Having pre-purchased Valve’s upcoming zombie blast fest, I’ve been happy enough to delve into the demo’s early access for the past few days. I followed the game quite closely already, but I can safely say that I was not prepared for quite this level of awesomeness. From the fantastic intro video and the way the demo’s available levels thrust me on the same rooftop the cut scene ended with, to the surprising quality of the real time shadowing my flashlight caused from my surroundings, the game screamed of polish even before I met my first enemies.
And boy did those enemies make a difference! Being a fan of zombie movies like 28 Days Later, I easily recognized the animations as the hordes moved with an equal level of realism and agility. They climbed fences, jumped over obstacles and viciously clawed their way through my squad in ways no other games ever attempted to represent. Even better, the ragdoll and animations system rarely made a dud as the death sequences and poses were far more realistic than in most games which employ a pure ragdoll system.
Meeting the first boss characters was quite the spectacle. Most of them, like the Boomer (fat guy), Hunter (pouncer) and Smoker (frog tongue), died quite easily but their effectiveness depended on the situation - which they often seemed to choose wisely. I often made the mistake of killing a Boomer right around a corner, causing his goo to envelop my whole squad as a horde of zombies came rushing to our location, enticed by what I can only imagine was a sweet aroma to them. Having a Hunter or Smoker appear in a similar situation could cause the death of a member as the zombie horde stopped us from reaching our friend fast enough for a successful rescue.
The two other bosses, the Tank and the Witch, were the most formidable opponents. The massive tank often dispatched my whole squad with a combination of lethal close range attacks and long range throwing of heavy objects, while it was even more effective if the available maneuver space was limited. The Witch on the other hand, if disturbed, had incredible agility and would most certainly kill at least one of my mates before either being put down, or escaping to never disturb us again.
These are only the bare basics though, while the devil is in the details, of which most were perfectly implemented and balanced. From the way the death system worked, giving me the chance to rescue my friends before they get put down for good, to the healing mechanics and, impressively, the way a zombie horde could be lured onto a pipe bomb and explode in spectacular blood cloud fashion, the gameplay was an equal amount of exciting, empowering and, when the bosses or menacing hordes appeared, truly panic inducing.
I’ll leave you by saying that I can easily see why Valve feel so confident with their creation, enough to claim it is their best game yet and fund their most extensive advertising campaign. I honestly believe that, what Sven Coop used to be for the Half-Life community, Left 4 Dead can become for all of the gaming world. Keep in mind you may still pre-purchase the game with a 10% discount and experience the demo before the public November 11 launch. The full game will hit Steam and store shelves on November 18 so there’s still some waiting to do, but the demo’s two levels, so easily and enjoyably replayable, will help tide you over. I hope you’ll excuse me for now, more zombie blasting has to be done you see.
