Left 4 Dead
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This article or section contains information about an unreleased video game. It is likely to contain information of a speculative nature, and the content may change dramatically as more information becomes available. |
| Left 4 Dead | |
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| Developer(s) | Turtle Rock Studios Valve Corporation |
| Distributor(s) | Valve Corporation (Steam) Electronic Arts |
| Engine | Source engine |
| Release date(s) | PC Version Summer 2007 Xbox 360 Version Winter 2007 |
| Genre(s) | Co-operative online Survival horror |
| Mode(s) | Single player (with AI bots), Multiplayer |
| Platform(s) | PC, Xbox 360 |
| Media | Steam |
Left 4 Dead is an upcoming multiplayer co-operative survival horror game by Turtle Rock Studios and Valve Corporation (a collaboration that has previously produced Counter-Strike: Condition Zero, as well as maps and the official bot for Valve's Counter-Strike: Source), The expected release date for Left 4 Dead is Summer 2007.[1] The game has been built using Valve's Source engine.
The game was first revealed in the Christmas 2006 publication of PC Gamer UK with a six-page article describing a playthrough at Valve's headquarters.
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[edit] Gameplay
Gameplay appears to take place in typical multiplayer maps revolving around abandoned towns, wooded rural settings and other locations. Four players take control of the four main characters of the game, "The Survivors", who subsequently play through the levels towards an apparent goal of rescue by helicopter. Four subsequent players can join the server and take control of the larger, more powerful zombies with unique abilities amongst the other AI zombies. One player can take control of the tank zombie which is made available through an automated diceroll.
[edit] The Survivors
There are four playable human characters in the game, each with a different and unique appearance to make it easier to identify which character you are looking at when you aren't close enough to recognize the face. Each player is randomly assigned a character when they join the server and, to prevent arguments, each character has the same abilities and may use the same weapons. The four characters consist of Bill, a Vietnam veteran with combat skills that have helped keep him alive; Louis, an assistant manager at a local retail electronics chain store; Zoey, the teenage daughter of a wealthy family; and Francis, who is big, loud, and rough, but always has your back.
[edit] The Infected
The Infected are Left 4 Dead's name for what are essentially zombies. The zombies in the game are based on the zombies (who are ordinary civilians that are infected with a form of rabies, making them ravenous and psychotic) from the 2002 film 28 Days Later, which the game takes a lot from design-wise. [2] The zombies, as opposed to the slow, shuffling types associated with Night of the Living Dead or Half-Life, are fast and can pounce, creating quite a formidable foe. They will however go down with a well-placed gunshot, meaning they can be dealt with easily on their own, but in great numbers are difficult to handle.
In addition, there are five mutated Infected who have their own special abilities and are more powerful than the regular Infected:
The Boomer is a hugely obese zombie that can projectile vomit at The Survivors, blinding them and attracting swarms of nearby zombies to the location. When it dies it blows up, creating a large amount of damage and exorbitant amounts of gore and viscera.
The Hunter is an agile zombie who can climb walls and jump over rooftops, similar to Half-Life 2's Fast Zombie. It can pin a Survivor down on the floor and slash at them with long claws, rendering the victim powerless unless The Hunter is killed by a team-mate or knocked off its victim. The Hunter can also retreat.
The Smoker is a zombie with a long, whip-like tongue that can drag Survivors away from their team-mates and use its tongue as an organic noose to strangle Survivors when it is perched from a rooftop. Similar to Half-Life 2's Barnacle, or Resident Evil's Licker. When in danger, it can leave a haze of black smoke, distorting the Survivors' vision.
The Tank is a huge, muscular zombie capable of throwing large items such as cars or blocks of concrete. Its slow movement is countered by high strength and toughness. To prevent the tank from camping away from the survivors for too long a frustration timer is set when the survivors are not in sight. When the timer runs out the tank becomes uncontrollable and begins stomping and thrashing giving away its position and becoming vulnerable to the survivors.
The Witch will be the only mutant infected that will not be available to players. They are passive upon discovery by the players, but react with hostility to flashlight beams, physical contact, and gunfire in the viscinity. It will be able to fell a player in one hit, making them the most dangerous of the infected.
[edit] References
- ^ First Impressions - Left 4 Dead // PC /// Eurogamer. Eurogamer (2 March 2007). Retrieved on 4 March 2007.
- ^ PC Gamer preview
