Every Dead Rising Game, Ranked (2024)

Capcom's second biggest horror franchise, outside of Resident Evil, would be Dead Rising. Focusing more on quantity than quality, Dead Rising stuffed as many zombies into an area as the devs could and let you decide the method of carnage.

The first two games are still well-revered as incredible seventh-gen titles, but the series overall is quite diverse in quality. It actually ranges from the best of the best to the absolute worst experiences, and you can't say that about most series. As several titles are Xbox exclusives, that will be the preferred platform for the franchise.

8 Dead Rising: Chop Till You Drop

A Mockery Of The Original Game

Many of you probably thought Dead Rising 4 would be the worst game in the series, but at least it was original. Dead Rising: Chop Till You Drop takes one of the greatest zombie games ever made and completely ruins it. Taking pictures is gone, which was a core gameplay element, as is the real-time clock and do whatever you want type of feel.

It was pretty awesome that you could theoretically sit there at the helipad for six hours at the start of the game and get an ending. That's gone now, and the campaign is mission-based, requiring you to rescue survivors in an incredibly repetitive manner. If you played this game first, it could ruin the series for you, and for that, it has to be the worst title in the franchise.

7 Dead Rising 4

Killed The Franchise Off, For A Time

Many people weren't expecting Dead Rising to come back at all, thanks to the massive critical and commercial failure of Dead Rising 4. This was a game that seemed promising on the surface. Frank West was returning as the protagonist for the first time, canonically, since the original, and you were returning to Willamette, the location of DR1.

It seemed like a match made in heaven, but it was a match made in Hell. The gameplay was tedious, the graphics looked subpar, and Frank West was just not the same character. He's no longer the cool, down-to-earth, likable guy he was and is far more annoying. Sure, there was solid DLC content, but even with it, DR4 has to be the worst mainline entry in the series.

6 Dead Rising 2: Case Zero

A Solid Prologue Chapter

Dead Rising 2: Case Zero is what Metal Gear Solid 5: Ground Zeroes should have been. It's low-priced at only $5 and gives a unique taste of what to expect in the full DR2 experience. It has a unique story that takes place three years before DR2, with multiple endings and all, and while the map's really small, what would you expect from a $5 prologue?

You get your money's worth out of this game, but there's no denying that it's lacking content, and if you play it on newer Xbox systems, its 30fps cap looks terrible compared to the 60fps of DR2 and Off the Record. When swapping between them, Case Zero looks like it's running in slow motion. Regardless, it's still a must-play chapter in the Dead Rising saga.

5 Dead Rising 2: Case West

The Better Of The Two Standalone DLCs

Taking place after ending A of Dead Rising 2, Case West is the canonical finale of the Dead Rising 2 story, and it's a lot of fun. The co-op was absent in Case Zero but is present here, and co-op in DR2 has to be one of the more overlooked elements of the series.

It's a great time, plus it helps with the combo weapon system since you now have two inventories at play. Story-wise, Case West satisfyingly ends DR2 with plot revelations, and character reveals that tie up the whole story. The map, once again, isn't too big, but the new additions here make the bumped price increase at $10 worth the money.

4 Dead Rising 3

Better Than You Remember

One game that is way better than people make it out to be is Dead Rising 3. It has its share of problems, for sure, but it was a really good launch game for the Xbox One and something you definitely didn't see at the beginning of this current-gen. It had that next-gen showcase feel with the sheer number of zombies on screen, and the gameplay additions were excellent.

Combo vehicles and the new super combo weapons were awesome to play around with and felt great to use. The huge four-section city was really well-designed, with each district feeling unique. On the other hand, the roadblocks were really annoying, and maxing out your character essentially made you a God. Some sort of prestige system would have greatly helped here. All in all, DR3 is a solid game.

3 Dead Rising 2

The Birth Of The Combo Weapons

Dead Rising 2 was a huge step for the franchise, introducing the gameplay element most synonymous with Dead Rising: combo weapons. As Chuck Greene wasn't a journalist, he didn't have a camera to use, but instead, he could make combo weapons due to his motocross and mechanical background. These were the new big-time, destructive weapons you had to use.

They were a lot of fun to play around with and, again, worked phenomenally for co-op play. The Fortune City location was very well designed, being a perfect expansion of what the Willamette Mall delivered. The AI was also massively improved, and DR2 overall is exactly what a good sequel should be.

2 Dead Rising 2: Off The Record

Even Better

Being a What If? story, Dead Rising 2: Off the Record, inserts Frank West in Chuck Greene's place among a plethora of other changes. This has to be the best DR2 experience out of the lot. The campaign was greatly expanded with many new sections throughout the story; you have an entirely new area to explore, the difficulty was cranked up a bit, and you have the new addition of Sandbox mode.

Removing the timer, Sandbox is an expansion of what Infinity mode was in DR1 minus the whole survival mechanic. This was a great mode to simply mess around in and to get achievements without the timer getting in your way. The return of the camera was also a lot of fun and a big fan-requested feature at the time.

1 Dead Rising

An All-Time Great Zombie Game

You just can't top the original. While Dead Rising 1 has infamously bad AI, everything else is about as perfect as you could get. The fun photograph system, amazing graphics for 2006, the freeform campaign, and even the surprisingly gripping story. It's definitely a page-turner and doesn't go where you think it would, considering Dead Rising is essentially Dawn of the Dead: The Game.

All the side quests have an interesting element to them and don't play soft. You'll encounter a mom who just saw her baby get eaten or could potentially see another person unaliving themselves. It's not a pure masterpiece, but definitely a flawed one in gaming history.