Secrets Of Games

Dead Rising 2 can be pretty tough at times. Aside from the legions
of undead, Chuck Greene (and players) have to contend with a ticking
clock, survivors and psychopaths. Fortunately, we’re here to help.
While we’re not going to spoil everything, we’ve compiled a few tips
that are sure to make your life in Fortune City longer and more
enjoyable.

• Weapons, weapon components, and other items almost always spawn in
  reliable locations. If you pick up a sledgehammer in a store, for
  example, it’ll be back when you return from another area. The same goes
  for health items, too. With that in mind, you’d be a fool not to stock
  up on the best goodies.

• As with the first game, orange juice is one of the best healing
  items. Not only does it replenish a good chunk of health, but it’s
  stashed all over the place. Coffee creamer is a slightly less effective
  (and palatable) alternative, but it’ll do in a pinch. To make healing
  items more effective, be sure to grab the magazine at the kiosk just to
  the left after you leave the safe house. It’ll take up a precious
  inventory slot, but it’s definitely a handy way to boost the
  effectiveness of even the weakest healing items.

• After you get access to the game’s maintenance rooms, don’t pass up
  a chance to make new weapons. Using those combo weapons earns Chuck
  prestige points, which level him up. Higher levels mean more hit
  points, better attacks, more inventory space—things you’ll want. There
  are a lot of combo weapons out there, and you’ll earn cards
  (essentially recipes) for some of them as you escort survivors and
  level up. Even if you don’t have the official recipes, however, you can
  combine items. You won’t earn as much PPs, but something’s better than
  nothing.

• There are a few components near the safe house that are reliably
  good, and useful from the beginning of the game to the end. I usually
  kept two or three spiked baseball bats with me at all times. The
  charged attack nets some decent PPs, and even the basic swipe knocks
  crowds back if it doesn’t necessarily kill enemies outright.

• Two of the cardboard boxes near the lower stairs just before the
  maintenance room are worth checking out. They each contain cans of
  spray paint, which can be combined with traffic cones to create an air
  horn. It’s slow to kill, but it nets a hefty chuck of PPs with each
  kill. When you’re in the safe house proper, grab the vacuum cleaner and
  fire ax. Both of those items can be combined with items you can find
  right outside the vent. (Sawblades for the vaccuum, and a sledgehammer
  for the fire ax.) They’re also great weapons that you can make early on.

• Another one of the easiest weapons to acquire is also one of the
  most effective. Early in the game, the Royal Flush area is infested
  with groups of looters. You’ll know you’re close by them when you hear
  their whiny voices. They typically hang out in groups of three, and you
  can easily take them on at once. In addition to the 500 PPs you get
  from killing each one, one of them is equipped with a flashlight.
  Combine it with gems—easily found in one of the Royal Flush’s jewelry
  stores—and you’ve got yourself a lightsaber-type weapon that kills
  zombies in one shot. Make a couple of those things, hang out at a
  crowded casino exit and go to town.

• As I said in my review, the AI survivors are a lot more effective
  in Dead Rising 2 than in the first game. There are a few tricks you can
  use to make life even easier. Some come armed with weapons, which is
  handy. Chuck can give unarmed survivors weapons and healing items, or
  even trade weapons with those who are armed. A lot of the survivors
  aren’t interested in some of the crazier combo weapons, so I just stuck
  with the basics. Crowbars and bats are a good choice, and handguns are
  generally better still. As good as it is, survivor AI still does some
  annoying things from time to time, particularly when a large group of
  survivors is surrounded. To minimize collateral damage I avoided
  extremely large swinging weapons, like picket signs, or weapons that
  have a large area of effect, like shotguns

• You’ll be going to the safehouse a lot during the game, and you’ll
  eventually learn the route. Until then, when you’re lost and you have
  survivors with you, there’s a better way to get back than popping into
  the map every few steps. There’s almost always a mission that involves
  talking to a friend at the safehouse. Set a waypoint to that one, and
  follow the beacon home.

• Reading is FUNdamental. Inventory space is limited when you’re starting out, but once you have a little room you might want to start picking up some magazines. There are lots of them scattered throughout Fortune City, but a few worthwhile reads are found in the Royal Flush casino area. When you exit the maintenance room area, there’s a kiosk called Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow just to your left. There are a few magazines there, which increase the effectiveness of healing items and the amount of PP you get from weapon kills. Upstairs, there’s a bookstore named Ragazines. Scour its shelves and you can find periodicals that give you a 25 percent PP boost for slaying the undead and make you a much more effective gambler. There’s also a book that makes your hand-to-hand attacks deadlier, but if you’re wandering around without a weapon you’re doing something wrong.

• The last tip I’ll offer is a simple one: be on the lookout for
  interesting weapon components when you’re near a maintenance room.
  There are almost always a couple of items around the workbench that can
  be combined for a quick combo weapon. If you don’t see anything useful,
  walk around the immediate area for a while. For instance, outside the
  Yucatan Casino there are a few tiki torches laying on the ground.
  Combine one of them with the maintenance room’s spitball gun and you’ve
  got yourself a sweet weapon. A weapon, by the way, that’s quite useful
  against one of the last bosses, who just so happens to be a short walk
  away…

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