Limited Edition: Dead Rising 2 (Zombrex Edition)

I will admit - as soon as I saw the announcement for this Edition, I knew it was the one I wanted for my own collection, even before it was officially announced for release in the UK.  However, once my preorder arrived, the horrible nature of hindsight kicked in, and I wonder whether it really was worth this desire...

Make no mistake, the packaging for the Zombrex Edition is beautiful.  A steelbook case embossed in the style of a blisterpack of tablets, held within an enlargened (more on that in a moment) plastic cover slip.  Everything about the casing screams 'Special Edition', from the prominent titling of such through to the physical jutting out from the rest of a shelve of games.

Why might the Zombrex Edition warrant such an elongated case?  So that a box, again in a style reminiscent of medical equipment, containing a pen shaped as syringe, can be kept with the game itself.  Although this is a nice little touch, holding everything in one piece, it does kind of defeat the purpose of providing physical goods as extras, for should the pen be used or the box lost, there will be a bloody great gap in the packaging, wasting shelf space for no reason whatsoever.

Also included  is a copy of the 'Making Of' DVD, with a 24 minute documentary covering Capcom's decision to shift development of the game over to Blue Castle Games, and their ideas behind what to keep and what they should add to the game series.  One of the more interesting featurettes I have seen included with a Special Edition - that much can be said.

And that completes the overview of the (EU) Zombrex Edition of Dead Rising 2.  Now, let us compare this with the contents of the (US) Zombrex Edition, and what a difference be seen.  It all boils down to one simple fact, the American version gets a lot more goodies for their cash, including (in addition to the syringe pen): (1) a 'Prescription' Notepad; (2) 'Zombrex Safety card'; (3) 'Zombrex Prospectus' Sales brochure; and (4) a hardback Artbook.  Which amounts to a fair amount of bonus goods missing from our version... all of these are pictured below.

In-game content wise, this Edition is a bust.  Nothing whatsoever is included.

All in all, this Edition is kind of a love-hate thing: I love the packaging, but hate that it cost extra.  Is it worth the extra money?  Probably not.  But am I glad I paid it?  Strangely enough, yes.  Such is the attraction of having a game collection one may be proud of.

Price (New): £54.99
Box: Steelbook case; plastic sleeve; Exclusive coverart.
In-game Content: 0
Physical Content: 2 - The barest minimum.