Left 4 Dead 2

We deal with “midnight” a lot as an embargo time, and you know, it’s always confusing. Valve knows, and has laid out specifically when Left 4 Dead 2 (PC) will unlock in all the major time zones of the world.

Says Valve, on the L4D2 blog:

Due to an ongoing debate in the office and online as to whether “12 AM” means noon or midnight (we’re still sticking with midnight), it’s been more challenging than we realized to tell people when exactly our game will be available. Factor in the Earth rotating around the sun, daylight savings time, some of our fans insisting on using the Mayan calendar, and we’re just going to try and make this as specific as possible:

Alright, ready? Get out your pens, flip open your calendars, synchronize your watches, take your index finger and stick it in the middle of your palm to form a sundial, however you keep time. Here’s when Left 4 Dead 2 unlocks:

• Monday, Nov. 16, 9 p.m. Pacific Standard Time
• Monday, Nov. 16, 10 p.m. Mountain Standard Time
• Monday, Nov. 16, 11 p.m. Central Standard Time
• Tuesday, Nov. 17, 12 a.m. (midnight) Eastern Standard Time
• Tuesday, Nov. 17, 5 a.m. Greenwich Mean Time
• Tuesday, Nov. 17, 8 a.m. Moscow Time
• Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2 p.m. Japan Standard Time

As you can see, the U.S. west coast gets a three-hour head start (technically) against the console street date, London and Moscow will be getting up or on the train to work, and Tokyo’s hosed. Hey, I don’t make the rules.

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You may have noticed that the release date for Left 4 Dead 2 is only days away. Valve’s original co-operative shooter was a big hit last November for Xbox 360 and PC platforms and thousands of people are still logging on to play every day. So why should you care about the sequel?

Well, based on what we’ve seen at preview events and the demo on Xbox Live and Steam, it’s obvious that parts of the game have been expanded and improved upon. Read on for five reasons why Left 4 Dead 2 leaves the original shambling in the dark.

5. Versus Playable on All Campaigns

It’s no secret that Left 4 Dead was missing game modes when it first came out. Of its four campaigns, only two could be played in Versus mode. This was later addressed through downloadable content, but still…

With the sequel, Valve made it so you can play Versus mode on all the campaigns in the game, not just a few. These are also all new campaigns, set in the southeastern United States, and there are five instead of four. So you get more content with the sequel, and you also don’t have to wait around for Valve to patch into it the ability to try any of them with four Survivors competing against four Infected.

4. More Modes

Do you like Survival Mode? Remember how with the original you had to wait for the Survival Pack to get it? Again, the original release of Left 4 Dead was missing this now-standard mode.

Not only are there the five new campaigns playable solo, co-operatively, or in versus mode, but you also get more Survival mode maps, in addition to Scavenge and Realism mode. While Realism is more for the super hardcore crowd who want an even more challenging experience, the Scavenge mode should appeal to all as it allows eight players to have a Versus-style experience without having to dedicate hours and hours of play time.

3. More Weapons

It’s pretty well established at this point that people like to kill zombies in videogames. Pistols, machine guns, shotguns…Left 4 Dead had quite a lot, but something was missing.

In Left 4 Dead 2 Valve added in melee weapons. While that may seem like a simple thing, the effects are pretty dramatic. From what we’ve played at preview events, you’re no longer limited to doing the melee push back to get a group of zombies off you. You can instead switch over to a machete or fire axe or whatever you have equipped, which can swiftly shred packs of zombies. If you’re played the demo, then you know they’re great for clearing away a mob from around a teammate or keeping a wave of the undead at bay while parked in a doorframe.

2. More Zombies

The original had four main special zombie types — the Hunter, Boomer, Smoker, and Tank — and then a fifth, the Witch, who was the only one not playable in Versus mode.

You get a choice of a Spitter, who vomits out globs of noxious acid that spreads across the ground and can do big damage for any that get caught up in it. A Charger can run at high speeds across maps and slam into Survivors, knocking them over and carrying the one he hits directly into a wall for big damage. There’s also the Jockey, who can hop on a Survivor’s head and move them around, which can include into fires, into Spitter goo, or off ledges. Mix in all the original special zombie types and campaign-specific uncommon common zombies, such as clowns on Dark Carnival, and you can rest assured the challenge is going to be more interesting.

1. More Gore

Did you play the Left 4 Dead 2 demo? If you did, then you probably noticed this game is a lot more violent than the first. Not only do the zombies animate more realistically, but they come apart in chunks as you rip into them with shotguns and machetes.

Specifically, their limbs fly off as their stomachs open up and guts spill out. Yes, you’ll actually see entrails draped over bits of the environment after you clean up an area. If you go and inspect the corpses, you’ll also see they’re often missing big pieces of flesh from their bodies, revealing shards of rib cage and the ghoulish goulash of their internal organs. It’s messy and gross, but it should be a delight for hardcore zombie film and game fans and those who appreciate over-the-top gore.

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In addition to selling Left 4 Dead 2 (Xbox 360) for $54.99, which is $5 less than the regular price, Amazon is also offering a $10 video games credit for those who pre-order the game.

So, basically you will end up getting one of the most anticipated games on the year for under $45.

Amazon Deal Link

Valve designer Kim Swift gained fame when her first game at the company, Portal, became one of the instant classics of this generation — particularly as Swift and her colleagues were hired directly out of DigiPen on the strength of their student demo Narbacular Drop.

Now, Swift is working on Left 4 Dead 2, the anticipated — and initially controversial, to those who expect long gaps between Valve games — sequel to last year’s stand-out co-op hit.

Gamasutra recently had a chance to talk with Swift about working on the game, taking in discussions of both Valve process and the game’s innovative AI Director, which controls everything from ambiance to enemies in the game world.

Valve joined development on the original Left 4 Dead late into the process with its acquisition of Turtle Rock Studios. How was integrating into a game that was already in progress at one studio, and how did that work?

Kim Swift: Well, it worked pretty well. They didn’t want to move, and so we did a lot of video conferencing. For the most part, the gameplay was in place when we started to work on Left 4 Dead.

Let’s see, things that we added sort of in the meantime were mini finales and finales. We worked on the pacing with them a little bit more, and the art changed quite a bit once we actually started working on the project.

I like how the art direction functions multiple ways. It hooks into mood and aesthetic, but there are very deliberate design-orientated functions to the art.

KS: Since we don’t have a lot of HUD elements that are saying, “Go this way, and what not,” lighting, and textural cues are really important to us to be able to guide the player through a level.

How does the interface between art and design work?

KS: Pretty well. I mean, we work in cabals. I’m actually in a room with 12 other guys, a mix of level designers and artists, and so we’re always talking to each other and making sure we’re on the same page. For the most part, we all design things together. So communication is a key.

The process at Valve is probably of great interest to a lot of people, because of the way Valve’s games turn out. But it sounds like it is relatively atypical.

KS: It was definitely something that I really appreciate learning, coming right out of school and then working at Valve. We’ve got a very iterative process, and it’s pretty democratic.

We all sit down as a group and throw out ideas, and write the ones on a whiteboard that we think are good ideas, and then start to elaborate on the design together as a group. I mean, two heads are better than one, right?

It has started to become quite more common for people to take feedback from all disciplines on design.

KS: Well, it’s the best way to solve a problem, right? Because the best way to solve a problem may not necessarily be a technological one, maybe it’s an artistic problem that we’ll solve, or it’s just actually a design problem. So the fact that all the disciplines are communicating together, we’ll find the most efficient way to solve a dilemma.

So when you started working on Left 4 Dead 2, was the plan to do five campaigns?

KS: Well, originally when we started working on Left 4 Dead 2, we were just coming up with content that we really wanted to ship with Left 4 Dead 1, but we weren’t able to get to it or it just wasn’t flushed out enough by the time we shipped it.

So we were really excited coming off of Left 4 Dead 1, and just had a ton of ideas. Then we all sort of took off in different groups and worked on our own little ideas, and then presented them to each other. At the end of the day we just had so much content, that we decided that a sequel was the best way to go.

What’s your planning process? It sounds like you guys didn’t sit down and write docs. Was it your cabals that you used to come up with like a presentation?

KS: Sort of like on an individual basis. There’s a time right as soon as the game goes gold, in between when it actually ships that you’re just kind of sitting around twiddling your thumbs, maybe play testing the game a little bit. It’s the best time to work on new ideas that you weren’t necessarily able to get to in the previous game.

Before you roll into production?

KS: Yeah, before you roll into production. It was pretty organic how Left 4 Dead 2 all came together. We all presented ideas to one another coming off of Left 4 Dead 1. At some point someone told us that, “Oh, yeah. We should make a sequel out of this.” We were like, “Sounds good to us.”

It sounds kind of funny, just because it’s really quick. A quick sequel, which is not Valve’s well?known trait.

KS: Yeah, definitely. We’re pretty proud of ourselves for not moving at “Valve time”. We practiced a new organizational tool. We used the Scrum method this time. We decided to give it a shot, and it’s worked really well for us on the team.

And also, heading into the project, we were pretty sure about what our deadlines were, so we were able to try and be more deliberate with our planning to actually get the sequel out.

So the first game wasn’t developed under Scrum and the second one is?

KS: Yeah. We decided to give that method a try.

So have you been seeing more productivity? Obviously, you have one more mission to do. Do you have a perceptible increase in productivity?

KS: I think more than anything it helps us prioritize what to work on. Since we knew that our shipping date was a lot sooner, we were able to sort out which ideas were actually doable in that amount of time, and that we knew were actually going to be successful, rather than trying a whole bunch of different stuff that wasn’t necessarily going to be what we shipped.

How did you identify the things that you knew were going to work?

KS: Well, there were definitely components, like coming off of Left 4 Dead 1, one that we knew we wanted to get to and that would be a good thing to add, was mainly weapons, for one, that we wanted to add in Left 4 Dead 1, but we were unable to at the time because we just, well, ran out of time. And so right away we started to work on melee weapon ideas.

Did you improve the AI Director in meaningful ways between projects?

KS: Yes, there have been improvements to the AI Director. The AI Director is able to control the weather now, and we’ve also got components of certain maps that will change dynamically when you load the map.

An example of one would be the cemetery area in the Parish campaign. There are different configurations that the AI Director will pick depending on how well the team is doing.

I love that idea, and it’s a really intelligent idea to be able to do that, especially in a game with only a few campaigns, but which you want people to continuously enjoy the game. Was that the genesis of the AI Director?

KS: Yeah. We know people are going to play the same maps over and over again, and so if there’s at least a little bit of a difference each time you play, it makes it more exciting and keeps it fresh.

So, the AI Director has purview over elements, level design, obviously enemy behavior, right?

KS: Yeah, yeah. It controls different horde structures. We’ve got ambient mobs now that we didn’t have in Left 4 Dead 1, so it will control the pacing in certain areas.

So in one area, you might come in and there’s a couple of ambient mobs that are just kind of wandering around ignoring you, and then you might have a horde coming at you that’s aggressive and is out for blood.

It’s interesting because it can control things that are sort of seemingly more atmosphere?related in terms of appealing to the player, but then there are things that are more direct.

KS: Well, yeah. We want that sort of pacing aspect that you get in a really good horror flick where there’s moments of silence where it builds tension, and then it just lets it go.

Do you want to see that concept used in other kinds of experiences, do you think?

KS: We definitely like the experience of having the gameplay be a little bit different each time you play. I think it keeps the game amusing for a long period of time. I think in multiplayer games, it’s a really strong idea.

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So you pre-loaded the Left 4 Dead 2 demo early in order to play the game as soon as possible. Then you played the Left 4 Dead 2 demo to death. People started calling dibs on characters. Things are moving forward. But what do you do now? What is the next step? Why it’s pre-loading the full game, of course.

If you ordered the game via Steam then you can now download it and let it sit on your computer until the game’s actual release date of Nov. 17. You can of course still get ten percent off the game if you purchase it via Steam. Time to download and start staring at the files longingly.

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More provocative tidbits continue to trickle out of Valve, with the Left 4 Dead 2 project lead saying that game won’t be coming to PS3 because the console’s multiplayer community isn’t on par with PC and the Xbox 360.

“Right now don’t not buy it on the 360 because you think it’s coming out on the PS3 – it’s not going to,” Chet Faliszek said. “Right? It’s coming out on the PC and 360. It’s going to be exclusive for that.”

Faliszek also said that Left 4 Dead 2 is “all about playing with your friends,” and that “in hooking up with your friends and the community aspects, I think the Xbox 360 is head and shoulders above the PS3. The 360 and PC are on par, right?”

Let’s see, dissed PS3, and equated a console with PC, thus starting a good-old three-way let’s-you-and-him-fight. Check, check and check. All in a day’s work, Chet!

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Ever wonder how much of an impact the now-defunct boycott of Left 4 Dead 2 had? If preorder numbers equal sales, then not a whole lot; Valve’s Chet Faliszek claims that preorders for the zombie apocalypse sequel are four times higher than its predecessor.

Speaking with CVG, the former Old Man Murray writer discussed the fan outrage that followed Left 4 Dead 2’s unveiling during this summer’s E3. “One of the weird things at E3 was we knew we weren’t showing the complete package, we knew there was a whole bunch of stuff we were holding back but we wanted to show something,” he explained, adding that the post-E3 boycott changed “how we talked about it and how we talked with everybody.”

That doesn’t mean the boycott had any effect on the game itself, however. Faliszek jested, “If you put $20 in a box and charge $10 for it someone would complain you didn’t put $50 in a box. Not to say some of the concerns raised aren’t valid, but you’re always going to have some kind of upset and that’s not how we work. We work at looking at the project and trying to get it out.”

“As we get closer to launch we see the reaction to the demo, preorders are four times what Left 4 Dead 1 was, people’s excitement, the boycott itself and how it’s changed… I think people are just excited now,” said Faliszek.

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These are only some of the many screenshots that were posted here. To see many more (and larger) screenshots of Dead Center, please visit Left 4 Dead 2 Forum.

We’ve been having a great time with the Left 4 Dead 2 demo since it went live for fans who pre-ordered the sequel last week. But it’s time to stop and smell the zombies. Every area has tons of details that are easy to miss when you’re busy bashing brains in with a frying pan. Now that the demo’s available for everyone on Xbox LIVE and Steam, we figured it’d be fun to collect some of the details and Easter eggs you may have missed while playing through this very sweet sample of Valve’s highly anticipated sequel.

Bienville Parish

The Left 4 Dead 2 demo takes place in Bienville Parish, which is located in the northwest of Louisiana. It’s most famous for being the place where Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow were killed.

The real Bonnie and Clyde (left). Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty (right)

Above: A sign welcoming you to the Bienville Parish park

Gramercy Bridge

At the beginning of the demo, Coach suggests that you and your fellow survivors head for the bridge in the distance. By the time you reach the last safe house in the demo, you can clearly see a sign for the Veterans Memorial Bridge. There is a Veterans Memorial Bridge in Louisiana, which is also known as the Gramercy Bridge. But the real bridge crosses the Mississippi River far from Bienville Parish, in the southeastern section of Louisiana.

Above: Look to your left before entering the last safe house to see the Veterans Memorial Bridge

Above: Judging from the trailer, you’ll probably be on this bridge during an air strike

CEDA and FEMA

As you explore the demo, you’ll see official notices and warnings on the walls posted by the U.S. military and a government organization called the Civil Emergency and Defense Agency (CEDA). The horde of zombies roaming the streets speaks to the effectiveness of CEDA’s efforts. CEDA’s failure to contain the infection and protect the population seems to be a straightforward reference to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and its response to the hurricane Katrina disaster in 2005.

Above: A CEDA trailer. Notice that Disease Emergency Assessment Dispatch spells out “D.E.A.D.”

Above: CEDA body bags line the street

Above: There are several reminders to stay in your group, which is good advice for any Left 4 Dead survivor

Above: An informative warning sign with deliciously dark humor

Graffiti

There’s lots of fascinating graffiti scrawled on the walls in safe houses in the Left 4 Dead 2 demo. Unfortunately, your party will probably boot you if you spend too much time reading them during an online session. These messages tell the tales of other survivors, giving you a glimpse of what life was like during the early days of the infection outbreak. Some of them are also hilarious. Here’s the graffiti you probably passed by without a second glance in the first safe house in the demo.

Above: A theory that some people are immune to the virus, but can still spread it to others

Above: Evidence that carriers were shipped off in large numbers

Above: It looks like previous visitors to this safe house were heading to the park where the army was evacuating uninfected civilians

Above: We’re glad to see that Left 4 Dead 2 kept the original game’s sense of humor

The Jukebox

Near the beginning of the Left 4 Dead 2 demo is a diner with a Jukebox. This isn’t much of an easter egg in itself. But if you click through the tracks, you’ll find a funny song called “re: Your Brains.” It’s an existential song about friendship, fate, and eating brains.

Above: Click the jukebox a few times to hear a hilarious song about zombies

Now take a closer look at the jukebox. Do you see that mysterious fifth track highlighted in blue in the lower-right corner of the menu? Keep on clicking, and “Still Alive” from Portal will begin playing. Be patient. You’ll need to keep clicking through the regular four songs on the jukebox to get the Portal song to play. It’s an especially fun Easter egg since the lead designer and project lead for Portal, Kim Swift, is a level designer for Left 4 Dead 2 too.

Now take a closer look at the jukebox. Do you see that mysterious fifth track highlighted in blue in the lower-right corner of the menu? Keep on clicking, and “Still Alive” from Portal will begin playing. Be patient. You’ll need to keep clicking through the regular four songs on the jukebox to get the Portal song to play. It’s an especially fun Easter egg since the lead designer and project lead for Portal, Kim Swift, is a level designer for Left 4 Dead 2 too.

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One of 2008’s biggest games, Left 4 Dead, left quite an impact on both the Xbox 360 and PC, selling millions of copies and bringing hundreds of zombie-killing teams together to tackle the apocalypse. Now Valve is back with an encore, the much anticipated Left 4 Dead 2, which is set to hit store shelves on November 17th. If you haven’t tried the Xbox Live demo yet or just don’t “get” why you need this sequel, we’re here to provide several reasons why you shouldn’t be without it.

It’s Actually a Sequel

When Valve revealed Left 4 Dead 2 at E3, many fans complained that the game should have been released as downloadable content instead of a retail format. However, there’s something these folks just don’t get. This is an actual sequel, and not just a cheap add-on to make a few extra bucks. Left 4 Dead 2 features an all-new campaign that takes you through the Southlands, with four new characters in tow. It also features a slew of new weapons and zombies, along with a new mode that will challenge even the most skillful gunmen. To try and cram this into one big chunk of DLC would’ve cheapened it, and we’re glad it’s on a disc. Once you play it, you will feel the same. Believe it.

The New Story and Characters

We would’ve been just fine tagging along with Bill, Zoey and the others through an all-new undead campaign. Instead, however, Valve introduces four new characters in Left 4 Dead 2, all worthwhile zombie killers. Coach, Ellis, Nick and Rochelle must team up to fend off the zombie horde, using whatever weapons they can carry as they travel from checkpoint to checkpoint. The story also takes place in a completely different location than the original, starting in Savannah, Georgia and finally winding up in New Orleans, Louisiana. Each character lends their own personality to the story, some noble (mostly Coach) and some weasel-like (the self-absorbed Nick). But they’ll need to work together, or they’ll be overrun by Tanks and other monstrosities. This story should be right up to par with the original, if not better.

You Kill Zombies In the Daytime

Most of Left 4 Dead 2 took place in the middle of the night. This was both an advantage and a disadvantage. While it did wonders for the game’s creepy atmosphere, it also made it hard to see what zombies were charging at you. In Left 4 Dead 2, you’ll spend most of the campaign running through daylight, getting a good, hard look at the hundreds of zombies that are coming your way. You’ll also have a better view of your surrounding environments, so you can see all the decay that’s affecting the Parish and other parts of the area. There’s still plenty of killing to do at night, though, so don’t worry about that.

The Old Zombies Are Back

A lot of the old super zombies are making their return in Left 4 Dead 2, including the Smoker (a creature that spits out a limb at you and strangles you with it), the Boomer (a big, fat zombie that explodes and leaves dead-attracting bile on you) and the Tank (a near unstoppable beast that will beat the living crap out of you). However, there are also some new ones, and they’re awesome. The Witch is also back, and this time she’s walking around. No more just sneaking up around her while she sits and cries. You now have to watch your step, or she’ll go off on you.

…And There’s New Ones, Too

Several new super-mutants join the fray in Left 4 Dead 2 as well. The Spitter is the deadliest of the bunch, we believe. She vomits up pools of acid that can melt away your energy in seconds if you’re unlucky enough to be standing in it. It also blocks your way of escape at times, forcing you to deal with oncoming zombies without being able to run. The Charger is also lethal, as he uses his gigantic arm to knock you over and pound you into the ground. Finally, the Jockey is a horrendous creature that jumps on your back, taking control of you and steering you further into danger/ He’ll hop aboard and drive you into groups of the Infected or towards other traps. Avoid him at all costs. If that’s not enough, you’ll also have to deal with Infected in Hazmat suits and body armor. Pack lots of ammo.

Melee Weapons Rule

You are no longer limited to firearms and shoving off zombies like you were in Left 4 Dead. You now have the option of taking them out up close and personal. Melee weapons are a new addition to Left 4 Dead 2, and you’ll be able to behead the undead using a variety of tools, including a nightstick, a guitar, a katana sword, a frying pan, and, our personal favorite, a chainsaw. That’s right, you can re-enact Bruce Campbell’s glory days from the Evil Dead movies by beheading a few deadites with your Black and Decker, then pulling out your boomstick (shotgun) and finishing them off. We simply cannot wait.

Weapons, Weapons Everywhere

In addition to the cool melee weapons, Left 4 Dead 2 will have plenty of firearms to play around with. The chrome shotgun is back again, along with a sniper rifle, grenade launcher, silenced submachine gun (perfect for sneaking up on unaware zombies), and an AK-47. In addition, you’ll be able to take out groups with pipe bombs and improved Molotov cocktails, watching them burn as they collapse to the ground. These weapons will also prove useful in multiplayer, particularly the grenade launcher. Talk about messy.

Multiplayer Kicks Ass

The main “hook” for Left 4 Dead is being able to team up with three other players in co-op fashion, working together to fend off zombies. This mode once again makes a return in Left 4 Dead 2, as you can work together through each campaign, watching each other’s backs and coming to the aid of those in need (especially when a Smoker starts strangling a member of your party). If multiplayer is what you prefer, that will be back as well, with some players controlling humans and others taking control of the Infected. A new Scavenge mode will also be introduced in the sequel, as you’ll need to use gas canisters to keep power generators going while fending off zombie hordes. It’s as challenging as it sounds.

Let’s Get Real

Last but definitely not least, Left 4 Dead 2 has an awesome new Realism Mode. Here, you won’t have the benefit of friendly fire, as halos will be removed from your fellow players. You’ll also need to work more closely with them in communication, or risk being overrun by the opposition. Furthermore, hit points on zombies actually count more here. If you head shot them, for instance, there’s a better chance they won’t be getting back up than they would being hit in the arm or the leg. You can play Realism Mode in any difficulty, but if you’re a veteran of the series, you’ll want to crank it up to Expert. Be ready for a fight, though.

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