- Left 4 Dead: Survivors coming to Japanese arcades - 30 April 2014
Popular zombie-killing shooter Left 4 Dead is becoming an arcade in Japan. While details are scant for now, the collaboration is the second between Japanese developer Taito and Valve. In 2006, the two worked on Half-Life 2: Survivor , an arcade adaptation of the Half-Life 3 prequel.
- Cabin in the Woods DLC for Left 4 Dead 2 once planned - 24 September 2012
Attentive horror fans may have spotted the bilious Boomer and other Left 4 Dead monsters snuck into Joss Whedon's delightful scare 'em up movie The Cabin in the Woods, but L4D's involvement was once supposed to be far greater. Director Drew Goddard has revealed that a CitW expansion was planned for Left 4 Dead 2, but sadly got scrapped. Plainly, this post contains spoilers for the film, which you really should see if you haven't. "We actually were going to do a downloadable L4D2 expansion pack, where you'd fight in the Cabin world, but then MGM went bankrupt so the delay squashed it," Goddard said in an 'Ask Me Anything' on Reddit . "But the people at Valve were still cool enough to let us use some of their monsters to fill the cubes in the background (I had a lot of cubes to fill.)" He added, "By the way -- the game was gonna be amazing. You were gonna be able to play in both the upsta…
- Left 4 Dead 2 Cold Stream DLC coming July 24 - 2 July 2012
After over a year of public testing, Valve will officially launch Left 4 Dead 2 's 'Cold Stream' DLC later this month. It packs versions of original Left 4 Dead campaigns Blood Harvest, Crash Course, Dead Air and Death Toll, as well as the community-made Cold Stream. On top of that, a patch launching alongside will make all of the game-altering mutations available at all times. The DLC and accompanying patch will launch on July 24, Valve revealed in a blog post . Valve put Cold Stream up for public testing last March , followed by the remaining L4D campaigns (No Mercy had launched before). Now, thanks to the wonders of Valve time, it's finally ready to roll out. Valve has been rotating mutations weekly since February 2010 , with only one available at any time. Their weird and wonderful effects have included turning all enemy infected in Versus into tanks with 'Taaannnkk!,' the infinite…
- Payday dev collaborating with Valve on Left 4 Dead-y thing - 21 May 2012
It's all go at Payday: The Heist developer Overkill Software these days. As well as working on a sequel and DLC for its coop crime caper FPS, and being acquired by Starbreeze Studios, the Swedes have revealed they're working with Valve on something Left 4 Dead-y. "We are excited to be able to confirm that an in-depth collaboration between Overkill and Valve is currently in production," Overkill game director Ulf Andersson said in a statement (via VG247 ). "We are working on a very cool blend of Payday and Left 4 Dead. I am sure it is so exciting that it will have some players check into the hospital before we are done." As for what this'll actually be, who knows? Payday clearly took a few hints from Valve's zombie 'em up, so it wouldn't be too jarring for the worlds to collide. Valve characters often make appearances in other games, but that probably wouldn't meet the "in-depth" require…
- Left 4 Dead dev using CryEngine for new FPS - 21 October 2011
Turtle Rock Studios is reportedly using Crytek's CryEngine to build its next game. The Left 4 Dead co-developer has revealed that they've currently got a new multiplayer FPS in the works. Cryptically dubbed "Secret Project #1," the game will be published by THQ. Calling the project "the most exciting, ambitious thing we've ever attempted," Turtle Rock's website (via Edge ) has also issued a call to fill several positions to work on the new title: Engine Programmer, Tools Programmer, Network Programmer, AI Programmer, and Senior Gameplay Programmer. The site also notes that while experience with CryEngine tech is a "major bonus" for applicants, it's not essential. News site VG247 recently spoke with THQ vice president Danny Bilson about the project, who enthusiastically stated: "The Turtle Rock game we'll probably talk about next year. It's well underway. It's fantastic. It's one of the…
- Left 4 Dead dev using CryEngine for new FPS - 21 October 2011
Turtle Rock Studios is reportedly using Crytek's CryEngine to build its next game. The Left 4 Dead co-developer has revealed that they've currently got a new multiplayer FPS in the works. Cryptically dubbed "Secret Project #1," the game will be published by THQ. Calling the project "the most exciting, ambitious thing we've ever attempted," Turtle Rock's website (via Edge ) has also issued a call to fill several positions to work on the new title: Engine Programmer, Tools Programmer, Network Programmer, AI Programmer, and Senior Gameplay Programmer. The site also notes that while experience with CryEngine tech is a "major bonus" for applicants, it's not essential. News site VG247 recently spoke with THQ vice president Danny Bilson about the project, who enthusiastically stated: "The Turtle Rock game we'll probably talk about next year. It's well underway. It's fantastic. It's one of the…
- Left 4 Dead partially inspired by bird-flu scare - 30 August 2011
When Left 4 Dead first introduced its new brand of co-operative zombie-slaying, it didn't take long for a rabid fan-base to develop. In a recent interview, several Left 4 Dead luminaries, including writer Chet Faliszek and then-Turtle Rock CEO Mike Booth, reminisced about how the Left 4 Dead series came to be. Left 4 Dead and Left 4 Dead 2 The team revealed that Left 4 Dead's DNA actually came from a Counter-Strike mod. Shortly after Turtle Rock Studios had shipped Counter-Strike: Condition Zero in 2004, CEO Mike Booth showed a mod called Terror Strike--ostensibly a never-ending zombie-attack mode on the CS_Italy map--to Faliszek and Erik Wolpaw, who both fell in-love with the concept. Later that day, Valve CEO Gabe Newell conscripted Faliszek and Wolpaw to team up with Booth's Turtle Rock (purchased by Valve in 2008) to develop the concept further. Early in development, Booth explained…
- Left 4 Dead 2 'Dead Air' will unlock early - 11 July 2011
Last week, Valve promised to release the Left 4 Dead 2 version of classic Left 4 Dead episode 'Dead Air' if players helped beta test new community-made map Cold Stream, setting a target for 20,000 playthroughs. Good news! "You started playing at 10am on Wednesday morning. Four and half hours later you surpassed the 20,000 target," Valve revealed in a blog post . "By 5pm you passed 30,000. By this morning at 10am â" a mere 24 hours later you hit 60,774!" The original Dead Air in Left 4 Dead "We are going to try and release it as early as possible but will release it on July 22nd the latest," Valve said. "It isn't currently ready for release as we have been working on The Terminal and Finale maps and need to test them more internally." The developer also mentions working on a new version of the finale in L4D2's 'Dead Carnival' episode, "and some gameplay changes for finales in general."…
- Left 4 Dead Released for Mac, On Sale Again - 28 October 2010
The Mac version of Left 4 Dead is now available, fulfilling Valve's promise to launch the Mac version before Halloween. It supports Steam Play, which means that owners of the PC version will snag a shiny Mac copy if they are equipped with an Apple machine. It also means that Mac players will be able to play on the same servers as the PC players. To celebrate the launch, gamers can pick-up Left 4 Dead for $9.99 (50% off) or bundled with Left 4 Dead 2 for the low, low price of $14.99--though not as low as the previous sale . Left 4 Dead 2 has been available on the Mac since the launch of "The Sacrifice" DLC. All Left 4 Dead and Left 4 Dead 2 DLC is included for free on the PC because Valve is like that. Read More
- Left 4 Dead Mac Launch Due by Halloween - 4 October 2010
Valve is hoping to release the original Left 4 Dead on Mac "in time to celebrate Halloween," the developer revealed yesterday. There's also a formal announcement that Left 4 Dead 2 's Mac launch will coincide with the arrival of the L4D and L4D2 DLC 'The Sacrifice' on October 5--as has been known for a while . 'The Sacrifice' will bring updates to both of Valve's zombie shooters. A new campaign will arrive in the original L4D for all modes, set before the previous DLC 'The Passing' and showing Louis and the gang's journey South. The sequel, meanwhile, will score both the new campaign and the opportunity to play as the original survivors in the L4D campaign 'No Mercy' with all the L4D2 weapons, trinkets and baubles. The Sacrifice will be free on PC and Mac but cost 560 Microsoft Points ($7) on Xbox 360. Do have a gander at The Sacrifice's grim teaser trailer , if you missed it last week.…
- Left 4 Dead 'Sacrifice DLC' Comic Part Two Available Now, Additional Formats Incoming - 23 September 2010
The second chapter in the four-part prequel comic series starring the cast of survivors from the original Left 4 Dead has been released. Along with detailing some of the backstory of each original character, the comic series gives players a look at the tale woven in the upcoming downloadable content "The Sacrifice." In total, the comic will stand at 150-plus pages and also explore the death of one member in the zombie-killing squad. For gamers looking to preserve the memory of the fallen, Valve has released parts one and two of the comic in .PDF format. There will also be two additional versions of the series released at a later date: one version with no text and another sans text, speech bubbles or sound effects. "This should help get the comic localized and give people the raw panels to play with and make their own comic," the L4D team wrote on the game's official blog . Read More
- Left 4 Dead Fan-Made Campaign 'I Hate Mountains' Released - 5 June 2010
The much-anticipated Left 4 Dead fan-made campaign I Hate Mountains has been released and is available from FileShack . Coming from folks behind Portal: Prelude , I Hate Mountains takes Francis and the gang deep into the wilderness in a full five maps. The survivors will venture through a branching forest, explore a spooky mansion, probe tunnels, venture into a lumberyard and visit a lake. A Left 4 Dead 2 version of I Hate Mountains is also in the works, though the team notes it "is simply a quick'n dirty port for the people who don't own Left 4 Dead 1" so it will suffer "no conversations between survivors... missing visual effects, missing objects and more importantly, the whole gameplay was initially thought for Left 4 Dead 1." Thanks to Shacker ahem 'Godhatesfatpeople' for the tip-off. Watch the video on Shackvideo . Read More
