Dead Rising
A zombie game set in a mall with a 72-hour clock.
Where Dead Rising comes up2 episodes and tests
Gcreator of Game Maker's Toolkit testThe 100 Games That Taught Me Game Design
Gcreator of Game Maker's Toolkit testClockwork Games and Time LoopsDead Rising makes time its main threat: a 72-hour in-game clock (about 6 real hours) ends with the helicopter's return, survivors get eaten if you're slow, and Stacey needs Zombrex every 24 hours. Some players dislike the pressure and mod the clock out. The lesson: treat time like ammo or health, give it a fixed end point, and expect some users to reject the constraint.
- 172-hour clock starts6 hours of real time
- 2Survivors call for helpThey get eaten if you're slow
- 3Stacey needs ZombrexEvery 24 hours
- 4Player picks eventsNot enough time to save everyone
- 5Helicopter returnsThe game ends at a set moment
From Dead Rising design analysis
What was said about Dead Rising
Dead Rising makes time a scarce resource the player must spend. Survivors who call for help get eaten if you are slow, and Stacey needs Zombrex every 24 hours. There is not enough time to save everyone, so the player chooses which events to attend.
Detours, routes, shortcuts and fast-travel points become decisions about how to spend minutes. The clock is described as the game's most nightmarish monster: "This turns time into a valuable resource, which must be carefully managed just like ammo and health."
A 72-hour clock gives the game a fixed end point. The helicopter returns after 72 in-game hours, which is 6 hours of real time. That ends the simulation at a set moment.
Developers can't simulate schedules forever, and some story events can't be missed if the plot is to cohere. Outer Wilds ends in a supernova after 22 minutes and Majora's Mask has the moon crash after three days. As the source puts it, "time can't exactly go on forever".
The clock stops zombie farming, and players split on whether they like it. The 72 hours until the helicopter stops you farming zombies, and survivors die when their timers run out. Some players find the clock a drag and mod it out.
Whether you accept the clock or mod it out shows which side of the design you fall on.
The 100 Games That Taught Me Game Design
The 72 hours until the helicopter stops you farming zombies, and survivors die when timers run out. Some players find the clock a drag and mod it out, which shows which side you fall on.
The clock stops zombie farming, and players split on whether they like it. The 72 hours until the helicopter stops you farming zombies, and survivors die when their timers run out. Some players find the clock a drag and mod it out.
Whether you accept the clock or mod it out shows which side of the design you fall on.
Clockwork Games and Time Loops
The clock is the main threat: survivors who call for help get eaten if you are slow, and Stacey needs Zombrex every 24 hours. The helicopter returns after 72 in-game hours, which is 6 hours of real time.
Dead Rising makes time a scarce resource the player must spend. Survivors who call for help get eaten if you are slow, and Stacey needs Zombrex every 24 hours. There is not enough time to save everyone, so the player chooses which events to attend.
Detours, routes, shortcuts and fast-travel points become decisions about how to spend minutes. The clock is described as the game's most nightmarish monster: "This turns time into a valuable resource, which must be carefully managed just like ammo and health."
A 72-hour clock gives the game a fixed end point. The helicopter returns after 72 in-game hours, which is 6 hours of real time. That ends the simulation at a set moment.
Developers can't simulate schedules forever, and some story events can't be missed if the plot is to cohere. Outer Wilds ends in a supernova after 22 minutes and Majora's Mask has the moon crash after three days. As the source puts it, "time can't exactly go on forever".
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