmed the rumors of Frank West's return as the main character. It depicted Frank's return to Willamette and revealed the game's setting during the holiday season. Set 16 years after the events of the first game (and one year after Dead Rising 3), the story centers on a new outbreak that has overrun the Willamette Memorial Megaplex mall with zombies, and history repeats itself as Frank has to discover the cause of this new outbreak.

Dead Rising 4 retains the larger open world from Dead Rising 3, allowing Frank to travel outside the mall and explore the town of Willamette. The game also introduces several new combo weapons to the series.

The game does not feature a time limit of any kind due to negative player feedback with previous games. The exception is the online multiplayer mode, where players complete objectives with a given time limit. The mode is inspired by the Infinity Mode of the original game. The backstories of the four characters are detailed within this mode. It starts in a safehouse, where weapons can be purchased before the doors unlock. A safehouse must be reached by the end of the day to survive.

It was later announced that Dead Rising 4, unlike its predecessor, would be a timed exclusive for Microsoft Windows and Xbox One for one year. After this period, the game was expected to release on PlayStation 4 in the fourth quarter of 2017. There were also hints of a possible release on the Nintendo Switch, following the announcement that Dead Rising and Dead Rising 2, along with its spinoff Dead Rising 2: Off the Record, would be re-released on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One with improved resolutions and a frame rate locked at 60 FPS.

Pre-Order Bonuses

Players could receive the following bonuses by pre-ordering the game:

• Candy Cane Crossbow (Best Buy)
• X-Fists (Microsoft Store)
• Sir Ice-a-Lot (GameStop)
• Slicecycle (Amazon)

These pre-order bonuses were later made available for purchase via the Xbox Store, each selling for $1.99 USD.

Gameplay Features

• The maximum character level has been doubled from 50 to 100. However, the player also levels up faster.
• The time limit has been completely removed from the main game, although a few select missions still have time limits.
• Scrap can be collected as currency, replacing the traditional money that was used in Dead Rising 2. 
• A massive skills screen allows Frank to use points to level up, similar to Dead Rising 3. This skill tree is much larger and more expansive than it was in Dead Rising 3. 
• A range of collectibles can be picked up, including cell phones, newspapers, and podcasts. 
• Frank can crouch to avoid being detected. He can sneak up behind enemies for stealth attacks and takedowns.
• The camera is utilized for more than just taking pictures of the player's surroundings. It is used as a sort of detective-type tool -- taking photos of clues for story investigations.
  • To elaborate, Frank can (on top of taking pictures) use a spectral analyzer to scan various items (usually locks, hiding places, or password panels). The night vision mode gives Frank the ability to see in dark places and interact with objects around him.
• Instead of using yellow blocks to track health like in previous games, a more traditional green health bar with the player's hit points is displayed.
• Psychopaths are now called "maniacs," and most are optional encounters. Despite lacking cutscenes, they do maintain some personality and have unique dialogue during battles.
• Zombies no longer become more active at night.
• Saving is no longer done in bathrooms, but the game frequently auto saves. The game will also display when a checkpoint has been reached. 
• It is the first game in the series not to feature mixed drinks.

Downloadable Content

• Season Pass: The Season Pass includes the Super Mini Golf and Frank Rising game modes. It also includes the Stocking Stuffer Holiday Pack.
• Frank Rising: The Frank Rising DLC adds on to the main game's story. It takes place directly after the game's main ending. This game mode adds new achievements.
• Super Ultra Dead Rising 4 Mini Golf: Allows players to play mini golf with friends or alone. This game mode is strictly optional and does not add on to the main game. This mode also comes with its own set of achievements.
• Capcom Heroes: A free update to Dead Rising 4 for all owners of the base game. Capcom Heroes allows players to dress up like characters from other Capcom video games. Each character has their own unique set of abilities or weapons. This free update was released on December 5, 2017. It also added a new set of achievements.

Fan Criticism

Main article: Criticism of Dead Rising 4

Several features of Dead Rising 4 have been highly criticized by critics and players alike. Dead Rising 4 has received mixed reviews, with criticism geared mainly towards the changes to Frank West's character, removal of the time limit system, and the lack of campaign co-op. Since the release of the first trailer, there has been some backlash from the Dead Rising community against Capcom Vancouver's decision to change the voice actor of Frank West, as well as significantly changing his appearance. Fans felt that Frank hadn't returned to his "true form" without the return of his long-time voice actor TJ Rotolo.

Trivia

• In IGN's "33 Minutes of Gameplay" video, several characters from the first game are mentioned or showcased as Easter eggs, or only appear as voices through Frank's nightmare.
  • The known survivors are Brad Garrison, Jessie McCarney, Ryan LaRosa, and Jeff Meyer.

Gallery

Frank equipping the Exo Suit

The new Willamette mall

The outside of the mall

Frank taking a "selfie" above an undead horde

Promotional poster

Concept art

Exo Suit concept art

Exo Suit concept art

Exo Suit concept art

Exo Suit concept art

Videos

Dead Rising 4- Return to the Mall

Dead Rising 4 E3 Announce Trailer

E3 2016 Announce Trailer

10 Minutes of Dead Rising 4 Gameplay - Gamescom 2016

The First 33 Minutes of Dead Rising 4 - IGN First

References

v · e · d Dead Rising 4
Dead Rising 4
Weapons - Locations - Characters
Game Modes
Story Mode - Multiplayer - Super Ultra Dead Rising 4 Mini Golf - Frank Rising - Capcom Heroes
Cases
Case 0 - Case 1 - Case 2 - Case 3 - Case 4 - Case 5 - Case 6
Missions
Investigating the Story - Escaping the Base - Finding Cover - Catching Up with Vick - Tracking the Outbreak - Investigating Obscuris - Pursuing Obscuris - Thwarting the Ambush - Infiltrating the Dam
Gameplay
Achievements - Combo Weapons - Combo Vehicles - Photography - Skills