Dead Rising 2
A motocross champion fights zombies to save his infected daughter.
Dead Rising 2 is a 2010 action-adventure game developed by Blue Castle Games and published by Capcom. It is the sequel to Dead Rising and the second entry in the series of the same name, released for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and Windows between September and October 2010. The game introduces new features and improvements over its predecessor, including multiplayer options, and is notable for allowing up to 7,000 zombies onscreen simultaneously.
Quick Facts
- Title
- Dead Rising 2
- Developer
- Blue Castle Games Additional work, development support, and co-developed by Capcom. PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions ported by Mercenary Technology
- Publisher
- CapcomMicrosoft Game Studios published Case Zero and Case West DLCs.
- Director
- Robyn Wallace
- Producer
- Shinsaku Ohara · Josh Bridge · Jason Leigh
- Designer
- Hayato Tsuru · Yuji Hayakawa · Toshiya Iwaoka
- Programmer
- James Hall · Dee Jay Randall
- Artist
- Naru Omori · Dave Taylor
- Writer
- Annie Reid · Dan Brady
- Composer
- Oleksa Lozowchuk
- Series
- Dead Rising
- Platforms
- PlayStation 3 · Xbox 360 · Windows · PlayStation 4 · Xbox One
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The game's story follows Chuck Greene, a former motocross rider, who becomes trapped in a zombie outbreak at a casino resort and shopping complex in Nevada. He must scavenge weapons and supplies, rescue survivors, and deal with crazed psychopaths while ensuring his young daughter Katey receives daily doses of Zombrex, a medication that prevents her from turning into a zombie after being bitten by her mother during a previous outbreak in Las Vegas. Players complete major missions to advance the story, with optional tasks and multiple endings depending on actions taken.
Gameplay allows players to manufacture custom weapons by combining items in maintenance rooms, unlocking combo cards for creations like the Hail Mary, Dynameat, Paddlesaw, and Spiked Bat. Boss fights are represented by 'psychopaths'—people driven insane by the outbreak or exploiting it. The game features two downloadable expansions: a prologue to the main story and one set after the canonical ending. A non-canon reimagining, Dead Rising 2: Off the Record, was released the following year, and a ported version of both games arrived in September 2016 for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.
Reader's Guide
Dead Rising 2 expanded on its predecessor's formula with significant multiplayer additions. The game includes a competitive multiplayer mode framed as the in-game reality TV show 'Terror Is Reality' (TIR), where up to four players compete in minigames such as Zomboni, Bounty Hunter, Stand Up Zomedy, and Slicecycle to earn money for their character. Cooperative gameplay for the story campaign allows two players to both play as Chuck Greene, with the host controlling save progress while non-host players can drop in and out. Players can revive each other using food when downed.
The game's legacy includes two downloadable expansions and a reimagining released the following year. As part of the series' ten-year anniversary, a ported version of Dead Rising 2 and its reimagining was released in September 2016 for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. The game's plot ties into the larger Dead Rising narrative, revealing Phenotrans, the pharmaceutical company behind Zombrex, as responsible for manufacturing the zombie virus to drive demand for their medication.
Did You Know?
- Up to 7,000 zombies can appear onscreen at the same time.
- Players can create custom weapons like the 'Paddlesaw' (two chainsaws duct taped to a kayak paddle) and 'Dynameat' (dynamite duct taped to meat).
- The multiplayer mode is framed as an in-game reality TV show called 'Terror Is Reality'.
More in Adventure Games of the 2010s, Part 1 1-24
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced