Well, he ain’t my boy, but the brother is heavy… the dreaded Convicts return in their machine gun-mounted Humvee in Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster, and the psychopaths are just as annoying to get past as they were in 2006. To the tune of Gone Guru by Lifeseeker, they peel around the open plain of the Leisure Park, shooting at Frank West and his gang of survivors, and mowing them down with the grill of their green jeep.
In this guide, I’m going to show you how to get rid of the Convicts with a mix of wits and weapons, so you can keep the path between the Food Court and Paradise Plaza as safe as possible for survivor transport… at least until the next day rolls around.
When do the Convicts appear in Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster?
Sam Franklin, Reginald Jenkins and Miguel Sanchez make themselves known at 6 PM on September 19, pretty much when night falls on the first day in Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster. That means it’s wise to run a few early survivor rescue scoops like Barricade Pair and A Mother’s Lament beforehand, if you can. But if we’re being honest, you’re most likely going to encounter the convicts for the first time when you have survivors in tow, which makes their vehicular prowling extra annoying.
How to prepare for the convicts in Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster
If you want to take down the trio as soon as possible, it’s good to have a bunch of healing items in your inventory, as well as ranged firearms and a close-up melee weapon. For the melee weapon, I recommend the Katana, which you can find by heading to Colombian Roastmasters on the second floor of Paradise Plaza. Hop over the balcony at the far side to find a sword on the canopy, which you can respawn by leaving and entering the area. Feel free to stock up on healing items in the coffee shop, too.
However, the best place to grab consumable health is, understandably, the Food Court, which you can reach by trekking across the Leisure Park before the convicts spawn. There’s tons of wine bottles in the raised area on your left as you enter, as well as a handy ‘Hypnotic Tips’ magazine that reduces damage to survivors. Elsewhere in the Food Court, if you climb up to the wooden rampart where Carlito was stationed (assuming you’ve completed Case 1-2), you can pick up a Gunslinger magazine that improves gun damage.
You’re also going to need some pistols to make use of this. In the Al Fresca Plaza, there’s usually a cop zombie in the bandstand area, or if not, you should hopefully still have the gun that Jessica provides Frank as he enters the mall. There also tend to be cop zombies near the exit of Paradise Plaza too. Before you head into the Leisure Park to face the convicts, remember that the survivor they’re hounding, Sophie, will probably die if you leave and come back. So make sure you’re ready if you plan to save her.
How to defeat the convicts in Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster
As soon as you enter the Leisure Park after nightfall, you’ll encounter a cutscene introducing the convicts, and they’ll start barrelling towards you and your unfortunate troupe of survivors. The convicts tend to chase after Frank primarily, so I usually arm my crew and order them to a certain location with LT + R3.
Broadly, the best tactic to stop the convicts is to run into an area of the park with multiple trees. The jeep is cumbersome, and the crash reaction animations are long, so having the car bump into a series of lumber blockades will ensure you have the time to fill the trio full of bullets, or get up close for some katana slashes.
Try your best to focus your ranged fire on Prisoner 3, the guy manning the heavy machine gun. Keep an eye on your crosshair, too, as it will embolden when you’re going to deal a chunk of damage. With some luck you can get rid of the gunner, and as soon as you do, you should try and get close enough to the car to steal the machine gun. Once Frank picks it up, you can empty a salvo into the driver and passenger and make short work of their health bars.
Keep in mind that if you take out the driver, the passenger will hop in his place, so don’t expect the car to stop immediately. If you run out of bullets, start weaving in between trees, and then dash towards the car’s side and start slashing with the katana. It’ll take a few swings but you’ll eventually fell your foes. Once that’s done, you should hop in their jeep for an achievement, rescue Sophie and head back to the Security Room for a breather.
Do the convicts respawn in Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster?
Unfortunately, the convicts do respawn on a daily basis. In fact, during my review playthrough, I found that the driver and passenger could respawn if I even left the area and returned after defeating them on the same day. I’m not sure if this is also how it was in the original game, but regardless, just be mindful that you’re going to face these guys multiple times. Sometimes you can get away with just avoiding the convicts and their jeep entirely. You may get lucky and they’ll be prowling over by a different plaza entrance — or right in front of you as soon as you enter the Leisure Park. In any case, good luck with taking them down, as they’re by far one of the most annoying obstacles in the entire game.
