Capcom’s somehow come up with the *deep breath* Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster Digital Deluxe edition

Last week Capcom announced Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster, a remake of the brilliant 2006 zombie smashing open-mall game in the publisher’s RE Engine, and now it’s released some more detail alongside the news we’ll be playing it sooner than some perhaps thought: Big Frank returns to Willamette on September 19, 2024.

That’s not all. Per the game’s freshly launched Steam page, this is a complete audiovisual overhaul that keeps the original’s gameplay intact alongside “various quality-of-life improvements, such as auto-saving, revamped controls, improved UI, and many other details.” Among these changes, players will be delighted to know you can now move while aiming: the future is now. The game is fully voice acted and, Capcom warns, “may not be appropriate for viewing at work.”

My favourite thing about it? Frank West looks like a human being again. One of Capcom’s more memorable characters, Frank as originally conceived was a long way from the yassified schmuck we got in Dead Rising 4: He’s a middle-aged bloke with a widow’s peak, a big nose, and an eye on the prize. The later entries moved Frank closer to being a generic prettyboy protagonist and lost much of what made the character so enjoyable in the first place, and it’s abundantly clear that the developers on this remaster get it.

Let’s hope that extends to everything else. The fact is that Dead Rising is one of the best games Capcom’s ever made, and none of the sequels got close to recapturing the magic. Over time, like Frank himself, they skewed more towards generic zombie-blasting and ludicrous weaponry, where the magic of the first game is not in the chainsaws or assault rifles (though they’re great) but booting a football into a crowd of zombies, clanging them with frying pans, and dressing Frank up in Speedos and Mega Man’s Mega Buster.

Perhaps the most amusing news is that Capcom’s gone all-in on the name, and as well as the standard edition ($49.99) there is a Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster Digital Deluxe edition. Try saying that five times fast. This includes 17 costumes for Frank (among which are Resi, Mega Man, and Street Fighter outfits) and 17 extra music tracks, alongside which there are three costumes and tracks for any pre-orders. It will release digitally on September 19, with a physical edition to follow in November.

Finally, the system requirements, which are fairly reasonable for a game that offers zombie carnage on an astonishing scale: The only bum note is that the game now requires an internet connection to play, because Capcom is as ever on the Denuvo train.