Dead Rising 5 has been dead for seven years, but the wounds are still fresh. Marie Mejerwall, who worked on enemy and boss design for the cancelled sequel, recently gave an interview at DevGAMM in Lisbon where she pulled back the curtain on what could have been. The details she shared about tiered enemy types, roaming mini-bosses, and arena battles paint a picture of a game that was shaping up to be something special before Capcom Vancouver shut down in 2018.
Mejerwall was part of the NPC team responsible for creating all the boss fights in Dead Rising 5. While NDAs prevent her from revealing everything, she provided enough specifics to show fans exactly what they lost when the project got axed. The most tantalizing detail involves a boss fight set in a temple that progressively collapses as the battle intensifies, with the boss becoming more aggressive as the environment literally falls apart around you.
The Enemy Tier System
Dead Rising 5 was designed with a sophisticated enemy hierarchy that went far beyond the typical zombie hordes the series is known for. Mejerwall explained they had multiple tiers of threats, starting with classic unintelligent zombies that would grab and overwhelm players through numbers.
The next tier introduced semi-advanced enemies inspired by games like Batman. These thug-type opponents had basic intelligence and could coordinate attacks. The team also created armored versions of these enemies to add variety and force players to adjust their strategies mid-combat.
What made Dead Rising 5’s approach unique was how pronounced the mini-boss system was compared to other games. These mid-tier threats were designed as tenant units, meaning they could be dropped into almost any location without requiring specific terrain or map configurations. The flexibility in their design meant Capcom Vancouver could use them throughout the game world dynamically rather than restricting them to scripted encounters.
The Arena Boss Encounters
While mini-bosses could roam freely, the biggest threats in Dead Rising 5 had their own dedicated arenas. These setpiece battles were designed to be memorable moments with unique mechanics tied to their environments.
Key features of boss design included:
- Unique arena environments customized for each major boss encounter
- Dynamic environmental destruction that escalated throughout fights
- Bosses that became progressively more aggressive as battles continued
- Varied enemy behaviors across different boss types for gameplay diversity
- Wide range of attack patterns and mechanics to keep fights interesting
The temple boss fight Mejerwall specifically mentioned exemplifies this design philosophy. As players battled this opponent, the ancient structure would gradually crumble and break apart. The destruction wasn’t just visual spectacle. It fundamentally changed the combat arena over time, forcing players to adapt their positioning and tactics as safe zones disappeared and new hazards emerged.
The boss itself would mirror this escalation. As the temple fell apart, the enemy became more enraged and aggressive, unleashing more dangerous attacks. It’s the kind of memorable setpiece moment that defines great action games, and Dead Rising fans will never get to experience it.
What Dead Rising 5 Could Have Been
Based on previous leaks and reports from gaming historian Liam Robertson, Dead Rising 5 was set between the events of Dead Rising 2 and 3. The game would have followed Chuck and Katey Greene caught in a zombie outbreak in a fictional Mexican city during Day of the Dead celebrations. This setting offered rich visual and thematic possibilities that differed significantly from previous entries in the series.
The project entered early production in late 2015 alongside Dead Rising 4. Unlike the previous games, Dead Rising 5 was being built on Unreal Engine 4 instead of Capcom’s proprietary engine. This switch represented a significant technical shift for the team at Capcom Vancouver.
Development progressed steadily through 2016 and 2017. Former technical level designer Nick Sinkewicz’s portfolio revealed substantial work on locations including the Barrio, Hotel, Camps, Mayan Temple, and Safehouse. The grey box levels and systems he created showed a game that was far enough along to be playable, even if textures and animations remained rough.
According to reports, the team wanted to soft reboot elements of the series after Dead Rising 4’s lukewarm reception. They were trying to recapture what made the franchise special while modernizing mechanics for a new generation of players. The varied enemy design Mejerwall described fits perfectly with this goal of adding depth while maintaining the series’ over-the-top action.
Why It All Ended
Dead Rising 5 development came to an abrupt halt when Capcom shut down its Vancouver studio in September 2018. The company announced it was cancelling all projects at the studio and concentrating development of major titles in Japan instead. The decision came after 30 percent layoffs at Capcom Vancouver earlier that same year, signaling the studio was already in trouble.
Capcom took a 4.5 billion yen loss from cancelling projects and paying severance to 158 laid-off developers. A skeleton crew remained through January 2019 to finalize closure operations, but Dead Rising 5 was dead along with the studio that created it.
Multiple factors contributed to the closure. Dead Rising 4 underperformed critically and commercially in 2016. The mobile game Puzzle Fighter launched in late 2017 but had its support ended unexpectedly early. Meanwhile, Capcom’s Japan-based teams were producing massive hits like Monster Hunter World that outperformed expectations and generated enormous profits.
From Capcom’s perspective, it made more business sense to consolidate development in Japan where their recent track record was stronger. For Capcom Vancouver and Dead Rising fans, it meant the end of a series that had been declining with each new release but still had potential if given the right creative direction.
The Legacy That Remains
Mejerwall’s comments during her DevGAMM interview highlight exactly what was lost when Dead Rising 5 got cancelled. The thoughtful enemy design, the dynamic boss encounters, the environmental destruction integrated into combat mechanics – these weren’t just ideas on paper. They were systems that developers had built and tested during the years Dead Rising 5 was in production.
The fact that Mejerwall still talks about the project with genuine enthusiasm seven years after cancellation shows how invested the team was in what they were creating. She described the work as genuinely enjoyable and expressed disappointment that it never came to fruition. That sentiment was likely shared by many of the 158 people who lost their jobs when Capcom Vancouver closed.
Frequently Asked Questions
When was Dead Rising 5 cancelled?
Dead Rising 5 was officially cancelled in September 2018 when Capcom shut down its Vancouver studio. The game had been in development since late 2015, meaning the team worked on it for approximately three years before cancellation.
Who was Marie Mejerwall and what did she work on?
Marie Mejerwall was part of the NPC team for Dead Rising 5, where she designed all the boss fights. She recently revealed details about the cancelled game during an interview at DevGAMM in Lisbon in November 2025.
What was the setting for Dead Rising 5?
According to previous leaks, Dead Rising 5 was set in a fictional Mexican city during Day of the Dead celebrations. The story would have followed Chuck and Katey Greene from Dead Rising 2, placing it chronologically between Dead Rising 2 and Dead Rising 3.
What engine was Dead Rising 5 using?
Dead Rising 5 was being built on Unreal Engine 4, marking a departure from the proprietary engine Capcom had used for previous entries in the series. This represented a significant technical shift for the development team.
How far along was Dead Rising 5 before cancellation?
Based on footage and information from former developers, Dead Rising 5 had progressed to a playable state with grey box levels, working combat systems, and basic enemy AI. While textures and animations were rough, substantial work had been completed on multiple locations and gameplay mechanics.
Why did Capcom close the Vancouver studio?
Capcom decided to consolidate major game development in Japan after Dead Rising 4 and Puzzle Fighter underperformed while Japan-based projects like Monster Hunter World succeeded dramatically. The company took a 4.5 billion yen loss to cancel projects and close the studio.
Will there ever be another Dead Rising game?
A Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster of the original game launched in September 2024, showing Capcom still sees value in the IP. However, no new entries in the series have been announced, and the franchise’s declining performance makes a full sequel unlikely in the near future.
What happened to the Capcom Vancouver developers?
When Capcom Vancouver shut down in 2018, 158 developers lost their jobs. Some found positions at other Vancouver-area game studios, while others left the industry or relocated. The closure represented one of the larger studio shutdowns in Canadian gaming history.
Can we play Dead Rising 5 in any form?
No official playable version exists. Some footage and screenshots from development have leaked online through former developers’ portfolios, but the game was never finished or released in any capacity. What was completed remains locked away as cancelled project assets.
What Could Have Been
The most frustrating aspect of hearing about Dead Rising 5 seven years after its cancellation is recognizing how much potential the project had. The Dead Rising series was never perfect. Each entry had issues, and the quality declined with subsequent releases as Capcom Vancouver struggled to recapture what made the original special. But Dead Rising 5 represented an opportunity to course-correct.
The enemy variety Mejerwall described addressed one of the series’ recurring problems. Fighting endless identical zombies gets repetitive. Adding intelligent human enemies, armored variants, roaming mini-bosses, and elaborate arena battles would have provided the gameplay diversity that kept players engaged for dozens of hours. The environmental destruction during boss fights showed ambition beyond just bigger zombie hordes.
Setting the game during Day of the Dead in a Mexican city offered visual and thematic richness that differentiated it from the malls and casinos of previous entries. Bringing back Chuck Greene, one of the series’ most popular protagonists, gave it narrative weight. Switching to Unreal Engine 4 positioned the technical foundation for current and future platforms. All the pieces were there for Dead Rising 5 to revitalize a struggling franchise.
Instead, the game joined the long list of cancelled projects that haunt the industry. Studios close, priorities shift, and years of creative work disappear without players ever experiencing it. Mejerwall’s interview serves as a bittersweet reminder of what Capcom Vancouver’s team built and what Dead Rising fans lost. Maybe someday Capcom will revisit the series with a new team and fresh perspective. Until then, we’ll have to imagine what it would have been like to fight a boss in a crumbling temple as zombies pressed in from all sides during the Day of the Dead.