First off, let’s be clear about what you’re getting in Dead Rising 2: Case Zero. This five-dollar download is no paid demo. None of the content is lifted out of Dead Rising 2. It’s a unique location, with characters and places you won’t encounter in the full game. In fact, I’ve seen much of the full game, and I’m pretty sure a key piece of information about the main characters is only available in Case Zero. It’s a small detail, but it’s a detail I would have hated to miss.
Case Zero’s premise is simple and effective. Manly protagonist Chuck is stranded in a small town and needs to find five parts to build the motorcycle that will carry him into Dead Rising 2. But there’s a catch. The military will arrive in 24 hours, at which point his adorable but infected daughter will be locked away in quarantine, effectively dooming her to zombiehood. Unfortunately, while Dead Rising 2 is happy to imply child zombies, it shies away from actually showing them. Too bad. Child zombies are a mean-spirited staple of the genre. I guess even Dead Rising has its limits.
