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Left 4 Dead on Mon 17 Nov 2008, 00:53
s3rius
Lieutenant General
Posts: 1752Age: 19
Country: Germany - NRW
Languages: English, German
Réputation: 47
Regist Date: 2006-02-11
I've been able to test out the new zombie survival game made by Turtle Rock Studios (also CS:CZ, CS:S) - for those of you who don't know the game:
It seems a virus has infected the majority of the game's inhabitants, except for a few who for whatever reason are immune. Those resistant Survivors must then battle their way through gangs of Infected to safety, using a variety of guns and explosives. Up to eight players can join a server to play, with four on the Survivor side and four playing as special Infected monstrosities. Since a few days a demo version can be downloaded through Steam to test out the first two levels and get the details on exactly how this game works.
Left 4 Dead's gameplay centers on cooperative mechanics, though mostly on the Survivor side. When you are alone you can easily be taken out by one of the four infected bosses who posses unique abilities that you can only get rid of in cooperation with at least one more survivor. The hunter, for example, can barely be distinguished from a normal zombie, but he can leap 15 meters far and pin you to the ground. If no survivor is close to help you, he will slowly rip you apart.
In singleplay, the surprisingly intelligent AI takes control of the other survivors, whereas in multiplayer you can join an already running game and take control of one of the AI survivors.
The game's five map campaigns each take around an hour to complete if you know what you're doing. We had the opportunity to play through the the first two levels of the Hospital campaign a few times, where the main goal was to clamber through ruined urban areas, access the hospital, then scurry to the roof and get picked up by a rescue chopper. Other than that goal, the game doesn't seem to have any real storyline, it's mainly about shooting. There were a few action set pieces in the campaign, including a rather treacherous elevator ascent where zombies poured into the car through an overhead vent, and the final rooftop defense. During the end battle, the Survivors are set up in a tower and given a stationary gun. Wave after wave of zombie then spawns to try and wipe out the party. If they're successfully taken out, the remaining Survivors will need to bring down two hulking Tank Infected, which is no easy feat.
Moving across each map will, according to Turtle Rock, be different every time as the Infected mob's positions will be randomized. After making multiple trips through each map, we noticed we'd get mobbed at different times, so we had to stay extra frosty when creeping through the dilapidated environments. To survive the onslaught of blood-crazed Infected, you and your team of three will need to stick close together for multiple reasons. First and most obvious, the more bullets you're simultaneously firing at an enemy, the faster they're going to go down. Second, you'll need to revive any fallen squadmates should they take one too many zombie slashes.
In Left 4 Dead, taking too much damage doesn't result in an immediate death. Instead you fall to the ground and have a "bleed-out" timer, at the end of which you die. Teammates will need to be aware of who goes down, as a fallen comrade can still take damage once they hit the floor.
Uhh, I've already written too much I guess.. Well, L4D features huge amounts of zombies, an awesome atmosphere, some great co-op and a lot of fun!
You can download a free demo version through Valve's Steam network, or you can download it elsewhere (in this case you won't be able to play online). I believe the demo version only works until tuesday - that is because on tuesday the full version is in the stores. I'm actually thinking about buying it..
The game's intro:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCM9RDkHSEM
Some game footage:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o7fNZI1wU04
It seems a virus has infected the majority of the game's inhabitants, except for a few who for whatever reason are immune. Those resistant Survivors must then battle their way through gangs of Infected to safety, using a variety of guns and explosives. Up to eight players can join a server to play, with four on the Survivor side and four playing as special Infected monstrosities. Since a few days a demo version can be downloaded through Steam to test out the first two levels and get the details on exactly how this game works.
Left 4 Dead's gameplay centers on cooperative mechanics, though mostly on the Survivor side. When you are alone you can easily be taken out by one of the four infected bosses who posses unique abilities that you can only get rid of in cooperation with at least one more survivor. The hunter, for example, can barely be distinguished from a normal zombie, but he can leap 15 meters far and pin you to the ground. If no survivor is close to help you, he will slowly rip you apart.
In singleplay, the surprisingly intelligent AI takes control of the other survivors, whereas in multiplayer you can join an already running game and take control of one of the AI survivors.
The game's five map campaigns each take around an hour to complete if you know what you're doing. We had the opportunity to play through the the first two levels of the Hospital campaign a few times, where the main goal was to clamber through ruined urban areas, access the hospital, then scurry to the roof and get picked up by a rescue chopper. Other than that goal, the game doesn't seem to have any real storyline, it's mainly about shooting. There were a few action set pieces in the campaign, including a rather treacherous elevator ascent where zombies poured into the car through an overhead vent, and the final rooftop defense. During the end battle, the Survivors are set up in a tower and given a stationary gun. Wave after wave of zombie then spawns to try and wipe out the party. If they're successfully taken out, the remaining Survivors will need to bring down two hulking Tank Infected, which is no easy feat.
Moving across each map will, according to Turtle Rock, be different every time as the Infected mob's positions will be randomized. After making multiple trips through each map, we noticed we'd get mobbed at different times, so we had to stay extra frosty when creeping through the dilapidated environments. To survive the onslaught of blood-crazed Infected, you and your team of three will need to stick close together for multiple reasons. First and most obvious, the more bullets you're simultaneously firing at an enemy, the faster they're going to go down. Second, you'll need to revive any fallen squadmates should they take one too many zombie slashes.
In Left 4 Dead, taking too much damage doesn't result in an immediate death. Instead you fall to the ground and have a "bleed-out" timer, at the end of which you die. Teammates will need to be aware of who goes down, as a fallen comrade can still take damage once they hit the floor.
Uhh, I've already written too much I guess.. Well, L4D features huge amounts of zombies, an awesome atmosphere, some great co-op and a lot of fun!
You can download a free demo version through Valve's Steam network, or you can download it elsewhere (in this case you won't be able to play online). I believe the demo version only works until tuesday - that is because on tuesday the full version is in the stores. I'm actually thinking about buying it..
The game's intro:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCM9RDkHSEM
Some game footage:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o7fNZI1wU04
+^^
