Gaming Left 4 Dead

Really enjoyed the demo and am going to pick up a copy via Steam. Playing with friends online we couldn't help but have a blast. It was like being in a modern zombie movie. What I did like was in the intro, my mate said to "shoot the car" which set off the alarm and caused a wave to attack. Very fuuny.

Contrary to some of the concerned people, I haven't had a problem with activation servers or internet issues -- download via Steam on a 24meg line and presto, was here in no time.

 

?! Wow. That's pretty harsh. Everyone has their own opinion but.. really? "Cheaply made" ?

 

This looks like damn good game for LAN party. But since retail version is handled by EA - does anyone know if it's using annoying DRM(activations, limited installations)? Price is suspiciosly low(50$) for this one so this might be the only game I buy from EA.

 

The retail version just installs steam, the game files and adds Left 4 Dead to your list of games - as with the rest of Valve's games you can install as many times as you like via the steam portal.

 

Sorry, not good enough. Not nearly good enough. "The Reich will stand for a thousand years!"

Remember Cavedog? No, thought not...

 

If it's steam then it needs inet connection, doesn't it?
But it would be fine if it worked off-line just for LAN gamming.

 

I explain my double standards as trust. I trust Valve not to go belly up and leave us in the lurch, I trust them not to release horribly buggy games to keep games updated and to (where appropriate) release new content.

I don't trust EA, why? because they've proven them selves to be untrustworthy in the past and continue to do so. I don't trust that when the games become unprofitable they'll continue to update their servers or to go to the effort of making sure that a patch to remove the activation is available and works. I don't trust them becuase they've chosen a drm method which hides itself away in the guts of your os and it slips this drm in quietly.

At least with valve and steam you know where you stand. TBF steam also offers benefits to counter the drawbacks which to me out way to other they may not.

 

if anyone wants to add me on steam my id is jordanwise

 

Really? How?

EA are a large, evil corporation. And Valve, of course, are a workers' fricken' cooperative, I'm sure...

No. When the games become unprofitable the servers will vanish, and you will be lucky if you can even get a middle-finger salute out of the publishers at that point.

 

Mind if I ask if you have a bank account, or whether you keep all your cash under your bed? There's nothing to stop financial institutions from going belly up and you losing all your cash, but it's such a rare event, and the benefits of using them are so great that everyone does.

I think the same thinking can be applied to Valve. While it took a while to win us over, we're now confident in it's longevity and support to the point that many would rather buy via Steam than via stores. Of course there will always be the occasional bunch who refuses to be paid in any other way but cash though, just as there are those that cling to boxed copies.

 

i prefer boxed copies too, they always include nice underlays for your cold ones

 

Take it a step further, does he own a car, god forbid VW or Toyota goes belly-up and there goes your warranty by default. His particular counter-arguement applies to anything. So as much as you guys are trying to debate how good of a service steam may or may not be you won't get anywhere with it in this particular discussion. You can't argue any point with someone who will just play devil's advocate to any counter-arguement you provide. You guys have given enough information as to why Steam is a valid alternative.


As for Left 4 Dead. I love the game. Versus mode is by far one of the best multiplayer experiences I have had in a long time and I love the level of coordination required to truly excel in Versus mode. I have only been playing the Campaign mode on Normal to get better aquainted with each map before I try advanced and eventually expert mode. This game is near perfect in my book. I don't need a deep engaging single player when the online multiplayer works so well.

 

i've played the demo, and certainly it was a fun time.. i'm just not generally a fan of zombies/horror so I'm still on the fence whether i'll buy it

interesting thing to note: my friend was able to tweak the config file of the demo to constantly spam zombie hordes for his hosted game

 

Nope I wasn't, I'll generally just play games on normal/standard first, then step up if it's too easy. I honestly had no inclination to play the demo any more but I'll give it a try on expert tonight and see how I go.

I was expecting a lot from the game having seen and read the build up and don't remember the last time a game disappointed me so much We'll see after I have a play on expert.

Edit: Erm, I would play it but when I try to start the demo it's saying I need to purchase the game. Have Valve turned off the demo now the full game's released or is my Steam install having a fit?

 

launch the demo from the programs files folder not from steam it still works.

 

I played the demo chapter loaded the next one and was baffled. Does the story not carry on from chapter to chapter, do we found out how people were infected etc? It's half a game without these for me.

 

Software, is an intangible product, hence the piracy issue. Its functionality is not dependent upon the existence of outside support. So, one might better ask; would it be acceptable if Toyota had to tell your car it was OK to keep working, every 10,000 miles?

To put it another way: software does not have to stop working merely because its publisher couldn't be bothered to keep telling it that it was OK for it to work, and because it doesn't have to, it shouldn't.

And frankly, this "Valve will never go out of business" line is just hyperventilating fanboyism. Cavedog were huge, and are gone. Origin Systems were huger - big enough to spend the first seven figure sum on developing a game, and are gone. All of this has happened in the last ten years. One day, possibly one day comparatively soon, Valve will inevitably go out of business, and your £100-plus investment in products distributed on their system will evaporate along with them.

 

No they don't. Essentially each Scenario is an event in which the 4 survivors are attempting to escape the current situation. The most backstory you will get from this game is the writing on the wall (literally). This isn't meant to be taken as a story driven game. You are the story in this title. You are a survivor, and much like others who have come and gone (according to the notes scribbled on the walls in the safe house) you're just trying to escape with your life as the they did either successfully or not. This game treats you as a piece in the grand scheme, not the protagonist. I think of it like this, instead of being a Member of S.T.A.R.S. from the Resident Evil Franchise you are just one of the many (and sometimes not so lucky) survivors in the cut scenes fighting for their lives.

Sorry I mean't to quote LeMaltor with my response.

 

It's not, it's meant to be 60-90 minutes of play when you're thrown in the middle of it all. From the "movie posters" at the beginning you are playing that movie..

Even if you buy ANY software - the fact that a lot of it these days requires online activation means that a tangible CD is pretty much just as good as a download, providing you can redownload it at any time and at any location. Hence EA store = lose.