In 2006, a freelance photojournalist named Frank West leapt from a helicopter and into our hearts, on a lone mission to uncover the scoop behind the mysterious zombie infestation plaguing Willamette, Colorado. Sure, he might’ve ended up trapped in a shopping mall with an undead horde for three days, but never underestimate Frank—he’s covered wars, you know. Soon, we’ll be reliving Frank’s finest 72 hours all over again in Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster, announced by Capcom earlier today.
Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster’s teaser trailer reveal doesn’t leave us with many details, aside from promising “an updated release with a brand new look.” It’s a small piece of the original game’s opening, showing Frank’s helicopter ride as he approaches the now-fabled Willamette Parkview Mall with updated visuals. Frank looks phenomenal—Dead Rising 4 gave him an unforgivable action hero-ass visual overhaul, but DRDR is returning Frank West to his original, everyman appearance. Frank West should not look like a heroic badass; Frank West has an awful jacket and a progressing widow’s peak.
Luckily, DRDR has Frank looking average as hell, just as God intended. However, Dead Rising fans in the teaser trailer’s comments are dismayed by how he sounds. While there’s no official casting confirmation to go off of, the brief bit of voice acting we hear in the teaser has some convinced that TJ Rotolo, the English voice actor for Frank until Dead Rising 4, won’t be reclaiming the role for the remaster. While it hurts my heart to know I might not hear the Frank of my youth sighing with relief after chugging scavenged orange juice for health, I’ll have to find a way to carry on.
The teaser doesn’t provide a release window or when we can expect more details for Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster, so we can only speculate about whether it’ll update anything beyond the graphics. Seeing the Willamette Mall’s ruined shops and promenades with current-day visual fidelity is more than enough for me already, though. As long as I can still wear a Servbot head while bludgeoning zombies with a 2×4, I’ll be content.
