Between Resident Evil’s revival, Devil May Cry 5’s success, and Megaman 11’s existence, I think it’s safe to wonder when Dead Rising will be brought back, either as a proper continuation or with a prequel with a self-contained storyline (Like Resident Evil Revelations). Whatever the context is, the only thing for certain is the return, in some capacity, of combo weapons. This naturally brings up the questions of what new toys will there be to play with and which combo weapons return.
The latter of which is why I’m going to review every combo weapon in the franchise. Starting with Dead Rising 4 and working my way backwards, this is the first of several articles on the subject. These reviews won’t be a simple five or ten star rating, but instead I will talk about the crafting system in each game itself and then focus on how each weapon works and if it should be brought back as is, reworked, reimagined or dropped. Combo weapons that return from previous games will likely get shorter entries and only be talked about in the sense of how they’ve changed and if those changes were for the better.
Finally, Combo Vehicles will not be covered simply because they’ll get their own article at a later date.
Crafting Overview
For those who forgot/haven’t played this one, DR4 features a simplified version of weapon crafting; it retains the ability to build a weapon anywhere, but now the player only needs to find the base weapon and an item of a certain property to build it.
The simplified crafting recipes themselves exacerbate the big issue DR3’s crafting system had: there was no reason to not build combo weapons all the time because it was never hard to find weapon components and there was no cost to crafting. Adding to this is that combo weapons no longer earn extra PP in any way now, meaning that a combo weapon’s value is now strictly on its ability to kill as much as possible in a short amount of time.
The tragedy in this is how DR4 actually had the potential to fix this problem with it’s own systems. DR4 could have saved the simplified recipes for the weapons of more limited used (like the Electric Wreath), have semi-strict recipes for the more day-to-day weapons (for example, the Flaming Sword being crafted out of gasoline and any two-handed sword instead of any bladed object period) and have the precise recipes for the most useful (like the Blast From The Past, which would need a sledgehammer and a grenade exactly).
The other thing to fix the crafting system is with economics. DR4 features the return of currency to the series, but this time it’s scrap metal instead of cash. The game could give each combo weapon a crafting price of how much scrap Frank needs to build the weapon, meaning that players who don’t craft at every given chance can save their money up to buy combo weapons, outfits, and upgrades from vendors.
Finally, bring back personalized PP values for combo weapons.
So if the system for crafting as seen in this game returned, those are the changes I’d make. But now for the individual combo weapons themselves.
Acid Maul
As far as elemental melee weapons go, this is one of the more interesting ones thanks to it’s downward attack leaving a pool of acid that damages anyone dumb enough to walk into it. Not a bad idea itself, but unfortunately the weapon is literally just a Maul otherwise, meaning that it’s normal left and right swings (which are how Frank follows up the attack normally) will achieve very little more than hold the enemy in place for a second swing to finish them off, be it zombie or human. What is really weird is that the light and heavy attacks are both slam attacks, with heavy attacks having more of a wind up and knocking zombies a little further back.
Interesting idea with meh execution. There’s room to improve here.
The easier of the two solutions here is to simply give the weapon some new attacks. Make the light attack a forward jab with the large hammer as if it were a spear, and the heavy attack a quick swing down to the ground (not all that different from the original heavy attack). The new light attack helps emphasize the effect the chemicals have on the weapon in that the damage dealer goes from using the crushing mass of the hammer to just using the weight to push enemies back while the acid does the real harm. Combine this with the acid pool of the heavy attack, and a massive bone crushing hammer is now used as a means to keep the horde at bay.
However, there’s also the ability to reimagine this as a combo for a sledge hammer. Imagine instead a sledgehammer with some beakers filled with lab chemicals tape to the top. The idea is that both attacks (a golf club swing of the hammer and a horizontal swing followed by spinning around if the heavy attack button is held down) results in chemicals being spewed outward in the direction(s) the hammer was swung. With that usage, the weapon would have both a durability meter and an ammo meter (ammo goes down as chemicals are spewed, durability goes down when the hammer itself hits an enemy). The idea here is to swing before a target gets in melee range to preserve the durability.
Either one of these would work if the Acid Maul were to be brought back.
Acid Rain
In Dead Rising 3, this weapon gave the flare gun acidic residue, resulting in a lethal version of the same weapon. Nothing amazing, but a practical weapon with a punny name. In DR4, it’s basically just an acid bomb launcher. It can still create a pool of acid to make an area of denial, but the Acid Maul already does that. What makes it even worse is that it’s range is only about 10 feet so you’re not even really getting much out of the range. The missile also fires straight so you can’t even lob it over cover like you could with a flare or a grenade. Which comes to the killing factor: there are already a couple acidic exploding weapons like Acid Grenades or the Acid Jar from DR3.
I’d much rather have the Dead Rising 3 version back at the bare minimum, but I honestly wouldn’t miss this weapon either way if I never saw it again.
Back Cracker
Conceptually, this is one of Dead Rising 4’s strongest additions. The idea of a mace and shield with a pair of guns behind the player is effectively combining Freedom Bear with the Holy Arms. It’s honestly a lot of fun to use.
My big issue is just the logic of the weapon itself. I like combo weapons to follow a sense of logic; it doesn’t have to be realistic, but I should have a basic idea how parts A and B come together to make C. For example, This weapon is one of many that cheat a bit too much, mostly that the close quarters mace and shield come out of nowhere, and the idea that the mechanical device added makes the gun operational and powerful a further stretch than I’d like.
To make this weapon more “logical,” I’m turning to Dead Rising 2 and having this be an alternative to the Freedom Bear. While combining the robot bear with a LMG gives you the classic automated turret, combining it with a shotgun gives the player a manual version of Freedom Bear. I mean, given the kick of the shotguns, you probably would have to hold onto it when it fires. The light attack would just fire the bear once where the player stands, and the heavy attack would have the player deploy and aim it. Combining this with a sword and shield weapon (base, combo, take your pick) would then give the player the Freedom Backer.
Bazooka Cannon
Dead Rising 4 added the ability to use an exo suit for enhanced combat and to wield weapons otherwise too big/heavy for Frank. Most of these “Exo Weapons” have combo weapon replacements for normal Frank. In this case, the Bazooka Cannon replaces the pirate cannon.
While I’m not sure why the game made it’s crafting components chemicals instead of explosives, I otherwise have no issues with the weapon functionally speaking. It fires straight through the infected up to a certain distance before exploding, a property most other explosive weapons lack. That said, it’s also a property that I found more interesting than useful. The fact that the blambo exists at all makes this weapon redundant; the fact that the blambo is easier to fire and more reliable makes it useless.
If this weapon was to return, I once again have two ideas.
The first idea is to have the recipe be “Toy Cannon + Rocket Firework” and have this replace the DR2 Rocket Launcher (which fired rocket fireworks machine gun style, which no weapon in the series has tried to replicate). In fact, it would even look a bit like the rocket launcher that you get for beating Reed and Roger if built this way.
The second idea is a silly-yet-logical answer: Toy Cannon + Bowling Ball. It’s simple: it shoots bowling balls like cannon balls.
Blambow
This might be the most obvious of the combo weapons: you fire an explosive arrow from a crossbow and it sinks into the target and then explodes. It’s kinda hard to mess up.
Of course this weapon would return. There’s a reason it’s one of the few to stick around. In fact, it’s one of the few combo weapons that gets more useful in every game it appears in. If anything, the only reason to drop it from future installments is just to give other explosive weapons a chance (although it’s not my first choice of action).
Blast from the Past
This is one of the weapons that make me draw the line. This weapon was originally called the Impact Hammer in Dead Rising 3. And to give it’s sequel some credit, it’s a far more useful item now. The explosions don’t interrupt swings and can reliably kill zombies in one hit, and the skill move slaughters with ease. That said, this is what I’d say a combo weapon being too stupid looks like.
I didn’t like this weapon mechanically in DR3 but at least appreciated the sense of impact (heh) each swing had. While it’s now more useful, it’s functionally just a stronger hammer with no differences. In fact, besides the skill move, this weapon could have been almost anything taped to a hammer functionally and little to no loss in value.
I thought of some alternatives to this one, but I honestly just don’t want to see this again. Give me the Defiler any day and drop this one.
Bon Bomb
Another Dead Rising, another alternative to the Sticky Bomb. This one has the cute detail of dropping a toy after exploding (because it’s a holiday cracker) but it’s otherwise just another explosive with a point. Honestly, it’d actually be pointless if Frank could throw melee weapons in this game. But he can’t, so you have to jam it into a zombie. So if anything, it’s a worse version of the I.E.D. from the previous two games, which was in and of itself one of the weaker combo weapons to begin with. Combine that with the fact it’s a Christmas themed weapon who’s base item would be hard to bring back in later games, and you have a combo weapon that never needs to be used again.
Chuck ‘N Chop
Originally called the Boomer Axe, the weapon is ironically one of the more blunt ones: it’s a throwing star ax. It’s Dead Rising 3 recipe made more sense since it was a tire hub cap mixed with an ax. Mechanically speaking, the weapon is actually quite overpowered as the player gets ten per craft (this can be upgraded to thirty) and these things instantly kill almost anything that doesn’t have a visual health bar. With that power, it really should have been a single item with durability that the player has to retrieve after throwing.
I’m not the most enthusiastic about this one, but that’s mostly because this is just a less interesting version of the Decapitator from Off The Record, which was a boomerang with knives on it’s edges (the name “Boomer Ax” was likely a reference to that weapon, too). And between the two, I think I’d rather have the Decapitator. That said, there is also room for both, and having both would justify why the Chuck ‘N Chop is an ammo-based weapon.
If it does come back under those conditions, than my last request is for it to be called the “Doomerang”
Deck the Halls
I’m… still not sure what this one does, honestly. Or rather, I’m convinced it’s doing more than it actually is. It’s a set of brass gloves that just yeets anything it hits into the neighboring zip code. But what I’m not sure if it can do is stun enemies with the loud noise it makes on contact. I recall it happening but haven’t been able to recreate it.
Well, the “hits really hard” part is actually easy to recreate, as having the recipe be any number of tough objects (weights from dumbbells, for example) added to boxing gloves or MMA gloves and you have a good replacement that achieves the same result in future games. Which is a good thing, because punching-based weapons are quite rare in this series.
It would need a new name, though. Maybe “Fists of Steel” or something to that effect.
DIY Grenades
My vote for one of the best new combo weapons in Dead Rising 4. The DIY Grenade is simply an elemental grenade made from a martini shaker and some chemicals. What makes it stand out is that the grenade type you get is based on what chemicals you use. While the fire, acid, and flame grenades can be used interchangeably nine times out of ten, there is enough difference to justify using one type over the other (Ice best for zombies, fire best for humans, acid best for fresh and evolved zombies).
The only change I’d make recipe wise is replacing the martini shakers with either spray paint cans or water canteens. But honestly, I think the general idea of combo weapons having variations is not a bad idea and would like to see it expanded upon (since there’s only one other combo weapon in DR4 that shares this crafting mechanic). But if we ever get another installment, I hope to see this one come back.
Dynameat
Of course this one is coming back. The only thing that’s changed about it is that as of Dead Rising 3, it became an ammo based weapon.
Electric Axe
The Electric Axe is probably one of the lamer Combo Weapons. It’s functional, but it’s just a battle axe that electrocutes any zombies close to the ones you cut in half. Effective, but surprisingly dull. This is thanks in part to the existence of the Electric Crusher in previous games, which was a sledgehammer and a battery. It just had more weight behind it’s attacks, and doubled as a reference to Thor.
This isn’t a bad weapon in Dead Rising 4, but it’s certainly one that has no need to be brought back nor reinvented.
Electric Wreath
Another electric one, huh? The Electric Wreath is a Christmas wreath that sends out arcs of electricity once it’s placed onto a zombie’s head. If that sounds familiar, then you’ve played Dead Rising 2 as this was the purpose of the original Roaring Thunder. It’s now an ammo-based weapon.
I love this one. The DR2 Roaring Thunder was a weapon that I found myself missing when it’s proper sequel came around, so having it brought back via a new weapon is fine by me. Plus, a Christmas wreath is a lot easier to justify in other locations than most Christmas items would be (from tackyChristmas-year around houses to the idea stores keep some of these in closets/storage for the holiday season).
My only big change I would make is having the tool be a single item with longer durability that the player retrieves like the original Roaring Thunder was.
Equalizer
This is basically the classic Spiked Bat reimagined for DR4’s simplified crafting system. It’s a baseball bat with the slicing properties of the blades shoved into it.
Yeah, the Acid Maul was one of the more unique combo weapons in this game. Most of them are exactly what it says on the tin. That said, I do love the name of this one.
With this weapon just being the replacement Spiked Bat in this game, I see little reason to bring it back in later games when the original just works as is. However, the Equalizer could be brought back as a Laser Gun kind of combo weapon; having the player combine the Spiked Bat with a Junk Ball would result in what DR4’s blade bat achieved.
Fish Launcher
This is a really goofy version of bleed-out crossbows: the player launches a swordfish into a target, it damage being dealt over time as the fish wiggles to get out. The final update features a version of this weapon that could be found around the map naturally: the Lobster Launcher. It’s functionally no different except that it uses its claws to deal the damage. No change otherwise. The weapon is mostly meant to be used against human enemies, although some boss tier enemies are immune to it.
The Lobster Launcher is certainly my pick for the better of the two if this weapon were to return, as the idea of using food with weapons is rarely done in the series. It’d need to give pretty good PP when used against zombies, though.
Flaming Helmet
This weapon is basically DR4’s answer to the Burning Bull from Dead Rising 2. The problem is that it lacks the charge attack, which was the best part of the helmet weapons from that game. Once you take that away, you’re left with just the [surprisingly inaccurate] head bunt attack. It doesn’t help that it doesn’t do that much damage to begin with. If fire damage killed zombies faster, it’d be an okay weapon. But it doesn’t. It’s flamethrower skill move is pretty unreliable too, especially when compared to it’s elemental counterparts: the Froztee Penguin and the Jurassic Barf. This one should be left behind.
Flaming Sword
It’s a sword that’s on fire.
Okay, something that needs to be said: in my article covering Dead Rising’s Combo Weapons as a whole, this weapon was my weapon of choice in showcasing how combo weapons have changed between DR2 and DR3. The short end of it is that the only way a sword on fire could be helpful is if a sword doesn’t instantly kill zombies. Given that, especially after updates, most swords can now kill zombies in one swing, this combo weapon is more for show than anything else.
Fire based weapons are best used for not-lethal weapons, as it gives the player a sense they’re making a useless item a viable weapon, from spitball guns to wood swords to leaf blowers. Not to say that swords should never be made into combo weapons, just that this isn’t a great way to go about it.
Floating Lantern
The Floating Lantern is a distraction based weapon, although this one isn’t strictly an explosive. Frank places one of a handful spawned with each craft, it flies up into the air, attracts zombies as it unleashes jets of fire, and explodes once the durability runs out.
First problem: this weapon does not work properly. Roughly 75% of the time, this weapon will fly sideways into the air, limiting the effect of the flamethrowers greatly; at least once I’ve had it turn upside down and do nothing. Plus, it’s ability to distract zombies is rather poor compared to most other weapons with said property. But that’s not the reason I don’t want this one to return, since the next game can fix these two issues.
In my article covering Dead Rising’s Combo Weapons as a whole, the Flaming Sword was my weapon of choice in showcasing how combo weapons have changed between DR2 and DR3. However, I think this weapon embodies the other change made in combo weapons that I regret not talking about at the time: that every combo weapon has to kill zombies. Why does this weapon have a flamethrower? To kill zombies. Why does it need to kill zombies? Why can’t it be a means to distract zombies? You can simply make it last longer than a flare shot does because it flies into the air and doesn’t burn out as quickly.
This weapon is far from the only offender of this mentality, even in Dead Rising 4 alone as this list will show, but I do find it to be one of the most depressing examples personally. I’d be fine abandoning this one to the sands of time rather than rework it.
Froztee Penguin
This weapon allows the player to shoot chunks of ice out of the mask’s beak, it has a single headbunt attack and a ice-blower skill move.
It’s not a terrible moveset on it’s own, if anything it’s one of the more effective combo weapons in the context of DR4’s combat system. But in the scale of the franchise as a whole, it’s hard to ignore how this is a Snowball Cannon that you can’t aim. Not a terrible weapon, but there’s another weapon later on down the list I’d rather bring back.
Gandelf
This weapon is based off of a pun. It’s a staff that shoots exploding lawn gnomes with a stab attack that breaks the weapon quickly and a skill move that references the “you shall not pass scene” from Lord Of The Rings. Does that sound like something mixing a lawn gnome and a broom together with would or should make?
This weapon exists primarily to reference Gandolf when the previous game had the exact same reference with the Electric Staff, except the Electric Staff was one of the best weapons in the game and didn’t beat you over the head with the reference. Speaking of which, this weapon is terrible! The gnomes it fires have larger hitboxes than you might expect so there’s a good chance the gnome will just explode on a zombie that wondered too close to you. It’s damage output? Mediocre. And it’s also really hard to aim this damn thing, too. Granted, all projectile melee weapons in this game have this issue to some extent, but the Gandelf feels the most prone to veering from side to side even with directional input. So it’s a stupid weapon to make a lame reference that the last game did better and it isn’t even a good weapon in it’s own right.
Worst weapon in the game, don’t ever bring this one back.
Glass Knuckles
The Glass Knuckles are basically just the Tenderizers mixed with the Knife Gloves, with the skill move giving it a bit of DR3’s Dragon Punch. Thanks to the final update making zombies weaker to bisecting attacks, this weapon is at least viable in the current build (it was worthless initially).
I wouldn’t mind it’s ability to cause bleed damage to be carried onto the Tenderizers in future games, but the Glass Knuckles themselves are just a lesser version of the three parts that make up it’s blueprints. I say leave this one behind.
Gren-Aid
This weapon is a medical grenade. When it breaks open, it leaves behind a blue mist that heals any player(s) standing in it, and will continue to heal them until it fades away.
Why doesn’t this one bother me? With how often in this article I complained about a weapon making no logical sense at all, why am I okay with this one?
The short answer is: multiplayer mode. The Gren-Aid is one of three medical combo weapons that exist solely in the multiplayer mode. And given how chaotic said mode can become, having a means to heal teammates who are busy is certainly pretty helpful, let alone what a solo player can do with this to themselves. So I functionally do quite like this one.
So, do I recommend bringing this one back? This one gets a unique answer: I dub thee a Golden Choice. What does that mean? Well, keep reading. You’ll know by the end of the article.
Hit Maker
I miss the Plate Launcher…
The Hit Maker is a record machine gun that, well, fires records as fast as a machine gun. There are two big things holding this one back. First is the ability to only hit one target per shot. Unlike the Plate Launcher, which had plates shatter and could kill multiple zombies per shot, the Hit Maker is a lot like Super Messager where it can only hit one target per shot. Which leads to the second problem: the damage. Even after the final update buffed it’s damage output, this weapon can still take a good five to ten shots to down a zombie, and a good twenty for human enemies. It’s ability to stun lock targets makes it a safer weapon in some situations, but there are literally dozens of options that do the job faster and at comparatively little more risk.
I’d rather just have the plate launcher back at this rate. We can leave this one behind.
Holey Terror
A Rapture gun, as it makes zombies disappear. It does not have the effect on human enemies, although it does do heavy damage to them.
This weapon is another weapon where the recipe doesn’t really make much sense to what you get, even if what you get is fun to use. However, this is one of the few I’m actually disappointed in. It’s simple as to why: if the gun didn’t do absurd damage to human enemies and was instead worthless or at least weak against them, this would have been a rebalanced version of the Z.A.R. from Dead Rising 3. So if anything, it has that gun’s problem of being too useful for how easy it is to build. The more things change, the more they stay the same.
This weapon is going to be another Golden Choice for now.
Holiday Junk
This weapon is the Junk Ball from Dead Rising 3 reinvented for the Christmas outbreak.
And honestly? It’s an upgrade. First, it no longer has the forced slam attack at the end of it’s attack combo, so you can just keep swinging it. It doesn’t do much damage, but it is good at pushing enemies away. But most importantly, every hit will spawn either a toy or some candy to eat. Finally! A combo weapon that does something other than increase the kill count! Keeping one of these in the player’s inventory is actually pretty helpful in a pinch.
It might have to be renamed to something else, but I absolutely approve of this one coming back. A surprising highlight from the game.
Ice Chain Gun
The Ice Chain gun is another weapon that exists to replace an Exo Suit weapon, this time the mini gun. Although it has the effect of the ice chunks freezing zombies, with a follow-up attack chattering the zombie.
That said, my thoughts on this weapon are not that different from the Hit Makers and the Froztee Penguin: there’s already plenty of better guns in the game and I’d rather have the Snowball Cannon return in later games instead of this.
Ice Sword
It’s like the Flaming Sword except it’s freezing.
This is actually one of the weapons I’d like to see return with a different recipe. As it stands it’s a cartoon weapon, but imagine if instead it was made with a toy laser sword (which made its first appearance since the first game back in 2006) instead of a normal one? Filling the toy laser sword with liquid nitrogen not only gives the weapon enough weight in a swing to knock enemies back when hit, but also freezes them solid. When described like that, the Ice Sword sounds like something straight out of Case West to me.
A missed opportunity to be sure. With this approach, I’m more than willing to give this weapon a second chance.
Ion Cannon
Another Exo Suit replacement, this time for the rail gun. Although if I’m honestly, this one is just better. Not only does it retain the instant kill factor the rail gun did, it’s parts are easy to find and it’s ammo can be increased with perks from level ups. I’d say this one could use a nerf.
But with that said, yes I would like this one to come back, but only if the blast frequency gun and the lightning gun do. I can see adding a battery to the lightning gun to allow for the gun to charge up it’s 30 shots to have wider arcs and to improve it’s range so the shots keep going until they hit a wall. Honestly, I’d be down for that. In fact, you could even reference Resident Evil 2 and change the name from Ion Cannon to Charge Spark.
Jurassic Barf
My guilty pleasure weapon, as least in terms of this list. Mechanically, it’s just a better version of the Froztee Penguin in that it uses acid (which kills enemies very quickly) and it’s skill move has a lot more range to it. If any of the helmet weapons from this game came back, I would say this one, but I also won’t be upset if it gets left behind, either.
Now if it gets dropped but the Froztee Penguin returns, I shall be quite cross.
Laser Slicer
This weapon is a laser gun of a different variety. The weapon shoots metal balls with an electric charge, and lasers connect between the balls to cut zombies like a hot knife through butter. This makes a weapon where it’s better to shoot a few balls to the ground and then aim over head, or use the first half of that tactic to create an area of denial. This can be a fun weapon to use.
Putting the usual logical crafting™ argument I love so much aside for a moment, I just can’t recommend bringing this one back based solely on how overpowered it is. This weapon just kills too many zombies too quickly, but it also needs a large ammo pool to be a useful weapon. One could try to find a way to nerf the damage, but the nature of the traveling electricity means that you’d be messing with the timing and the range to such a degree that it’s just a more obtuse version of the Lightning Gun.
The Lightning Gun; that’s the other reason I don’t want to see this come back. I’m growing a bit tired of the use of laser weapons in the series, as it’s a well that’s been visited too often. There are nine “future gun” combo weapons in the series, half of which were created for Dead Rising 4 (Holey Terror, Ion Cannon, Laser Splicer, and the Umbrella Gun). That means that there’s the Super B.F.G., the Lightning Gun, The Laser Gun, The Laser Eyes, and the Chest Beam to bring back, and DR4 alone has better choices in the form of the Holey Terror (even if it’s conditions are a bit weird) or the Ion Cannon which could be nerfed by instead making it a buffed up Lightning Gun.
Top all of that off with how the crafting makes little sense in the first place, and you have a weapon that I love to use but can’t recommend ever including again.
Laser Sword
Fun fact: the only entry in the franchise to not feature a Laser Sword is Case Zero. This is not counting the mobile games because they all suck.
But yeah, it’s safe to say this one is coming back and I’d say keep it coming. I will given them credit for coming up with a new design for it every game, even if I think the DR2 design is the best one it’s had yet.
Magic Wand
The Magic Wand is literal magic, and really does show how combo weapons have gotten a lot crazier from the Fortune City days. Zombies hit by it’s attack will turn into a Christmas prop from around the map. It’s impressive that this weapon doesn’t cause any slow down, honestly.
This weapon is another Golden Choice weapon for future games for me. I’ll say that even with it’s stupid nature, I find it fun to use. However, instead of it being a Golden Choice, it could return as a conduction wand by combining an electric prod with a flashlight; it could use the same animations and just electrocute zombies so quickly it pops their heads.
Nut Blaster
This is the only helmet weapon that’s an actual gun. It’s basically a submachine gun with no recoil/kickback and it plays a Christmas Tune while firing it. Cute, honestly. The idea of a helmet with a gun built into it isn’t a terrible idea, but I won’t miss it if it’s dropped. More indifferent to this one than anything.
Side Note: Dead Rising 4 has a DLC combo weapon called “Sir Ice-A-Lot” which is basically the Nut Blaster with the Ice Chain Gun’s ice bullets. It’s ammo count is lower than some of the base firearms and has mediocre damage; it’s basically a worse version of both of these.
Ornament Gun
This gun is such a let down. For reasons I will never understand, this gun is a glorified grenade launcher. An actual ornament gun would launcher a single ornament that causes bleed damage to the target until they die, but this one launches three explosive Christmas balls per shot. These shots are also horribly inaccurate, capable of missing a point blank shot. To top it all off, they don’t even do that much damage to begin with, with most human enemies needing a second explosion to finish off – a second shot that has a 40% chance of missing. Hell, I’ve even had some zombies survive the splash damage from these bombs.
This weapon concept deserved better. Replace the ornaments with lightbulbs, and have the gun actually just shoot lightbulbs that deal bleed damage.
Plunger Lure
The Plunger Lure sticks to a zombie’s face, makes noise to attract nearby zombies to it, then explodes into electricity. It’s functionally no different from the Dynameat, but is gotten earlier in the story, has a higher ammo capacity and has a large blast radius; the fact it does less damage will not stop most players from picking it over the other distractions bombs.
My main talking point is really no different from the Floating Lantern, so I’ll instead explain why I’m so hard set on this idea as I give my alternate version pitch. Take out the part where it explodes and instead just have it play music until the speaker dies, causing it to short out. This could be justified building because not only can it stick to zombies, but unlike the speaker you get more than one. Now with this version, there would be a reason to use one over the other (especially in the context of escorting a survivor back to safety): a luring bomb and long lasting distraction.
So far on this list, there have been three items with the exact same purpose: lure zombies nearby to kill them, and all of them explode no less. The Floating Lantern can at least be used to burn human enemies (assuming it even works properly), but the Plunger Lure and the Dynameat? Unless they plan to make this weapon different, I see no value being lost if this weapon is dropped.
Raining Nails
This is the one combo weapon I’ve always loved in this game, from my first playthrough back in 2016 to now. It’s also the one weapon that I really wish was back in Dead Rising 3.
Okay, the basic use of this one is that the flare gun is converted into a hand cannon that fires hot nails. Right away, it fundamentally changes how the weapon’s used, so that’s always nice. As to why I wish it were in Dead Rising 3, it’s due to how both the flare gun and the Acid Rain had their light attack be launching a flare into the air’ the idea of being able to either fire this like a hand cannon to heavily damage one target or launch a bunch of hot nails into the air for it to literally rain fire down around the player is really intincing.
It’d make the required weapon combined with the flare gun a nail gun and limit the ammo to no more than 30, but I’m otherwise ready to use this one again.
Roaring Thunder
This returning weapon allows the player to give electrical slaps like Blanka from Street Fighter. Sadly, the iconic A.O.E. shock attack has been limited to being the skill move (it was the heavy attack in the last game), but this move does replace the jump kick with a spinning electrical smash. Honestly, bring that A.O.E. back to the moves heavy attack, and you have the best version of this weapon.
Rocket Bandage
This is another medical weapon for the multiplayer rule, with this one being about healing any one teammate that you have a clear line of sight of; assume that I said the same thing there here. . . minus the golden choice part, as the inability to heal yourself and the fact that it’s easy to miss makes it undesirable.
Also, as a TF2 fan, the fact the long-range healing tool is not the Crusader’s Crossbow makes me irrationally upset.
Roto Killer
You add blades to a weed wacker to make it a chainsaw.
Remember the Weed Tenderizer from Off The Record? The weapon with unique attack animations where you use it like a normal weed whacker to take out the zombie’s ankles with the knives added to the edges? Just bring that back instead.
Santa Trap
This one is weird. You take a Santa Slinger and add chemicals to it and turn it into an elemental turret of sorts. It also makes noise to draw zombies in.
Honestly, I’ve never been the biggest fan of the turret weapons like Freedom Bear myself. They’re fine, but they’re never my go-to choice for dealing with zombies or psychopaths due to the set-up needed. So if I’m going to use one of these things, they better be worth the effort.
The Santa Trap does manage to be easy to deploy: just put her down and watch her go. Unfortunately, it gets the whole “working properly” thing wrong. Painfully wrong. I have never had this thing deploy properly. Either because of uneven terrain or a zombie bumping into it, this weapon always falls over and does effectively nothing or literally nothing [depending on what side it fell on].
It’s a shame too, as this is the only other weapon that uses the variant system the DIY grenades use. What a waste. Oh well; just drop this one.
Sentry Kittens
Returning from Dead Rising 3, this one has received some changes. Instead of a single robotic cat that pounces around and eventually explodes, there are instead several small ones that cling to a single target and then explode; the player gets a few boxes of these with every craft.
I will say that this is an improvement on the original Sentry Cat, which was a goofy but nigh-worthless weapon in the previous game. However, the weapon itself is more of a goof around weapon than anything practical, and the premise of the weapon is something I still don’t like either way. It probably doesn’t help that I’m a dog person myself. Pass on this one returning.
Sledge Saw
Ah, the signature weapon for the hero of Los Perdios. . . why is it here?
I’m not trying to be cynical or anything, but it has no reason to return in DR4. The reason it was given in DR3 at the start of the game is because it gave the player a chance to get used to the new combat system: light attacks use the hammer, heavy attack use the saw. However, DR4 makes all heavy attacks clear-out attacks so it can’t really take advantage of this weapon’s design, so the looping attack combo just alternates between the sledgehammer and the far more damaging cement saw with no change in the speed of the attack.
If they redesigned the weapon to put the cement saw on the same end as the hammer itself, turning it into an industrial scythe of sorts, then I could understand it’s return here. But they didn’t so I don’t; Dead Rising 3 had many more combo weapons that could have been brought back that would have worked better than this.
Slicing Beauty
It’s a propane tank with a punch of axes and knives added to its sides. It spins around when activated then blows up, sending them flying; an extreme shrapnel grenade.
This weapon just isn’t that viable. You need to find a horde in the first place to make it useful, so there’s a good chance that when you activate it, a zombie will be behind you and Frank’s lack of the ability to push enemies will leave him caught in the blast. But even if you get away, there’s a good 45% chance that the Beyblade of death will just follow you or suddenly yeet itself right in front of you. And if it doesn’t you still get to hope that the shrapnel doesn’t lodge itself into your thighs.
Also, remember the Bouncing Beauty from Off The Record? Remember how it was made with fireworks and moved in a more controlled manner? Remember how it’s name was a reference to a WWII weapon of the same name? Just bring that back instead.
Split Shot
This one… this one has a legacy to it. One of the most overpowered combo weapons, nay, overpowered weapons period in the series. With a large ammo capacity and the ability to shoot five directions at once, this weapon can kill literally everything at once and in seconds.
The fact it’s not the most overpowered gun in Dead Rising 4 should speak volumes to the Laser Splicer.
You may have noticed that I didn’t give any stance on the Sledge Saw returning, and that I’m stalling on doing the same here. I’m saving these two for the Dead Rising 3 version of this article, especially since with the Split Shot, some of the ideas on rebalancing it need how the gun works in that game to make sense.
Spray N’ Pray
The third and final healing item from the multiplayer mode, the Spray ‘N Pray allows one to heal a teammate continuously until they’re out of ammo. Honestly, I’m surprised (and extremely disappointed) this wasn’t called First Aid Spray. Seriously, Blanka gets a weapon but Resident Evil doesn’t?
Honestly, I would bring this one back as First Aid Spray. Spray Paint + Whiskey (booze is recommended for first aid kits for a reason). The light attack has the player heal themself, the heavy attack heals others.
Soundwave Trap
This weapon is the Plunger Lure, except it’s heavier, has shorter range, cannot stick to enemies, can’t push enemies back, has less ammo, and makes a very annoying sound before going off.
On second thought, this isn’t the Plunger Lure. It’s useless. Drop it. Next.
Sticky Bomb
The last of the returning combo weapons, and one that I’ve never understood the point of.
It’s exactly what you’d think it is: a bomb that sticks to things. This version comes directly from Dead Rising 3, so it’s a nailed… thing with some grenades on the bottom.
My confusion is more so that there’s already the Blambo and the Dynameat in every mainline Dead Rising game on top of any similarly-functioning weapons in that particular game. It’s not useless, especially in DR4 where it can instantly gib human enemies, I’m just wondering why this has been kept around for so long.
This is the one legacy weapon I wouldn’t miss if dropped, but that ain’t gonna happen. So when this weapon inevitably returns, I think it should be made from dynamite and a bar dart.
Suckmaster 3000
Technically another weapon that makes noise to draw zombies in, but one of the more interesting ones to be fair. When thrown, it creates a large vacuum that pulls zombies in. The weapon must then be retrieved, since it’s durability based instead of ammo based. It works fairly well, and I’m happy that there’s finally a weapon that isn’t just a “you get ten of them go kill everything be the monster” kind of tool. That said, a heavy tosser that attracts zombies was not the best choice for that, mostly because it means that once it turns off, the zombies it attracted but did not kill will surround it and then turn their attention to you.
Man, if only there was a distraction item I could throw onto a wall to distract them while I retrieve my trap. That’d be real dandy.
This weapon is my fourth and final Golden Choice for this list. However, I also want to bring up the idea for a pressure gun of some kind; a vacuum that’s modified to create low pressure inside it and then unleash it forward in a burst of air (wasn’t there a Call Of Duty Zombies weapon that did that? If so, hey another reference to build). Just an idea.
Tripod Zapper
You know what this article hasn’t had for a while? A weapon that attracts zombies to kill them! Sure, this is the last one on the list, but that makes seven in total, or roughly 14% of the combo weapons.
Functionally, this weapon is a less extreme version of the Laser Splicer; it has less ammo and range (in that the towers need to be close enough for electricity to travel), shocks instead of cuts, and lasts a lot longer than any one shot does (you can actually pick a tower back up, but once deployed each one becomes a separate item). It’s not given to the player until the final chapter, so it was likely meant to be a New Game + weapon (and given that it makes boss fights a non-issue, I can believe that).
The fact you can buy one from every vendor in the game kinda hurts that idea, though.
As much fun as it is to place these down and watch bosses just die, I also tend to forget this weapon exists half the time. Without its ability to turn boss fights into interactive cutscenes where you watch someone die, it’s not a must-use weapon.
Umbrella Gun
Another laser gun. This one fires off a continuous laser beam, but this really doesn’t affect how the player will use the gun; just point and shoot, buddy. It works every time. The weapon does have a shield function to protect the player from melee attacks, which is a cool idea. The inability to manually trigger this (it happens automatically when a zombie gets too close and when it feels like it at that) makes it much less cool.
This weapon also falls into the “makes no sense” camp but you already know where that talking point goes.
I’d rather have that idea – a gun with shield protection – be used in a future combo weapon over bringing this one back. Let’s say… a LMG with riot gear. The gun is fitted into the shield with the nightstick being taped to it to offer more stability when shooting.
Golden Weapons
And finally, a unique idea in the game. Gold weapons are multiplayer unlocks that are not exclusive to the multiplayer mode. A quick rundown: all weapons in the multiplayer mode break roughly twice as fast and have half the ammo to balance the fact there can be up to four players at once. Even with maxed out stats, weapons only last about as long as they would for a level 1 Frank. The gold weapons, made from gold bars, are unlocks that allow the four survivors to build buffed versions to counter the nerfs they receive in the mode.
The noteworthy part is that these “goldprints” carry over into the story mode, but gold bars (needed to build these) don’t spawn until the player beats the story mode at least once. When built in the story mode, they retain their increased stats resulting in overpowered weapons.
The system itself can come back or go away for all I care honestly. But remember those Golden Choices I brought up before? This is where they come into play. But first, I need to tell you about Developer Crafts.
In the game Dead Island, there were five secret weapon modifications called the “Develop Crafts” hidden around the map. They required either a guide or an absurd combination of exploration and luck to unlock, as the player must find 5 different colored skulls and bring them to five separate locations each skull and location matchup gave a single craft. These weapons were powerful, unique, ridiculous, but not quite game breaking.
This approach I think would work out for some of those fun to use but illogical weapons: having hard to find blueprints that reward the player with a lethal joke weapon. This can be achieved any number of ways, from items needed only spawning in time sensitive locations to requiring the player to move all over the map to deliver several items in several locations relay style, to just not spawning until a second playthrough. Whatever the method, my choices for this were the Gren-Aid, the Magic Wand, the Holey Terror, and the Suckmaster 3000.
Final Section
And thus, I have reviewed all 50 combo weapons from Dead Rising 4 (51 if that little blurb about the DLC weapons counts). Now I only have to review all 75 combo weapons for the Dead Rising 2 Saga, all 80 combo weapons from Dead Rising 3, and all 26 combo vehicles from the franchise.
Why did I do this? Well, simply put, it’s that old article I did on Dead Rising’s combo weapons; I plan to remake that article and cover all the games this time but only after reviewing all the combo weapons and combo vehicles, as I have a lot more to say and the information about the absolute hell that was working on DR4 made me feel like I was too harsh, which is also why I started with the Dead Rising Holiday Special and am working my way backwards.
Welcome to the Tape It Or Die Saga. See you next time for Dead Rising 3. I wonder what structural changes I’ll pose onto those.
The Squid Chamber 