Preview | Dead Rising 3 bringing mayhem and hoards of zombies

When we attended a press preview day for the Xbox One the other week, one of the first titles we had to tackle was Dead Rising 3.  As an Xbox One exclusive, this game will no doubt be one of the more appealing factors for those who are torn between the two next-gen consoles this month, at least that’s what Microsoft is hoping.  So as I sat down to check out the game, we were told that we would have free roaming capabilities in the demo, which would last about 10 minutes or so.

Suffice to say, as soon as I jumped into the game, I was met with more zombies than I’d ever seen in one area in any game.  Holy hell, where there a ton of undead bastards all over the place!  Surely with the added power of next-gen technology, the game was able to produce a ton of action in any given area, while remaining pretty smooth at 30 frames per second.  The first thing that I run over to a flame-throwing motorcycle and combined it with a steamroller.  You see, in the game, you’ll be able to not only forge various weapons out of other weapons and items, but you’ll also be able to combine vehicles to create super, ass-kicking destruction on wheels.  So as I put together the steamroller and the motorcycle, I proceeded to run over anything that moved.  The steamroller allowed me to mow everyone down while activating the flamethrower was equally as cool, as I watched hordes of zombies get lit up at the push of a button.

I also got to check out some simple Kinect functionality, as I was able to flick the controller in an upward motion to get a zombie off of me when they would latch on.  Though it seemed like a bare minimum way to use Kinect, I actually thought it was great to not over do it and this simple mechanism added to the experience.

Now storywise, the game takes place 10 years after the events of Dead Rising 2, as we get introduced to a new character in Nick Ramos, who’s a mechanic that is trying to find his way out of Los Perdidos, California (a faux Los Angeles). Of course, he joins other survivors along the way and they’ll have to team up to stay alive.

[Learn more about the game from our producer video interview]

After the initial demo, we had the opportunity to return two days later to get a bit more in-depth with the game, as we were allowed to see the first 15 minutes of the game.  The game kicks off about three days after the outbreak, after we get a timeline of the hours following the spread of the infection.  We see freeways filled with accidents, streets with dead bodies, vehicles, fires and abandoned quarantine areas (that can’t be good!). Even from the start,  you get a sense that the game is a little bit darker than the previous two as there is a moodier atmosphere.  We then get Nick into a facility that happens to be a way out of the city, but is also filled with zombies that are locked in containment units.  You also notice pretty quickly a lot of detail, from the grotesque faces of the undead, to simple things like the cloth on Nick’s mechanic outfit and plenty of visual effects. Each zombie also has innards, so as you decapitate, maim or cut through them, you’ll see bone structure, internal organs and more – it’s quite gross and awesome at the same time.

There are other little additions such as being able to pick up weapons without having to stop – you can scoop up something off the floor and continue walking, which looks more natural.  After Nick realizes that his sure way out is blocked off, he has to go back the way he came in and is met with flesh eating zombies.  After witnessing a plane crash, Nick must then fight off a crapload of zombies, which gives gamers their first real taste of the madness that is to come.

The little taste that we received of Dead Rising 3 was tasty enough to wet our appetite and I wanted to keep playing, but alas, I’ll have to wait another pair of weeks before I can get fully immersed into the Los Perdidos (which interestingly enough, translates to The Lost, in Spanish).

Nov. 22 can’t come soon enough, but in the meantime, enjoy this gameplay footage!