Left 4 Dead 2

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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