Dead Rising follows the harrowing tale of Frank West, an overly zealous freelance photojournalist on a hunt for the scoop of a lifetime. In pursuit of a juicy lead, he makes his way to a small suburban town only to find that it has become overrun by zombies. He escapes to the local shopping mall, thinking it will be a bastion of safety but it turns out to be anything but. It will be a true struggle to survive the endless stream of enemies, but players will have full reign of a realistic shopping center, utilizing anything they find to fight off the flesh-hungry mob and search for the truth behind the horrendous epidemic.

Dead Rising features an open level of freedom and offers a vast array of gameplay possibilities. As part of a real time system, time is dynamic in Dead Rising, marching on whether Frank is actively engaged or if he is stationary. Time also plays a role as zombies become more powerful when the sun goes down. Though they move slowly during the day, the zombies become stronger and faster at night, making it even more dangerous for players to survive. The unprecedented numbers of enemies come in never-ending waves and consist of a diverse population of former humans that have retained some memory of their previous lives, which is reflected in their behavior and appearance. The variety of different stores in the mall offers players an endless supply of resources including vehicles, makeshift weapons and more. Players will also encounter other survivors along the way and by helping them can acquire valuable clues as to what has happened.

Dead Rising includes the following features:

• Huge environment – expansive indoor and outdoor areas of the mall provide a variety of different locations to explore
• Swarm technology allows an unprecedented amount of enemies on screen at once resulting in nonstop, pulse-pounding action
• Intense gore and vibrant realism
• Anything in the mall is at Frank's disposal
  • Grab environmental objects like umbrellas and benches to use as improvised weapons
  • Snatch items from different stores to use as weapons including golf clubs, lawnmowers, fry pans and more
  • Chow down on various "mall food" to revive health
• Real time system – key events happen at certain times and if players are not mindful, important story elements and opportunities may be missed
• Use Frank's photojournalistic skills to capture the insanity on film; the better the shot, the better the reward will be