The company did not clarify if the later public demo will be released the following week on November 3, as some retailers are reporting. We'll report back when we find out.
Tags: demo, Left 4 Dead 2, PC, steam, Xbox 360
Posts Tagged ‘Left 4 Dead 2’
Left 4 Dead 2 Demo Details Clarified
September 25th, 2009
Valve has cleared up one of the two mysteries surrounding the Left 4 Dead 2 demo announcement, confirming to Shacknews that the demo will be exclusive to both Steam and Xbox 360 pre-order customers on October 27.
Left 4 Dead 2′s Dark Carnival with Chainsaws
September 24th, 2009
The build of Left 4 Dead 2 that Valve brought to Tokyo Game Show really wasn't that different from the version showed at PAX—with one exception, the addition of the chainsaw melee weapon.
The two level demo took place in the "Dark Carnival" campaign, the one that Totilo recently previewed during a visit to Valve. My play through of the third campaign so far revealed took a few tries to get right and a few to finally get the chainsaw to randomly spawn. But when it did, it was a force to be reckoned with.
Maybe a little too much of a force, as the chainsaw felt about as powerful—and as tangible—as a lightsaber from Star Wars. Slicing up zombies with the newest melee weapon seemed more disconnected than swinging an axe or frying pan, as the sound of chainsaw didn't pack much of a punch.
It was also the first melee weapon I'd used in Left 4 Dead 2 that ran out of "ammo." The chainsaw does appear to have a limited amount of fuel and, when exhausted, your Survivor will toss the weapon. That will ensure that the choice to pick up the chainsaw will carry with it consequences, even if it appears to be one of the more powerful melee weapons one can use in the game.
Beyond the ability to slice through infected humans like a knife through hot butter, we're not sure yet what special attributes the chainsaw might have. The fire axe, for example, is perfect for dispatching the Witch—there's even an Achievement for "crowning" the zombie with the axe—but Valve's Kim Swift didn't offer specific details on what the chainsaw would be best used for.
Outside of chainsaw usage, I got my first hands-on time with the laser sight add-on that makes firearms more precise and experienced my first battle with the Jockey. The former was a nice, if not immediately noticeable perk, but the latter was an impressive pain the ass. Battling the Jockey for steering rights—fortunately, no high ledges were nearby in the levels we played—should offer some interesting twists to multiplayer battles.
During our discussion with Swift, it sounds like there's still plenty to be revealed about the game, including the two remaining campaigns, their respective "uncommon common" infected, new environmental hazards and a few new projectile weapons. Keep an eye peeled for more to come.
Tags: dark carnival, Left 4 Dead 2, melee weaponRelated posts
Japan Receives Altered Left 4 Dead 2 Box Cover
September 7th, 2009
Left 4 Dead 2 Box - Japan
It’s not the first time, but seems as if Valve’s Left 4 Dead 2 will be getting a little tweak. Instead of the iconic four-fingered hand with the thumb bitten off, Left 4 Dead 2 will sport a nice smooth hand as if the person is merely a deformity. We’ll see if the game changes any in the future though.
Tags: cover, Japan, Left 4 Dead 2Related posts
Left 4 Dead 2 Charger Gets Updated
September 5th, 2009According to reports from PAX, the Charger now runs into groups, grabs a player immediately and brings them straight towards whatever wall or blocking obstacle comes next. This is in contrast to the previous version, which ran through the group causing chaos and then grabbing a player to hammer. Not sure which version is worse, though when playing I was able to bring down a Charger pretty easily so maybe this will help balance that out more.
Tags: charger, Left 4 Dead 2, paxRelated posts
Dark Carnival Details Revealed, Meet the Jockey
September 4th, 2009
At PAX, new details about Left 4 Dead 2 have emerged in the latest reveal of the Dark Carnival chapter. The most important one is the announcement of a new special infected, the Jockey. The Jockey lives up to his name, hopping onto the back of a survivor and steering him whereever he wants. The player loses control during this moment, and yes, this could go horribly wrong for survivors. We’re unsure how to eject the jockey (shooting him off seems a bit dangerous) at this time.
For more details on the Dark Carnival campaign, the campaign is subtitled “You must be this tall… TO DIE!” and it has survivors starting on a highway, headed to the Ferris wheel. After working through a two-story motel, you get to the carnival and face off against a new common-uncommon: the zombie clown. This infected calls other infected over to him, so talk about annoying. If this one gets close, expect lots of mobs!
According to reports, some of the carnival parlor games are playable, and the final crescendo moment revolves around the merry-go-round. All in all, it’s sounding wonderfully delicious.
I do wonder though, if death squads will be a lot easier to spawn. Between the Charger, Hunter, Smoker and Jockey, sounds like there are a lot of ways survivors can be “held” against their will, effectively ending a game. We’ll see when Left 4 Dead 2 finally arrives.
Tags: clown zombie, common-uncommon, dark carnival, jockey, Left 4 Dead 2, paxRelated posts
Left 4 Dead 2 Exclusive Offers In-Game Baseball Bat
August 31st, 2009
Left 4 Dead 2 Pre-Order Bonus
New details on Left 4 Dead 2 pre-orders are coming to life, like this one from Game.co.uk, where early buyers will gain access to the demo AND a download code for what’s reported to be an “exclusive in-game weapon: a baseball bat.” I fully expect to see other retailers following suit with bonus items, but EXCLUSIVE? They’re really going to ration out items to those who buy from certain stores? Seems very un-Valvelike.
UPDATE: According to Valve, the way it works is that if one person has the exclusive items, all people in-game also can use them. No word yet on whether this is a timed exclusive or not.
Tags: baseball bat, Left 4 Dead 2, melee weapon, PC, pre-order, sales, Xbox 360Related posts
Valve Interview Sheds More Light on Left 4 Dead 2
August 30th, 2009
There’s a great interview with Valve writer, Chet Faliszek, at Offworld about Left 4 Dead and Valve culture in general. Very interesting conversation about the larger Left 4 Dead world, which has some surprises in store for us.
Interestingly, Faliszek mentions that the recently announced L4D1 DLC, Crash Course, was supposed to be released before E3 and the Left 4 Dead 2 announcement.
“I think in this case we just didn’t message correctly,” said Faliszek to Offworld. “We didn’t make it clear that Left 4 Dead was still going to be updated. We just didn’t think to mention it, we were focusing on other stuff.” “We, internally, always knew we were going to do cool new stuff, so we didn’t say anything about the original game,” he added. “Of course we also intended to get the Crash Course DLC for L4D out before E3, but some things held us up.” “I think if we had that out before the Left 4 Dead 2 announcement, then it would have been clearer for our intentions. Losing the opportunity to get that right hurt us, but I think we made the right choices otherwise.”
While I really enjoy what Valve is doing here, I’m not entirely convinced this is true. It all seems like damage control. From the outside looking in, Crash Course seems to be a short Left 4 Dead experience, one easily concocted between E3 and its September release. I’m hoping I’m wrong!
Tags: crash course, dlc, Left 4 Dead, Left 4 Dead 2, mod/campaign, PC, valve, Xbox 360Related posts
“Dark Carnival” campaign playable at PAX
August 28th, 2009
Left 4 Dead 2 - Dark Carnival
We’ve played “The Parish”, we’ve played “Swamp Fever” and soon we’ll get a chance at the new “Dark Carnival” campaign from Left 4 Dead 2. That is, if we hit the Penny Arcade Expo, where we can see different chapters in the Microsoft and Valve booth. Also we should see some more new items featured in the game. Worse, we can see that scary clown zombies will be out for blood!
Still leaves a new boss infected and an unrevealed gameplay mode unaccounted for! What will it be? Flying creatures? Free-for-all zombie/survivor deathmatches? What do you think?
Tags: dark carnival, Left 4 Dead 2, mod/campaign, paxRelated posts
Left 4 Dead 2 ‘Dark Carnival’ Campaign and Crash Course DLC Video
August 17th, 2009UPDATE: The campaign is actually titled “Dark Carnival” it seems. Left the rest of the post as is:
GameTrailers revealed some video about Left 4 Dead 2′s “Fairgrounds” campaign and the pending DLC for Left 4 Dead, Crash Course. In Left 4 Dead 2, there’s a cool amusement park scene, and an eerie carousel, but I’m hopeful for a working rollercoaster. 
Crash Course opens with a helicopter crash, as it bridges the gap between No Mercy and Death Toll, and yes, confirms there are only two maps. Boo hoo, but still fun!
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Will Left 4 Dead DLC work in Left 4 Dead 2?
August 10th, 2009Right now, Valve is undecided how it will work, though it seems like there’s a likelihood the new Left 4 Dead DLC ‘Crash Course’ will work in Left 4 Dead 2. From an interview on Edge, Valve’s stated that they’re “struggling with how interoperability is going to work” in the game. This relates to each map having dialog specific to individual characters, and for Valve, that means recording all new dialog with the new Left 4 Dead 2 cast. While Valve’s quick to state they’re not against doing that, it raises a question about whether or not they’ll go the other way and record Left 4 Dead 2 cast in Left 4 Dead situations (if L4D2 players want to play L4D campaigns with the new characters).
It seems Left 4 Dead has been, err… left for dead after the release of Left 4 Dead 2. Left 4 Dead 2 fans will be able to enjoy all the campaigns of Left 4 Dead and then some, but the old group will be alone in the cold.
Other highlights from the interview follow:
» More: Will Left 4 Dead DLC work in Left 4 Dead 2?
Tags: crash course, dlc, Left 4 Dead, Left 4 Dead 2, PC, Xbox 360