July 1st Update

July 1, 2011 - L4D Team

Lone Gunman, Following L4D2, Movie Fan, Next Wednesday



Lone Gunman
You and your Magnum against the deadly horde and Boomers.
So you have your Magnum pistol and… well you do have your Magnum pistol. You better be counting bullets because four swipes by a common and you are dead. Getting boomed? Forget about it.

Following Left 4 Dead 2
How do you follow Left 4 Dead 2? It depends on your platform.

If you are on the PC or Mac:

Facebook Only	4%
Twitter Only	2%
Steam Forums Only	36%
Facebook/Twitter/Steam	5%
Facebook/Twitter	1%
Facebook/Steam	16%
Twitter/Steam	4%
None of the above	32%

Another way to look at it is 26% PC/Mac players use Facebook, 12% use Twitter, 61% use the Steam forums and 32% use none of those ways.


If you are on the 360:

Facebook Only	22%
Twitter Only	2%
Steam Forums Only	9%
Facebook/Twitter/Steam	6%
Facebook/Twitter	5%
Facebook/Steam	7%
Twitter/Steam	1%
None of the above	48%

That means 40% Xbox 360 players use Facebook, 14% use Twitter, 23% use the Steam forums and 48% use none of those ways.

If we combine the communities – they are about the same size - 33% use Facebook, 14% use Twitter, and 43% use the Steam Forums and 40% use none of these. These numbers do not include the non-votes and only include players who read the blog so the – none of these – option is probably much larger. We have some work to do…

Movie Fan?
Have you ever watched a Left 4 Dead 1 or 2 inspired live action video on YouTube?

Next Wednesday?
Check back next Wednesday for a special update. We are going to need your help...

Featured Campaigns Return!

June 17, 2011 - L4D Team

After a long break, we have a new featured community campaign - Suicide Blitz 2.

You can download the vpk file directly from us here. To learn about installing vpks check here.

We thought we should celebrate the return of new community campaigns by having a 66% off sale on Left 4 Dead 2 and four packs of Left 4 Dead 2! The sale only runs until 10am PST June 18th so hurry. It is the perfect time to get some friends a copy and play some Suicide Blitz 2 tonight. See you online.

June 17th Update

June 17, 2011 - L4D Team

Hunting Party, The Train Station, Following L4D2



Hunting Party
Nothing but Hunters on the prowl.

In this Coop Mutation we pit you against non-stop hunters. No booms, no spit, no tongues, no charges, no being ridden… Great practice on dead stopping a hunter pounce.

The Train Station
Last poll we asked about the difficulty of the Left 4 Dead 1 map The Train Station from Blood Harvest. An odd question for a Left 4 Dead 2 poll maybe, but on the PC side in particular we have a high number of players who have also owned and played Left 4 Dead 1 so they do have some first-hand experience.

50% of the voters think the map is too easy. 27% think it is fine the way it is and 23% of you haven’t played it. So that means, 50% of you are going to be finally challenged by the map, 27% of you might be a little overwhelmed, and 23% are going to in for a treat - just wait until you see the corn fields.

How do you follow Left 4 Dead 2?
We are trying to reach and interact with people in many ways. If you go to l4d.com you can see the list, but how do you follow or discuss Left 4 Dead 2?

June 3rd Update

June 3, 2011 - L4D Team

Versus Survival, Bunker?, The Train Station?
Versus Survival
Can you survive against your friends?

The first Survivor team sets the time. The second team tries to beat it. Then the first team tries to beat the second team's time. Then the second team tries to beat the first team's time. And then the... you get the idea. Rounds keep switching until someone fails to beat the previous time.

This is a great way to try Versus. Rounds are only as long as you can keep beating each others' times. There are no rushing Survivors. Infected spawns get quicker as the time increases. It is mayhem filled with all the weapon perks and items. What’s not to like? Give it a try.

Bunker?
Last poll we asked, what do you think of the end bunker in Cold Stream’s first map. If you actually played the map - you love it. The vote breaks down to 84% for 16% against. The other option was if you hadn’t played the map. That vote was 71% against and 19% for, almost the exact opposite from the results of those who played it.

This is a good illustration for why we design based on observed play tests and not anecdotal evidence. Those who didn’t play aren’t wrong with their vote, that is their opinion but without first-hand experience they were unable to evaluate the true impact of this change.

The Train Station
We are bringing over more L4D1 maps for the upcoming L4D2 DLC. We have been making some changes to accommodate the differences in L4D2 game play. For example, at the very start of Blood Harvest, it was way too easy to charge someone from the start position off to their death. But now we have a question for you, if you have played Blood Harvest, is the 4th map, The Train Station, too easy?

May 20th Update

May 20, 2011 - L4D Team

Gib Fest, Midnight Riders Comic, Cold Stream Crescendo

Gib Fest
Blast the infected to shreds with M60s.

Swords can slice up some fun. Chainsaws can tear apart the infected. But you need to get close for both and well… chainsaws are really loud! Time to go with the ultimate gun, you and three friends armed with M60s and unlimited ammo. This is going to get messy.

Midnight Riders Comic?
Last poll we asked what you thought about the idea of a Midnight Rider’s Comic. We will admit; we aren’t surprised. 70% of you want a comic, 14% of you have a negative outlook on life, and 16% of you are dirty liars… How did you know it said you can’t read unless you could read it!?!?

Cold Stream Crescendo
Last update we made a change in the beta version of Cold Stream’s first map. Originally the final bit of the map before the safe room was a boarded over culvert leading down to the door. It made a great place to hide and then charge while the Survivors came down the tunnel.

We made a change to experiment with a bunker. The bunker has a large steel door that needs to be moved and alerts the horde causing them to come streaming out as you try and enter. The second way also introduces a one way drop down into the passage so all Survivors needs to jump at the same time or at least make sure not to be smoked up top.

So what does everyone think of the change? And if you haven’t played it, based on the descriptions – what do you think you would prefer? Please make sure to pick the right choice if you played or not.