bit-tech News: Left4Dead hands-on preview

[Chierin]

Left4Dead was always going to be great, that much we knew. It was coming from Valve and it was about zombies, so even before it was unveiled as a four player co-op we all knew we were going to be in for a good time.

Yet still, Left4Dead managed to surprise us in a number of ways, for reasons both good and bad. On the one hand we were utterly shocked to see how effective the AI director is at making the game unique and constantly replayable. On the other hand though, we have to admit that the levels we played through did seem a bit on the small side and it's getting to that point where the Source engine might be starting to show its age. The thing //is four years old by now and though continued development and expansion has helped, the cause is starting to flag a little.

Not that that matters hugely when you get right down to it -- as far as Left4Dead goes gameplay is God and the multiplayer backbone of Steam means that the game will run smoothly from the off.

As I mentioned to Chet when I interviewed him, Valve has a reputation among games developers for testing games absolutely to death. What for many designers would be a case a few weeks at the hands of some tired half-asleep geeks is an on-going process of refinement for Valve and it's something that really shows in Left4Dead.

The game is immediately playable and easy to pick up, but underneath the hood are some incredibly complex and effective tools to make the experience unpredictable and constantly replayable. This is Left4Dead's key strength and it makes the game easily one of our most awaited games of this year.

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