Dead Rising 2: Case Zero downloaded over 300K times

by Alexander Sliwinski on Sep 8th 2010 9:00AM

According to GamerBytes, leaderboard data shows that Dead Rising 2: Case Zero was downloaded over 300,000 times (328,290 at the time of writing). Even with Microsoft's alleged 30 percent cut, one can estimate that Capcom made roughly $1.15 million off the experiment in less than a week.

Publisher Capcom insisted on its blog that "these are NOT official numbers," though we think they serve as a good, early indication of success. Two interesting things are at play here: Will the Case Zero experiment usher in a new type of demo experience? And if sales for Dead Rising 2 fall below expectations, will Capcom place the blame on a $5 demo that proved a little too satisfying?

Dead Rising 2: Case Zero Review

Source: Capcom, GamerBytes

Tags: Capcom, Dead-Rising-2, dead-rising-2-case-zero, microsoft, xbla, xbox

Reader Comments (61)

I'd pay $5 for another demo like this.

@Bubbameister33

I would too. 200 points of fun achievements and it made me want to get the full retail game which I will get on day one

@Bubbameister33
Really? im glad i just got the trial version and didnt pay for this. Sure the gameplay is decent fun... but im really disappointed in the graphics. i just thought it was going to be ... iono... better. its the same ol same ol.... bash zombies... find weapons and make weapons to bash zombies. rinse. repeat.

@KiraXD

I tend to disagree with a lot of individuals on comment boards who blast a game's visuals. I believe you are entitled to your own opinion, but to say that the visuals in this "demo" were somewhat lacking is an overstatement. I personally found the models/materials to be a grade above from the previous game. I don't know if you have tried building models or creating UV textures for games, if you haven't, give it a whirl. I think it might sway your knee jerk impressions.

@KiraXD
You're only complaint here is you just don't like the Dead Rising-style gameplay, etc. (and being a graphics whore... not a bad thing or insult, just saying)... but that's NOT what the question here is. The question is about offering $5 'prologues' as opposed to FREE demos.

The $5 prologue really makes me want to buy the full retail game. I think I only have 2 achievements left in the prologue, and that I can continue with my stats into the full retail game makes it worthwhile as well. As long as I can get something out of the paid prologue that is NOT in the full game, and as long as its something I feel shouldn't have been included with the game, I think its a great thing.

That you don't like Dead Rising is just personal preference/likes and understandable that you didn't like it.

Oh lord, if this becomes the norm.. I will never buy a capcom game ever again..

Excluding Devil May Cry 5, a possible Onimusha, or Resident Evil 6

@Faenix Yes I cannot wait for DMC 5. Though we've all been waiting for a while. So I guess.......we just keep waiting.

Also it would be awesome if Capcom released this "demo" for PS3

@DJ Kenneth A Microsoft Exclusive seeing as Dead Rising 1 Was an Exclusive for the 360 (Wii version is totally different to the 360 one)

Seeing as Dead Rising 2 is going to the PS3 Capcom decided to give us 360 owners a treat and PS3 owners the finger..

@ShadowMonkey987 Oh well. It could also very well be they were looking at install base and where to test the waters with that demo. At least we get Dead Rising 2. Though I could pop over to my buddies to check it out I'm sure.

@DJ Kenneth A
I imagine 360 owners are 85% more likely to pay for something they can get for free elsewhere, too, which probably helped things.

@Faenix
Wait, so a $5 mini-game that isn't part of the full game... that's somehow wrong. But you'd be behind Resident Evil... who's previous game CHARGED YOU EXTRA for multi-player?

Hypocrit!

This is a Microsoft exclusive? Fffffff

@Frivolous
Yes, get rid of all exclusiveness. I don't want to have multiple consoles. I would like to just have my Xbox hooked up to my TV.

@Frivolous

Fffffff indeed.

My 360 just crapped out on me and THIS was what I was looking forward too all month -__-

Since I'm out of warranty and have a PS3, I'll still get to play Dead Rising 2 but I'm kinda miffed I can't experience Case Zero.

Welllllllllllllll he ain't my boy but Capcom's wallet is heavy!

@Ample Salty you're gonna give me PTSDs man

This was a good chunk of minigame. I don't even feel like it was a demo. I mean i feel like it was a demo gameplay-wise but other than that I feel like Case zero was its own independent game, and totally worth 5 bucks. I don't see this formula working well with any future non-sandbox games, though.

@HybridPara

This is only being referred to by some as a "demo" because it came out before the main game. If it had been released afterward it would have been called DLC and compared to any other story-expanding add-on like Alan Wake's The Signal or ME2 Overlord.

For five dollars it was a good episode in the DR story.

@HybridPara

I think the use of the demo label is inappropriate in this case. I think the definition of what a demo is supposed to be is being twisted around for sensationalistic purposes. Is Portal for XBLA a demo for the Orange Box now?

Not to mention the fact that companies are putting out betas as rewards for customers, turning them into "paid demos" in a sense. So these words we are using to categorize mean nothing and everything at the same time.

I bought it, but I'm honestly not sure if I'll buy DR2 anymore. I'm at least going to wait until reviews come out so I can find out if the poor pacing and ridiculous number of load screens in Case Zero are present in the actual game.

@Rollins That's exactly how I felt playing the game too. I'll wait on this as well

@Rollins

Load times were horrible and while the save system is better the fact they still have stupid time limits (why is there a time limit on carrying an engine back to a garage?) didn't make it appear as if they had fixed all the problems that held the first one back.

Not to mention the lack of voice work again. It's 2010, I expect big budget full price games to have characters that talk. Not boxes of text to click through.

I'm less enthused about DR2 than I was but I'll probably buy it just to kill more zombies.

@arkweld I don't remember there being a time limit on carrying each individual piece to the garage, just the overall time limit for when the military were going to arrive. And while the time limit did impede the fun sometimes, they have to create a story somehow...

"Even with Microsoft's alleged 30 percent cut..."
Can someone fill me in on the details of this "cut"?

@Prox

"cut" here usually means they get 30% of the money. guess $1.5 of every download goes to MS.

@Prox

Under "how it works"

..even the developers get robbed by Microsoft.

http://creators.xna.com/en-US/XboxLIVECommunityGames

@Faenix
Ah, thanks. It seems so obvious now. For some reason I was thinking that Capcom wanted to sell it for around $7.14 and Microsoft made them cut the price down to $5. I swear, I can be so naïve sometimes.

@ShadowXIII

Remeber its highly likely that the 30% figure is not the same for the bigger companies, they will work out special deals with MS and be under all sorts of NDAS to stop company Y from getting the same deal

It's a lot cheaper than the 50-60% cut retail takes.

@ShadowXIII A. That is for the community developer program. I'm sure the aggreement is different for professional XBLA games. B. XBLA is just another distribution channel I wouldn't be surprised if the markup for a game at a retailer is 40 or even 50% over what the publisher charges the retailer. C. Even with the 30% cut for the community program, the Indie developer is likely to make more profit through XNA than if he had found a traditional publisher.

Why is this game so popular? From what I'm seeing you are just a dude killing zombies at a leisurely pace with some random(but cool) weapons. I can see there is fun to be had for a few hours, but after that I just see it as some tedious slog. If you played for Dead Rising 1 why would you want to do this same sh*t over again. Am I missing something?

note: I played the first dead rising at a friends house for a couple of hours so I do have some hands on time. I just don't see the "fun"

@Grey

I actually hate the series myself

@Grey

"From what I'm seeing you are just a dude killing zombies at a leisurely pace with some random(but cool) weapons." AND it was 5 bucks.

The thing is, now that people have this "demo/game" it seems like less will be purchasing the full 60 dollar game. I downloaded this and can get lots of hours out of it. Plus, I can just start it up and go around aimlessly killing zombies for a while. Do I really need the full game now? This experiment might backfire if DR2 isn't an awesome experience. I have a feeling many gamers will be satisfied enough with their 5 dollar download.

@Grey It's certainly not everyone's cup of tea, but I personally love the game, even when it frustrates me. haha.

Also, DR2 is supposed to have some sort of multiplayer...

@Grey

The thing is, in order to "win" the game, you cannot kill zombies at a leisurely pace. The clock is ticking, and you have to make sure you are at a certain spot at a certain time, so you can quickly finish that task in time to be at another spot when the next scheduled challenge arrives.

@Grey it's the story that goes with it. The missions drive the story along. I mean almost any game could be boiled down to its raw elements. Diablo is just killing demons over and over. Gears of War is just ducking behind cover and shooting repeatedly. Call of Duty is just shooting Nazis repeatedly. Prince of Persia is just solving environmental puzzles repeatedly.

The thing that separates the games just mentioned from their lesser known clones is what they do above and beyond the basic gameplay elements and that usually boils down to story, environment, and variety. Dead Rising had all of this in spades and it looks like part 2 will follow suit.

I guess it depends on your definition of the word demo. To me, a demo is you're playing a very limited portion of an upcoming game and when you buy the game, the demo portion you played earlier is in the game.

I think Case Zero is a self contained episode that relates to the retail game, but is not in the retail game. It's closer to DLC than a demo. And I think it's longer than what I would consider a demo to be. That a true demo isn't being released for Dead Rising II confuses the matter I guess for some, but I think they're saying you can get a feel for that game by playing this stand alone game. In a sense it's like Battlefield 1943 vs Battlefield Bad Company. Each is self contained (and unrelated in this example), but playing one gives a you feel for the mechanices in the other.

@Starcade agreed

the trial of case zero was the demo

$5, achievements, multiple things to explore and enjoy. Not a demo imo

I have downloaded this 2 times (I have 3 360's and 4 gold accounts) and have played through at least 6 times. I think this is perfect for $5. I am able to get 11 of the 12 achievements in the first run through as well as an "A" ending. I can't wait till the full game is out.

I believe the PP you gain (up to level 5) will be added to the full game on the same account. Is this true?

@RobHoliday Yeah, the levelling up to level 5 transfers over to DR2.

@RobHoliday

Yes, if you level up in Case Zero you can carry it over into the full game.

@RobHoliday

I have downloaded this 2 times (I have 3 360's and 4 gold accounts)

...sir I wish I had that much disposable income!

It's not a paid demo. If you want to try out the gameplay without spending money, there is a free trial version, just like any other Xbox Arcade game. I've already spent at least 8 hours playing it and I have yet to see all there is. The area isn't big, but just like in the regular Dead Rising, you can't really do everything there is to do in one shot.

I quoted this article before http://www.joystiq.com/2010/04/17/crytek-boss-free-game-demos-prohibitively-expensive and I feel that Capcom executed properly. Instead of charging us to play the first x minutes of a game...they gave us a unique experience that shows the game play properly so that people can make an informed decision. $5 is a great price point for it as well. It's below the threshold where it becomes a "decision". A big plus that it gives you a head start in the final game.

It was enough to make me want to pick up the original and play through it again. I've got a week to kill before Reach...why not.

I bought it and it made me decide to get Reach AND Dead Rising 2, instead of trying to choose between. Sure, some of the same issues I had with the first game are still present in this game, but it also reminded me how much I enjoyed the series too. And I'm sure the $5 price point went a long way towards boosting those sales

I was not a big fan of the first game, due mainly to the time limit, wonky controls (especially with the guns) and mainly the save system. But after playing Case Zero, I went straight to Amazon and preordered DR2. All the things I hated about the first game seem to have either been tweaked or completely fixed.

I think this game is so popular because it can't be mastered in a few mere hours of gameplay. You have to suffer defeat after defeat playing thru the main story, each time leveling up and carrying it over, to finally be rewarded with the true ending. Having played the first game multiple times, I get it now. They way the game is structured it rewards playing thru over and over with a stronger character each time, and it gets easier and more fun as you go.

@The Tim in that vein, the Castlevania: Harmony of Despair game makes more sense. Just like DR2 is difficult (I'm sure someone has the determination to play it through with a fresh character) to beat the first time through, the Castlevania game isn't designed for going through with your starting character. But after you've opened up a few chests and bulked up your guy...well just download any of the replays and you'll see.

Horse armor?

@jonny pineapple seed

Nay!

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