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Leveling up to max doesn’t have to be a chore in Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster. A regular playthrough of 72-Hour Mode and Overtime Mode typically will get Frank West up to the Level 40 range, but if you want to earn that last “Level Max” achievement and earn the Zombie Walk skill, you’ll need to get to the highest level possible. And there’s a fast way you can do it we discovered by exploring the mall way, way too much.
It’s worth mentioning that this method is only useful if you don’t plan on going for the Zombie Genocider challenge, which tasks you with destroying 50,000+ zombies in a single run. If you’re planning on doing that, you’ll get to Level 50 basically no matter what anyway. That’s the ultimate grind. But this method is much, much faster. It’ll only take an hour to earn all the PP you need to level up.
For more tricks and techniques, check out our early game level grinding guide. Learn how to score infinite Molotov Cocktails, or how to earn the best possible ending.
How To Level Up To 50 Fast
To level up extremely fast in Dead Rising, you’ll need to hunt Special Forces Soldiers. These are difficult enemies at low-level, so you’ll want to wait until you’re in the high 30s / low 40s before attempting this method. Soldiers can easily stunlock Frank with their machine gun attacks, so you’ll need to learn to dodge-roll to avoid their attacks and get in close for the kill.
No melee weapons are required here. You’ll want a stockpile of healing items and plenty of Machine Guns. These are dropped by soldiers, so you’ll have an infinite supply you can use while doing this method. Rocket Launchers are also extremely useful here — one shot will instantly defeat soldiers, and you can wipe out groups of them. Rockets are harder to find, and they’re not required. Here’s how to get started.
Paradise Plaza Warehouse | PP Farming
Start a new Overtime Mode run from the Main Menu. Overtime Mode unlocks after earning Ending A — which is unlocked by completing all the Cases. Overtime Mode places Frank West in an empty mall full of drones and soldiers.
- Go to the Paradise Plaza Warehouse. This is the room that leads to the roof access elevator. You’ll pass through this room whenever you leave the Security Room.
- Enter through Paradise Plaza. 8 Special Forces soldiers spawn here in 4 groups. Two are in the hallway, two are in the main room, and two groups are in the winding path of shelves.
- Defeat these soldiers, then return through the double doors to reset. That’s it!
Each soldier gives 5,000 PP when defeated. Clearing this room takes a minute or two and rewards you with 40,000 PP total. Depending on your level, you’ll either gain a level instantly, fill your PP meter by 50%, or 20%. Even at Level 49, this method will earn you a level in just a few runs.
To make this method viable, you’ll need to use Disembowel, Lift Up or Face Crusher. All of these skills will defeat soldiers in a single attack and make Frank invulnerable briefly. These attacks are performed with [R1 / RB + Attack] and are much easier to perform in the Deluxe Remaster version of the game.
Defeat the first pair of soldiers with these skills. After that, you can use Rocket Launchers / Machine Guns to clear the next two groups. One is in the main warehouse — they’ll either spawn on the ground floor or high on the shelves. Shoot them down with ranged weapons if they’re on the stacks, then leave the entrance hallway and go left. Turn right to spot the soldiers down the path of shelves. These soldiers can also be shot with Machine Guns. The last group will either spawn near the elevator or on top of the high shelves. If they’re on the ground floor, use melee grapples to kill them. If they’re up high, use the Machine Gun.
Because the soldiers have Machine Guns, you will take damage — dodge roll to avoid their bullet attack. If you time it right, you can avoid the entire burst. But you can very easily get stunlocked by multiple soldiers if you’re not careful. Dodge while taking damage to break out of the cycle. Because these enemies will almost always deal some damage, stock up on Orange Juice. You’ll find an infinite supply of Orange Juice in the Colombian Roastmasters in Paradise Plaza 2F.
Follow this method and you’ll be Level 50 ridiculously fast. If you plan on replaying the main story often or grinding for 50,000+ Zombie kills, then you won’t need these farming tricks. You’ll earn Level 50 naturally. But if you just want to get to Level 50 fast and don’t care about anything else, this is what you need to know.
