61 Frames Per Second

Whatcha Playing?: Left 4 Dead

Posted by Cole Stryker

I finally got around to playing Left 4 Dead this weekend, a game that my 61FPS colleagues and I have largely slept on during the holiday rush. I'm pleased to report that I found the cooperation-focused shooter to be one of the most clever games I've played in a while, and the most important FPS since Valve's last game.

The game sets itself apart by forcing players to work together as they make their way from Point A to Point B. If you get swarmed by zombies while trying to be a hero, you run the risk of being incapacitated. Once that happens, the only way to get back on your feet is to be "revived" by a teamate. It's a simple mechanic that reinforces teamwork. A modestly experienced team that sticks together stands a much better chance of surviving than a team of rogue run-and-gunners vying for the most points. The other innovation that helps make this game a must-play is the AI, which randomly spawns items and enemies throughout the map, ensuring a slightly different playthrough each time.

There are four heroes, four playable zombie types, four levels, and (basically) four guns. It might seem like a skimpy game, but therein lies its minmalist grace, which lies just under the gory surface. It isn't worth playing by yourself, but, like all the best shooters (Tribes, TF2), the multiplayer is what makes it. The Source engine is nothing to write home about, but these simple improvements on the world's most stagnant genre made this FPS refugee hungry for more... BRAINS THAT IS! HURR DURRR!

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+ DEL.ICIO.US

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Posted Jan 26 2009, 05:30 PM

Filed under: valve, cole stryker, left4dead, ai, half-life 2, source engine

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John Constantine, our superhero, was raised by birds and then attended Penn State University. He is currently working on a novel about a fictional city that exists only in his mind. John has an astonishingly extensive knowledge of Scientology. Ultimately he would like to learn how to effectively use his brain. He continues to keep Wu-Tang's secret to himself.

Derrick Sanskrit is a self-professed geek in a variety of fields including typography, graphic design, comic books, music and cartoons. As a professional hipster graphic designer, his recent clients have included Nerve, Pitchfork and MoCCA, among others.

Amber Ahlborn - artist, writer, gamer and DigiPen survivor, she maintains a day job as a graphic artist. By night Amber moonlights as a professional Metroid Fanatic and keeps a metal suit in the closet just in case. Has lived in the state of Washington and insists that it really doesn't rain as much as everyone says it does.

Nadia Oxford is a housekeeping robot who was refurbished into a warrior when the world's need for justice was great. Now that the galaxy is at peace (give or take a conflict here or there), she works as a freelance writer for various sites and magazines. Based in Toronto, Nadia prizes the certificate from the Ministry of Health declaring her tick and rabies-free.

Bob Mackey is a grad student, writer, and cyborg, who uses the powerful girl-repelling nanomachines mad science grafted onto his body to allocate time towards interests of the nerd persuasion. He believes that complaining about things on the Internet is akin to the fine art of wine tasting, but with more spitting into buckets.

Joe Keiser has a programming degree from Johns Hopkins University, a tiny apartment in Brooklyn, and a fake toy guitar built in the hollowed-out shell of a real guitar. He writes about games and technology for a variety of outlets. One day he will stop doing this. The day after that, police will find his body under a collapsed pile of (formerly neatly alphabetized) collector's edition tchotchkes.

Cole Stryker is an American freelance writer living in York, England, where he resides with his archeologist wife. He writes for a travel company by day and argues about pop culture on the internet by night. Find him writing regularly here and here.

Peter Smith is like the lead character of Irwin Shaw's The 80-Yard Run, except less athletic. He considers himself very lucky to have this job. But it's a little premature to take "jack-off of all trades" off his resume. Besides writing, travelling, and painting houses, Pete plays guitar in a rock trio called The Aye-Ayes. He calls them a 'power pop' band, but they generally sound more like Motorhead on a drinking binge.