Cover HolidayM.indd

LEFT 4

DEAD

54 | MAXIMUMPC | HOLIDAY 08 | http://www.maximumpc.com

The other three campaigns were

just as creepy, taking us through

small towns, obligatory graveyards,

construction sites, train stations,

and even chilling forest regions. Our

most memorable moment, however,

was when we trekked through a

large airport terminal and watched

a full-size 747 airplane crash and

burn on the runway. Wading through

the wreckage of these realistically

craft ed environments was made all

the more compelling by improve-

ments to the game’s Source engine,

which uses cinematic fi lters and

so-called fi lmic eff ects like enhanced

contrast to augment the terror.

We made it through the four acts

in about six hours on normal dif-

fi culty (advanced and expert modes

are also available, and make a dra-

matic diff erence) and then jumped

into the Versus gameplay mode.

Here, four players play as the Boss

Infected, terrorizing four Survivor

players in the No Mercy and Blood

Harvest campaigns. The zombie

perspective is a refreshingly unique

experience, where you’re actually

rewarded for griefi ng the opposing

team. Cooperation is again essential

for success, and we quickly learned

how to string and combine our Boss

Infected abilities to maximize the

harassment. It’s an exceptionally

satisfying gameplay mode that alone

promises hours of joy.

Left 4 Dead didn’t just meet our

high expectations for the zombie

apocalypse, it exceeded them. And

when the real undead uprising ar-

rives, we’ll be ready for it.

The survivors

have to endure

several “mini-

fi nales,” such

as fending off

the horde in a

cramped hallway

while waiting for

an elevator to

arrive. This is a

good time to use

pipe bombs and

Molotov cocktails.

+ -

VERDICT

$50, http://www.l4d.com, ESRB: M

10

Unrelenting

zombie-killing

action; satisfy-

ing cooperative

campaigns;

addictive

Versus mode.

Only two of

the four cam-

paigns are

available in

Versus mode

at launch.

28 DAYS

LATER

LEFT 4 DEAD

28 WEEKS

LATER

If you’re lucky

enough to spawn as

the Tank, your job

is to swat the sur-

vivors away from

each other so your

fellow Boss Infected

can catch them off

guard. Battered

humans? Sounds

tasty!

Left 4 Dead’s zombie horde is controlled by a technology called AI Director, a complex

intelligence algorithm that tracks and monitors your performance throughout the game to

dynamically ramp up or tone down the diffi culty. Attributes like the health of the team, available

ammunition, and accuracy are taken into consideration when the director decides how many

zombies to throw at you in each set piece. This ensures that the game not only feels balanced

when you’re playing with strangers of varying shooter aptitude but also that no two sessions

will play out the same way. Variables that are changed include the number and location of the

zombies you encounter, the timing of Boss Infected attacks, and the placement of weapon,

health, and ammo drops. So even though you might learn the layout of a level after running

through it a few times, you can still expect to be challenged and surprised by the AI Director’s

unpredictability. Left 4 Dead will ship with a software development kit that’ll let modders build

their own levels and populate them with the AI Director, as well. We can’t wait to see what the

community will do with this powerful tool.

BEHIND THE SCENES

Meet the AI Director

MAXIMUMP C .com

LEARN MORE AT

http://www.tinyurl/left4dead-mpc