Left 4 Discussion: Valve's Zombie Game

[Jahkaivah]

YAY! ZOMBIES! (http://www.l4d.com/)

LOTS OF ZOMBIES! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kh78qSnq6F4&fmt=18)

MORE ZOMBIES (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FxbPbQCxgws&fmt=18)

OH SHI- ZOMBIES! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6EiZezZzB0&fmt=18)

PLAY AS ZOMBIES!
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qITRUDcO2iY&fmt=18) (Hopefully better than the guy in that video.)

ABOUT THE ZOMBIES! (http://www.left4dead411.com/left-4-dead-preview-index)

DEMO OF THE ZOMBIES! (http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2008/09/10/left-4-dead-demo-confirmed-but-not-when/) (not yet)

Did I mention there are ZOMBIES!? :smallbiggrin:

[Neon Knight]

ZOMBIES!!!!

Pre-ordered it a while ago, can't wait.

[Jimp]

Can't wait for it! I've been playing the Zombie Master source mod a lot to curb my desires :smalltongue:. The way the zombies climb up walls and gang up on fallen players is awesome. I haven't pre-ordered yet, going to wait for a Sream pre-order option.

[The Evil Thing]

Please change the thread title to "Left 4 Discussion".

Thank you, that is all.

[Holammer]

I like the concept of zombies in a game, but c'mon!
My main beef with this game is the movement. It is "quake1" speed. The characters literally fly with the speed of a wet soap in the bathtub! I prefer a realistic/tactical feeling in FPS type games. Sure it is Valve's game, they can do as they please with it. But I'd up the dose of Ritalin for the Valve devs if I could. :smallwink:

[Mc. Lovin']

Hooo boy, imma get this on x-box and PC, so I can play it with my friends on the x-box and have the longlivity of the PC community. Anyone seen the box art? It's *really* good

[warty goblin]

I like the concept of zombies in a game, but c'mon!
My main beef with this game is the movement. It is "quake1" speed. The characters literally fly with the speed of a wet soap in the bathtub! I prefer a realistic/tactical feeling in FPS type games. Sure it is Valve's game, they can do as they please with it. But I'd up the dose of Ritalin for the Valve devs if I could. :smallwink:

I'm not sure about the rest of you, but I personally would move with some considerable haste when being pursued by hordes of zombies. Don't get me wrong, if you want to move slower, that's fine. Killing you will slow the zombies down, allowing me more time to make good my escape.

[Holammer]

I'm not sure about the rest of you, but I personally would move with some considerable haste when being pursued by hordes of zombies. Don't get me wrong, if you want to move slower, that's fine. Killing you will slow the zombies down, allowing me more time to make good my escape.

Yes of course. Problem with quake physics is that you run at insane speeds as compared with normal running speeds and there is little inertia. You change direction in ways that would blackout regular humans or slam them into walls at breakneck speed. (exaggerated for fun factor, but you get the idea) :smallwink:

They're using physics that made Quake rocket arena fun. In a zombie game that's seemingly realistic? I don't think so.

[Jahkaivah]

Please change the thread title to "Left 4 Discussion".

Thank you, that is all.

Done :smallbiggrin:

[warty goblin]

Yes of course. Problem with quake physics is that you run at insane speeds as compared with normal running speeds and there is little inertia. You change direction in ways that would blackout regular humans or slam them into walls at breakneck speed. (exaggerated for fun factor, but you get the idea) :smallwink:

They're using physics that made Quake rocket arena fun. In a zombie game that's seemingly realistic? I don't think so.

I agree that it is unrealistic, but it also seems to be the physics used by every FPS game ever in terms of inertia. I mean I personally can't remember ever having played a 1st person game where I kept walking forward for a moment after I stopped pressing "forward," mostly because not stopping when you hit stop is highly frustrating.

Also, you can turn around quite quickly. Using my more or less carbine length umbrella I can do a 180 while sighting down the 'barrel' in well under a second, with very little forward/backward movement whatsoever, and come out with it situated at, more or less, shooting elevation. Would the first shot I took after spinning like that be particularly accurate? No, but then if I'm dealing with a zombie at point blank, it doesn't need to be, and if the zombie's not right up in my face I have time to aim.

[Jimp]

The zombies seem just as fast and the levels a nice size so the running speed shouldn't be much of an issue. Besides, you can't run fast enough in a zombie situation :smallbiggrin:.

[Jahkaivah]

Anyone seen the box art? It's *really* good

http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c226/saxcsa/LEFT4DEAD.jpg

Box art? What box art? :smalltongue:

I hear they are flipping the image horizontally, guess why.


The zombies seem just as fast and the levels a nice size so the running speed shouldn't be much of an issue. Besides, you can't run fast enough in a zombie situation :smallbiggrin:.

Yeah you need to run fast so you can run away from them (unsuccessfully of course :smalltongue:) but they need to be fast to give that OH SHI- effect.

From what I've heard movement is heavily discouraged in the game anyway so it wont matter.

[Saurous]

I think strafing, jumping around and generally being a jittery spaz are all discouraged. At least on the Survivor side, anyways.

I'm more interested in the game play on the zombies' side, myself.

[puppyavenger]

ME WANT!


I cant' wait to play as a smoker, or hunter...boomers really suit my play-style, and tanks....

[DraPrime]

I think I just found my dream game...

[The Evil Thing]

Done :smallbiggrin:
Much obliged, sir. :smallsmile:


I'll be interested to see how well co-operative play turns out.

[Carrion_Humanoid]

How are we going to be able to handle this, this POWER! First SPORE now LEFT 4 DEAD! Its preposterous!

[Jahkaivah]

How are we going to be able to handle this, this POWER! First SPORE now LEFT 4 DEAD! Its preposterous!

The zombies/games tend to come in waves.

Im also curious about some valve said about map making, apparent you just have to chuck a map into the game and it will do the zombies for you.

Wonder if it would work with the half life 2 maps , the zombies will be an great added challenge :smalltongue:, a Team Fortress 2 map would be weird :smalleek:

[Demented]

At the speed you travel, TF2 maps would be a bit small.

Though, if you can set the AI Director to "Constant Flow", then a map like dustbowl or goldrush would be intense.

[2xSlick]

I think someone really screwed the pooch on the box art. Should look like this:

http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg124/doubleslick/4dead.jpg

That brings the title up to like 14 puns, total. And get a load of those MSPaint Skills.

[Phase]

Games like this aren't really my style, but VALVe is behind it, so I'm sure it will be sweet.

I'd have preferred they use the energy to finish Episode Three, myself, but...

[Twin2]

Are they confirmed zombies? I thought it was explained as a mutated version of a disease (which explained why a torso shot can keep one of them down in comparison to your standard movie zombie).

[2xSlick]

Are they confirmed zombies? I thought it was explained as a mutated version of a disease (which explained why a torso shot can keep one of them down in comparison to your standard movie zombie).

Any time a place is overrun by messed-up people acting funny, they are zombies. Yes, even in the movie Demons.

[warty goblin]

This, along with about a billion other games coming out this fall, are total must haves. Pitty I am once again out of money.

Although I actually might take Left 4 Dead online, which is unusual for me. A few hours of shooting zombies repeatedly in the face with a bunch of friends, well not friends, none of three people I know have gaming PCs, but people anyway. Would be far more social than my usual Friday night at least, which consists of locking the door to my dorm room, turning out the lights, and watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer on headphones.

I am such a party animal.

[Jahkaivah]

I think someone really screwed the pooch on the box art. Should look like this:

http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg124/doubleslick/4dead.jpg

That brings the title up to like 14 puns, total. And get a load of those MSPaint Skills.

I guess you didn't spot my hidden text :smalltongue: But yes Valve have said they are more than likely going to change it.


Are they confirmed zombies? I thought it was explained as a mutated version of a disease (which explained why a torso shot can keep one of them down in comparison to your standard movie zombie).


Alot of people tend to define zombies as ex-humans who melee attack anyone not part of their growing collective and are very creepy. Their origin really doesn't matter.

[Saithis Bladewing]

It looks alright as an action-packed adrenaline rush, but as far as zombie games go, I prefer the more casual Zombie Master mod for HL2.

I'm curious as to how the different weapons will work though, and especially the zombie classes. It seems like zombie players will have to be very clever to get around the survivors' superior firepower.

[Crispy Dave]

It seems like zombie players will have to be very clever to get around the survivors' superior firepower.

If by clever you mean come in swarms then yes.

[Saithis Bladewing]

If by clever you mean come in swarms then yes.

Issue there is that if each player can only control one zombie, they're going to have to stick with the packs of NPC zombies unless they can find a sneaky way about. If they stick out at all, they'll probably get chosen as a priority target by the survivors...

I dunno, it looks rather harsh on the zombie players, but we'll see. Maybe it was just those videos that made it look that way.

[Crispy Dave]

Issue there is that if each player can only control one zombie, they're going to have to stick with the packs of NPC zombies unless they can find a sneaky way about. If they stick out at all, they'll probably get chosen as a priority target by the survivors...

I dunno, it looks rather harsh on the zombie players, but we'll see. Maybe it was just those videos that made it look that way.

I think the zombies get to play as the special type zombies witch would give them an advantage

[Jahkaivah]

Issue there is that if each player can only control one zombie, they're going to have to stick with the packs of NPC zombies unless they can find a sneaky way about. If they stick out at all, they'll probably get chosen as a priority target by the survivors...

I dunno, it looks rather harsh on the zombie players, but we'll see. Maybe it was just those videos that made it look that way.

That video I linked was someone who problably hadn't played the game before as he wasn't using any of his zombie's special abbilities, would have linked to a better video but I couldn't find one.

Read the preview in the second to last link on my original post, it explains fairly well how the zombie side works. Your not given alot of health (unless your a tank, but you can't be a tank 24/7) but your given so many means of surprising the opposition, breaking their team apart, and generally being a total pain in the ass that it wouldn't matter.

In terms of team fortress 2 characters, I would imagine its:

Hunters and Boomers: Spies and Pyros

Smokers: Snipers (though less fiddely)

Tanks: Heavies