Dead Rising 4 Will Have a "More Measured" Pace Than Dead Rising 3

The December release of Dead Rising 4 marks the 10 year anniversary of the first Dead Rising, when we first stepped into the shoes of photojournalist Frank West in Willamette, Colorado. With the sequel's release, developer Capcom hopes to fuse the series' horror roots with its more recent accolades.

"We're trying to merge everything together right now," executive producer Bryce Cochrane told GameSpot at San Diego Comic-Con last week. "It's still fast-paced, but it's a bit more measured [than Dead Rising 3]. We went way deeper with explorable areas, and dug down into a sewer system beneath the city of Willamette."

The return to the city in the Rockies is one of the more literal nods to the franchise's earlier title, as is the reappearance of Frank West, who reprises his protagonist role in Dead Rising 4. This was an effort to acknowledge fans' love for the character, but also a way to facilitate a more methodical approach to world exploration.

"We brought back the investigation and photojournalism of Dead Rising 1, and that's what's going to progress you through the game," Cochrane said. "It's all about learning the story of Willamette. You have these choices: 'Do I want to go with the mission? Do I want to go with side content? Or do I want to go with fun?'"

None of this is to say you won't be killing thousands of zombies in a matter of minutes--Cochrane mentioned Dead Rising 4's new exosuits, which allow West to "craft himself." He can mount a rocket launcher on one shoulder and a mini-gun on the other--and this is a more "grounded" example, Cochrane said. West can also combine his suit with a Slurpee machine, shortly before he hurls purple and blue ice tornadoes into crowds of the lurching dead.

"We're still the fun zombie game," Cochrane said. "We don't take ourselves seriously. That's not going to change with Dead Rising 4. There will just be more avenues for you to take if you want to vary the experience."

Dead Rising 4 releases December 6, 2016 for Xbox One and Windows 10 PC as a timed exclusive. It will eventually make its way to PS4 as well. Capcom also recently announced that Dead Rising is being ported to PS4, Xbox One, and PC, while Dead Rising 2 will appear only on PS4 and Xbox One.