Dead Rising 3 is the third mainline entry in the Dead Rising franchise, where you take control of a survivor (in this case Nick Ramos) of the zombie apocalypse as he undertakes various missions, kill zombies and just generally attempt to stay alive.
It's an open world third-person sandbox game with combat that is a mixture of melee combat and guns, but depends entirely on those items you're able to scavenge as you explore the world.
As with previous games in the franchise, there are a variety of different gameplay mechanics and side activities and an open world to discover and play around in.
Unlike in previous games in the series, there is no time limit, allowing you to more freely explore the world. Players are also able to save at any point in the game.
Game Modes
Story Mode
Story Mode follows going through the story with no time limit imposed on the player, including the ability to save anywhere in the open world. There is no pressure for the player to hurry and there will also be checkpoints at various stages.
Co-Op
Dead Rising 3 features full online cooperative gameplay. You'll be able to team up with a friend or others online via matchmaking to take on the zombie hordes. Cooperative multiplayer will be asynchronous, allowing players to jump in and out of the game at any time without penalty.
Playing cooperatively allows you to advance your own story and character development at the same time as helping your friend advance theirs; everything you do will carry on over to your own game.
Nightmare Mode
For those looking for a more classic Dead Rising experience, Dead Rising 3 will include a Nightmare Mode. Here there is a 3 day time limit, restricted saves (as in previous titles you can only save in bathrooms), and a time limit on mission completion.
Leveling
Dead Rising 3 will include the staple experience and leveling system, although it has been changed considerably. You'll be able to assign your own attribute increases upon leveling up and will gain access to new weapon types if you skill up certain categories.
The World
Taking place in California, in the fictional city of Los Perdidos and the surrounding area, the entire city will be open for exploration, and because Dead Rising 3 has fewer restrictions by way of timed quests, seemless loading throughout the world, and the ability to explore hundreds of different buildings there is more to explore than ever before.
For more detail on the world, check out our dedicated Locations section.
Weapons
As in previous games in the series, as you explore the world you'll come across all manner of different weapons. You can also modify the items you find to create new weapon combinations. For example, in the gameplay reveal, we saw Nick combine a hand torch with a gun to combine the two effects. Later on, we also saw him combine a sledgehammer with a saw, to create a ranged saw weapon (see screenshot below). In total there will be hundreds of different combinations and you will also be able to unlock blueprints for new items.
Where before you needed access to a work bench in order to create these weapon combinations, you'll be able to do them anywhere in Dead Rising 3, although you will be vulnerable to attack from zombies so one must choose your timing carefully.
Although the player will still have limited inventory slots, every item that Nick finds is automatically added to his weapons locker, which can then be accessed from any of the safe houses you find in the city.
For more detail on the various weapons and weapon combinations found in the game check out our dedicated Weapons section.
Vehicles
Dead Rising 3 is set to feature dozens of different vehicles that the player can use both to traverse the large city and also to kill hundreds of zombies in quick succession, as in the previous games in the series.
For a list of confirmed Dead Rising 3 vehicles, head on over to our Vehicles section.
Technologies
SmartGlass
Dead Rising 3 will utilize both the Kinect and Xbox SmartGlass to add new features to the series, although both are entirely optional.
SmartGlass can be used to locate certain items, buildings or mission objectives. It also gives players a whole new set of missions which can be completed to unlock apps which give the player the ability to, for example, call down airstrikes to deal with a particularly huge group of zombies.
Xbox SmartGlass also allows you to keep track of your progress with a mission checklist and features a news ticker which gives you real-time updates on the zombie outbreak.
Kinect
The optional Kinect feature set, meanwhile, includes the ability to allow zombies a certain level of situational awareness. Loud noises from the player will then potentially trigger a rush of zombies.
You will also be able to use motion controls to fight your way out of grapples and voice commands to guide your fellow survivors and taunt your enemies.
