Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster Interview: Dev Team Reveals Who's Voicing Frank West, the Future of the Series, and More

Less than a month from now, Dead Rising returns. Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster provides a quality-of-life update to a beloved zombie game that seeks to revive this dormant series and appeal to a wider audience. I was fortunate enough to ask the development team behind the remaster a few questions I was curious about following my hands-on preview.

In the interview, we discussed an array of changes in Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster. This includes what other changes fans can expect in the full release, what changes were made to Infinity Mode, what the future holds for the series, and who exactly is voicing Frank West.

Check out the full interview below, and if you want to know my impressions from an early build, check out my hands-on preview.

IGN: What inspirations did Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster carry over most from the previous Dead Rising games, like Dead Rising 2, and what might be the most surprising changes to veterans of the series beyond what was already previously announced?

Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster Development Team: Playing through Dead Rising 2, 3, and 4 and listening to fans’ feedback helped us reaffirm what elements needed to be included in Dead Rising 1. In particular, we’ve put a lot of thought and care into Frank’s characterization.

One major change from the original game is the addition of several new skill books, which players can pair with in-game items for a new gameplay experience. We’ve also made adjustments so that all items players encounter have their own special uses. We encourage you to try things out for yourself without getting too hung up on your impressions from the original game.

Speaking of changes, I noticed several, if not all, of the previously voiced characters, like Brad and Jessie, received new voice actors, most notably Frank West. Was there any specific reason for some characters not having their original voice actors reprise their roles?
DRDR Dev Team: Based on fans’ wishes and our own developmental wishes, we wanted to use the English voiceover from the original game without making any changes. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to move forward with this plan because the contract for the 18-year-old game was outdated. Another one of our goals for Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster was to make the game fully voiced, so we made some changes to the cast of voice actors. We’ve all been very pleased with the new actors’ performances.

Speaking of Frank West, many in the Dead Rising community, including myself, have been trying to figure out who is voicing Frank West. Who is the talent voicing Frank West in Deluxe Remaster?

DRDR Dev Team: Jas Patrick is the new voice of Frank West for Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster. We’re very pleased with the work he’s done for this project.

I know Frank West’s original voice actor, TJ Rotolo, revealed he was not contacted by Capcom about reprising his role. Is there any reason why you decided not to contact Rotolo to return and voice Frank West?

DRDR Dev Team: We regret that we were unable to have TJ Rotolo reprise his role in Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster and accommodate the requests of our dedicated fans. We have selected a new voice actor for Frank West, but we sincerely appreciate all that TJ Rotolo has done for the Dead Rising series and wish him the best in his future endeavors.

We received a ton of information on 72-Hour Mode but little to nothing on the other modes. Regarding Infinity Mode specifically, can you describe some of the biggest changes introduced that make it a little less challenging to play while still maintaining the challenge of obtaining achievements like 5- or 7-day survivor?

DRDR Dev Team: Regarding Infinity Mode, players are now able to save mid-game and exit without losing their progress. Along with the ability to fast forward time, we made some adjustments that we think will allow players to enjoy the mode more casually than in the original game. Since zombies now drop items at a low rate, a more aggressive playstyle has become a viable option for this mode as well.

Before Deluxe Remaster, the series remained dormant since Dead Rising 4’s release in 2016. Should fans take Deluxe Remaster as a sign of things to come? Is there a chance Capcom will go back and remaster other Dead Rising games or perhaps consider developing a new entry altogether?
DRDR Dev Team: Capcom would like to continue to bring back many of its IPs. In hopes of expanding upon the Dead Rising series in the future, we’d first like to put effort into promoting Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster and share its appeal with fans around the world.

Taylor is a Reporter at IGN. You can follow her on Twitter @TayNixster.