Dead Rising 2

The first Dead Rising was the reason I bought a 360.  After playing WoW almost exclusively for over 2 years, I sold my account on eBay and was able to get the console and that game.  It didn't matter to me, as it was really the only game I wanted at the time.  I have a zombie fetish anyway, so pretty much any game that features the undead is an automatic must play.  So now that the sequel is finally out, I find myself once again in gaming nirvana.  Dead Rising 2 has everything I loved about the original, and oh so much more.

Like the first game, you're dropped right in the middle of a zombie outbreak.  Unlike the first game, which was entirely in the Willamette Mall, this one takes place in the Vegas inspired town of Fortune City.  There are several different malls, casinos, and various other areas.  All are connected and open to be explored as soon as things get started, which is a nice change.  Even after 10 hours I doubt I've seen half of the map.  I still haven't found a gun shop, but I know there's one somewhere.

The really ingenious addition is the ability to combine items and create some interesting new weapons.  A baseball bat by itself doesn't do much, but combined with carpenter nails it's downright nasty.  Same thing for a flashlight, not really much use for killing zombies by itself.  Duck tape a box of sparkling rare gems to the front and you've got yourself a crude light saber.  Silly?  Yes, but very effective.  It cuts a swath through zombie hordes like nothing else, except maybe the broadsword.  As of now, it's my personal favorite.  Not only can you cut through zombies like butter, but it's got a combo move and alternate attack that splits them down the middle  Another example; combine a few power drills with a metal bucket and you get an interesting new zombie hat.  Almost every item can be combined with something, so there's lots of combos to find.

One annoying thing about the first game is the survivors were pretty much dumb as bricks, so you had to really keep your eyes open and stay close.  Thankfully the survivor AI for this game has been dramatically improved, so it's not nearly as frustrating to get them back to the safe house.  In most cases I just gave them a pistol, then had them follow me while constantly yelling to keep close or hurry up.  I tried giving a couple survivors melee weapons when I first started playing, but it doesn't work so well when they stop to attack a zombie and get swarmed.  Firearms seem to be the way to go for now, at least pistols.  I stay away from doling out the bigger guns.  Being shot in the back with a shotgun by the survivor you are trying to help convinced me. Even though they aren't quite as dumb as bricks anymore, they still fire with impunity.  Whether you're in the way or not doesn't seem to matter much.