Is it passe to call 2008 "the year of multiplayer gaming?" Most definitely. But (MMOs notwithstanding) playing with friends hasn't felt this good since the arcade days. Cue memories of Gauntlet, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Sunset Riders... Left 4 Dead embodies this altogether-positive step backward the industry has taken. It was designed from the ground up to be played with three other living, breathing people, quite boldly, and to the detriment of its "single-player experience." That's in quotation marks because, frankly, you'd only play Left 4 Dead single-player if you were trying to prove some sort of point.
Valve's stamp is all over this, so be prepared to play for ages.
Miguel: Gerald tried to turn me on to "Walking Dead," but it didn't work. In one panel, a character was referring to the zombies that were attacking his town as "...those things! What's up? Haven't these people seen "Night of the Living Dead"? Anyway, this is my way of saying that I feel zombie shit is kind of tired. Maybe I'm wrongheaded about that, but no matter. Left 4 Dead hooked me the minute I played. So much nuance, so much potential for meaningful iteration. The game is scary as hell, but I wouldn't even call it a "horror" game.
Will: Come on man, how can you not dig on zombies? I mean, they're just like you and me, except they enjoy brains (slightly) more. It's funny, I wasn't all that excited for Left 4 Dead in the months leading up to its launch, but it hooked me more than any multiplayer game in quite some time. I loved the fact that you couldn't just run off on your own no matter how strong your skills were. In fact, it was usually funnier when someone did run off like some sort of undead-slaying Rambo, then listened to them beg for your help.Miguel: That's partly because we're never quite allowed to master rote patterns in Left 4 Dead. The way the "AI director" changes up monster compositions makes every run through of a level a surprise, even if the dressing might be the same. Factor in wildly differing enemy behaviors and you have something that's mad stimulating.Will: There's really something to be said for the competitive multiplayer, too. I was sure that it was either going to be too unbalanced or too, um, unfun when I heard that players would be able to play as the undead. I was hooked once I figured out how to pounce on people and grab them with the Smoker's tongue. No matter which side you're on, you've got to rely on your teammates as much as on your own skills, something that definitely can't be said for every multiplayer game. All we need now is more maps, preferably a bunch of them!Miguel: Back when I was playing the PC version regularly, folks who hosted games were using console commands to do crazy stuff, like spawn gangs of witches and tanks out of nowhere. That was fun to see. It's good that Valve is able to be the master of its own domain when it comes to Left 4 Dead over Xbox Live. It would be a shame if we were to see a replay of (the 360's rarely patched) Team Fortress 2 play out. Anyway, I'm also hyped to see what's next. Valve has promised to "fill in the blanks" with further co-op campaigns. I can't wait to see what it has in store.
