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Getting Crazy With Dead Rising 3: Super Ultra Arcade Remix Hyper Edition EX + α
One of the biggest surprises from Microsoft’s E3 press conference was the unveiling of a new piece of Dead Rising 3 DLC for Xbox One. Dead Rising 3: Super Ultra Arcade Remix Hyper Edition EX + α was announced via a frantic trailer, which showed a battery of Capcom characters and references in an arcade-oriented take on the core game. Even better, the game was announced and released nearly simultaneously. Jeff Cork and I played the game on the show floor, and we have plenty to say about it.
Jeff: Let me start off by saying that for our sanity, this game will henceforth be referred to as Dead Rising 3’s new DLC. I can’t type that stuff out again. Sorry, Capcom and Microsoft brand managers. Anyway, we jumped in and played five full rounds of the game’s co-op, and we teamed up with two other people. I picked BB Hood, and you were… who were you again? I was so busy getting gold coins that I didn’t have time to keep track.
Tim: Yeah I chose Sigma from Mega Man X pretty much the moment I saw him. It was a tough choice though. Lots of throwbacks in there like Regina from Dino Crisis, Felicia from Darkstalkers, and of course favorites like Ryu and Chun-Li. So Sigma was pretty awesome. Even if he was clearly just a dude wearing a super glossy mask and costume. His energy scytle was pretty bad ass, though. I think I noticed something a little… unique about your version of B.B. Hood.
Jeff: Technically, the characters are existing Dead Rising 3 characters doing virtual cosplay. Frank West wears the hood quite well, and he wields a mean picnic basket/uzi combo, too.
Tim: Yeah, it’s a bunch of recognizable characters wearing Capcom gear. But what I love about this DLC is that they could’ve stopped with custom Capcom character outfits, but they didn’t. It unabashedly embraces the company’s arcadey past. All the characters, including the zombies, have thick outlines, bright colors, and heavy shading. It sort’ve reminded me of Street Fighter IV’s art style. Anyway, the whole shebang is way brighter and more colorful than Dead Rising 3 proper. Oh, and zombies can’t grab you like before, which is great for keeping the pace up.
Jeff: The mode is completely separate from the main game, and you launch it from its menu. Then you run through a bunch of different mini challenges that are strung together. Our first was to kill 50 zombies, which took about 10 seconds between the four of us. After that, we destroyed some generators, killed even more zombies, rescued pixel-art survivors scattered in a neighborhood, and raced to the airport for our escape. Each challenge went by quickly, keeping with the arcade-style flavor that Capcom is clearly going for. I’m a big fan of Dead Rising 3’s base game, and I got a kick out of doing something new within its framework. It’s not a complete reinvention of the game – you’re still killing a bunch of zombies in Los Perdidos – but it’s a pared-down, straight-to-the-meat experience that I loved.
Tim: The super nostalgic art style also helps separate it from the main game. Pixelated power-ups litter the battlefield, like S-Tanks (basically, E-Tanks that make you faster), big pot roasts for health, and even an T-Tank that turns you into Tofu from Resident Evil 2 and forces you to dodge zombies. The screenshots speak for themselves, but the thing is a huge, hilarious mess of classic Capcom references. I especially loved with the camera pulled back into a fixed overhead view so we could just mow through the crowds with our melee weapons and rocket launchers.
Jeff: Think of this as the Blood Dragon to Far Cry 3’s… Far Cry 3. Unlike previous DLC, which was designed to propel the Dead Rising 3 mythos along, this is just an excuse to jump in, kill some zombies, and have a great time. I had a blast playing with you at the show, and I’m looking forward to doing more when we get home.
Tim: Yeah, you and I are both huge Dead Rising fans, and even bigger classic Capcom fans above that. This DLC feels tailor-made for us. We just have to talk a couple friends with Xbox Ones (it’s an exclusive) to pony up $10 so that can join in the stupid fun.
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