Tank Multi Hit Damage
Last November, Valve introduced to the masses a first person shooter the likes no one has ever seen. With a very intense and very well designed Co Op gaming experience, Left 4 Dead became an instant hit. Lots of parody, videos and mods hit the streets almost instantly.
The thing that stood out was the Co Op and Vs modes, which recently another survival horror game had to take a stab at. We all know that game as well, and we have a review on that coming soon, but on to the point of this review and update…
In Game Graphic
Many have enjoyed the simple pleasures of taking one of the Special Infected and trying to utilize their unique attacks to stop the survivors from reaching their goal. Whether going it as a Boomer, Hunter or Smoker, and the occasional Tank, the varied attack methods, though limited, is what captured the Vs players attention and hours of multiplayer gaming.
This created memorably fun situations.
Teammates can plan attacks, use their environment to their advantage to take one of the opposition out or just simply create havoc to the opposing team.
Obviously, being Special Infected was what people enjoyed playing the most. Survivor character gaming is the part where you gain points by arriving (sometimes with 1 point HP left) to your objective, but the fun of defense is also worth while. Being able to melee or shoot your way through the countless hordes and special infected gives you continuous action and most importantly, awareness and teamwork.
That was also a great game play experience.
The speed and action draws people in, and although the graphics and some of the limited weaponry may be a low aspect of the Game, it still resurrected continuous game play.
This past month, the release of the expansions hit; Dead Air and Death Toll in Vs mode and a new mode called “Survival” also hit the Game’s options. Early on these were slow to catch on and people had to learn methods of stopping and killing the survivors on these new Vs maps. Learning early on was half the fun.
However, It did not take long. Exploits and tactical advantages were found very quickly. At least, for some…
Survival mode is a different story-
What can we say? Survival gives us different chapter maps from pre-existing Campaign’s and not only that, a brand new map designed for Survival specifically. It’s intense with hardly any breaks while in game, and you have to know where to be, how to move and what to use as a mode to kill Zombies and last as long as you can. My first attempts netted me just over 6 minutes on the new Lighthouse map.
How can you achieve better time scores? Team work, obviously. Coordinate, communicate and find your best situation for better time scores.
The biggest problem in this mode is escaping (multiple) Tank damage and the dreaded getting punched out of the game. Most gamers will experience massive hordes and Special Infected to defend against, which can be simple enough if you have everyone intact, but while at normal difficulty it’s still a daunting task.
With a couple of tanks coming at you with a horde of zombies and special infected, that’s a tough job to say the least, but can be very frustrating, which adds to the addiction of gaining a better score. So, plan accordingly expecting an insurmountable confrontation. The theme music coming in gives you hint of what to expect, so pay attention and try to keep an ‘ear’ out. However, with dozens of zombies running at you howling and screeching, gun fire, explosions, fires, special infected and communication with your teammates, it’s hard to make out what you hear.
There have been several exploits already discovered in Survival Mode, and do we see a possible patch for that as well? We’ll see, because the supposed “10 Minute Mark” of the developers is very low compared to some of the game’s exploits on certain maps, which you can bypass with hours… Yes, hours. If you were that bored and wanted to sit up on top of the gamer leader board and be that guy who said; “I Beat Survival mode with a 5 hour time”, you can do it and make that claim, but are you that lazy and uncreative? Don’t be. Try doing it the old fashioned way and get your butt out into the battlefield. Test your true SKILLS.
The opening up of the other two maps, Dead Air and Death Toll have been the funnest experience to me.
Why?
Dead Air is a Smokers dream map. If you are the Smoker in Dead Air, you’ll be treated to so many areas it just seems unfair to the Survivors.
There are several areas of exploit I learned very fast. Several instant kills and incapacitation areas on the Map. I won’t name them or where, and don’t go on Google and look for them or Walkthroughs on various gaming sites… get out and do it yourself. It’s much more gratifying to find your own methods. Many gamers on your team will probably get mad at you for not being in the right place at the right time to accommodate them, but don’t listen to them unless it’s a full on coordinated attack which you’re all communicating on.
Find your own method in specific areas, and you might just find something new. Trust me, it’s more gratifying to discover your own method in areas and have the same impact on the survivors and escape from being destroyed, maintaining your use of any of the special infected, let alone the Smoker. Typically, consistent game players will know those spots as well, so they will be looking for you, so it’s good to mix it up.
Boomers have a good situation along with Hunters in Death Toll taking advantage of all the “dark areas” on the map. It’s just as fun. Obviously, the game expansions for Vs mode really work well for Special Infected and here’s a few more reasons why:
Melee option has a ‘reload’ time for survivors.
If you miss your opponent, expect to have to wait 1-2 seconds for a reload to melee again. A LOT of gamers on Left 4 Dead have already complained since Day 1 of the update about the melee issue. Will this negative response prompt another update? Possibly. It’s an instant irritant to the Left 4 Dead gamer, being as they’ve been using the simple quick method for months now, but you get used to it, and it actually works well when you know how to time your attack, especially against Hunters. You will argue it’s just “unfair”, but you have to gain a ‘new skill’ basically. Once you do, you’ll be back to a melee on a pouncing Hunter once again. I recommend the quicker “double hit”. I melee and shotgun blast at the same time, usually killing the hunter in 2 to 3 blows. Melee, shot to the head. Dead.
There are a few little advantages that help “balance” that problem of the Melee out, and that is the Shotgun and Pistol power. They upped the strength a bit, and it’s definitely something you’ll notice.
Also, the Tank got an upgrade and can now hit multiple people with one blow. That means no more grouping up expecting to all use shotguns at the same time. He can just roll up and knock all four of you 20-100 feet out. His speed is also a factor now, while being able to hit multiple objects that are highlighted in red, this adds more tactics to your Tank pursuit of Survivor’s.
New maps, new tactics, new upgrades and challenges. It’s a lot more balanced and adds more hours to game play.
Verdict: If you’re a Left 4 Dead gamer, you’re in heaven with the expansion. If you have never played it, you’re even better off getting to play all the expansions fresh and new. It’s definitely a BUY, and what’s better? You can get a used copy for 20 bucks and download the expansions for FREE!
You can’t lose… well, maybe 20 dollars and hours of your time, but it’s worth it.
If you are very new to the game, Game of the Year Edition is available now, with expansions included in the package. Make sure you have an XBox Live Gold Account or PC Server connection to get your Zombie slayer (or survivor slayer) on!
My Opinion: Same as Above.
Game Play 8.5
Graphics 7.0
Replayability 10.0
Valve Releases Game of Year Edition
