Left 4 Dead

[SirChadlyOC]

I've had lots of problems with all kinds of things in versus mode, but I've been saying since I first tried it that versus is not that great or fun. Campaign mode is so much better, especially since it feels more perfected, like the developers spent most of their time on it.

[Triad Orion]

Updates have arrived for L4D and they've implemented the much needed fixes for server stability. They also made server searches faster, in addition to making it so servers can't override the settings the users choose. No map swapping by the server and none of the auto-changing difficulties that really plagued some runs.

Nice fixes. Still no word on balance issues for Versus Mode, however. But really, it's more important to get the mechanical problems out of the way first.

[Bahamut]

Wait, so does that mean that we can set the difficulty on the versus matches too?

[Sensai]

It looks as if the difficulty is set on Normal for versus. Which is perfectly fine by me, as most people are too...um, dumb for anything higher than that.

Finding a dedicated server when starting the game from a lobby is now faster and more reliable

Versus mode is now locked to Normal difficulty

Difficulty on a server is now locked to the one set by the lobby reservation

Fixed lagouts/spikes after level transition

Fixed directory issue with spray logs in some cases

Fixed video settings not saving after closing video options dialog

Corrected a boomer suicide exploit

Several minor localization fixes

Fixed disabling cheats incorrectly resetting data

^^^^patch notes^^^^^

(notice how there's nothing about smokers sucking )

[JadeAuto]

smokers do quite well.... it's all in location, location, location. and timing.

[Bahamut]

(notice how there's nothing about smokers sucking )

You sure weren't saying that when I smokered you on that roof of the hospital on No Mercy Finale

[Triad Orion]

Smokers are lethal if used correctly. I wrecked an escape in No Mercy once because of it. Two survivors left, one of them somehow got incapped *in* the helicopter, and I pull the last survivor away from the chopper when he was about a three yards away, and proceed to rip him apart at such an angle where his friend couldn't help.

It's all about opportunity.

[Sensai]

I know it's all about location, location, location...and you can tell. Both of the examples given occurred in the LAST stage of No Mercy (and, admittedly, Blood Harvest is much better for them).

And Baha, you're right. That was an amazing smoker grab last night. Truly was. But I think things like that happen often with hunters, so when it happens with a smoker, it's like...'woah!' Or, it could've been just fuckin' nice regardless .

And I think you guys are right; smokers don't suck really, I just suck with them. They definitely need a little fixing, but not as much as I bitch about it, haha.

[BardicKnowledge]

The only good times to use a smoker are if the group has to jump down somewhere they can't get back up (house in No Mercy 1, very beginning of No Mercy 2, No Mercy finale, and anything with trains in Blood Harvest).

That and if you're grabbing someone who is trying to save a pounced person, or grabbing right before / after a Boomer. Smokers need good teammates to make up for their shortcomings...unless you've got one of those insta-kill zones.

Also, despite Valve's patch, our game last night was still coming up with random difficulty modifiers -- does that just mean more witches/tanks are more points, or did they not fix it yet?

[Dhsu]

i've found that the worst place to be against a tank on no mercy 1 is that little alley before the street. there are two cars there and in a versus match i diligently juggled both of them between my massive arms, dazzling and incapacitating the entire survivor team in a matter of seconds.

i'd done this once before, but the survivors holed up in that little room right as you come out of the complex--i punched the nearby car, propping it up longways against the door, then let them kill me though the tiny gap between the top frame of the door and the passenger side door of the car (so i wouldn't lose my rage and have the computer tank knock it away trying to get to them) and played the waiting game. they couldn't leave, and my teammates couldn't move the car.

i was kicked immediately after.

- Fixed Infected Players melee pushing large objects to block the survivors path

[Bahamut]

So, one thing I noticed about the patching is that the spawn location for the tanks seem to have changed, as well as timing. Some of these new points REALLY suck. A few times the tank spawned as soon as the other team walked a few feet forward after leaving the saferoom. I'm not sure what Valve was thinking, but that's just retarded.

[Triad Orion]

That's actually happened pre-patch, especially in Dead Air. When you first enter the airport terminal, it's not uncommon to have a tank spawn just outside the safe room. At one point, it was close enough to the safe room to come over to the door and try to reach through it weakly. The bar was still on the door, so it couldn't get in and we just pumped it full of auto-shotgun until it died.

But I think they just increased the odds of tanks appearing in *different* places. I've seen tanks in their old haunts as well as new ones, so...

[Bahamut]

Well, they really shouldn't be spawning tanks in areas that close to spawn where there is no open area to really fight the tank. Do they really want the survivors to be that desperate?

[The Damned]

Well, the AI Director is really actually random than designed, I think. It's like the randomness of it works out well enough most of the time, it just seems like it's actually planning things.

Besides, a Tank in the Safe Room is nothing. Try getting a Witch, Smoker, Boomer and Hunter in the same hallway at once. Fucking rape, rape, rape... Worst level ever.

[Triad Orion]

And this is why Versus mode is a killer, because smart Infected players will chain the Witch into the fun! XD

[Sensai]

But smart survivor's will avoid her. Or at least, try to.

Or, at absolute least, send the guy who's lowest on health into the fray first.

[The Damned]

I'm a little disappointed you can't play as a Witch. Start out just like the other Infected, but once you spawn at a point, you can't move. The instant you are startled or attacked, then you can move and attack as you want.

She may be unable to move most of the time but her stats give her enough speed and health to inflict serious damage (and immobilize) on at least one of the survivors, something that only the Tank and Hunter can really do. The Smoker needs distance, opportunity and a few seconds to do this, and the Boomer can't do this at all without getting a very lucky hit in an already severely weakened Survivor. Being a Witch could be very strategic if you could put yourself right where the Survivors have to go.

Imagine being a Witch in a hallway, almost right by where the Survivors have to go, like the hallway out of the saferoom on the last level of No Mercy. The Survivors must either try to sneak by her, which carries not only the risk of setting her off, but also slowing their progress, giving time for the other Infected to catch up to them and set their traps. The other option is to attack her, and risk serious damage.

Obviously some restrictions would have to be in place to prevent completely blocking the Survivors path, but that's what play-testing is for. Maybe alter some stats like health to mke it easier to one-shot her.

[EdgeCrusher]

The original info released on L4D said you couldn't be a tank, you were allowed to be the hunter, smoker, boomer and witch. I was really disappointed to find out that they had it wrong.

[big giant circles]

Now that I know how to get the Crowned achievement though, being a witch would be lame I would think, once everyone figures out how to do it. Then, you'd pretty much die faster than a boomer.

Side note, does anyone have the official reference where it was said that Valve might add more campaigns/weapons/infected later on?

[Schwaltzvald]

Now that I know how to get the Crowned achievement though, being a witch would be lame I would think, once everyone figures out how to do it. Then, you'd pretty much die faster than a boomer.

Side note, does anyone have the official reference where it was said that Valve might add more campaigns/weapons/infected later on?

Here check it out...

http://www.dreadcentral.com/story/left-4-dead-downloadable-content-coming

Also BGC please duck in the future when I'm firing away with the assault shotgun

[Dhsu]

I'm a little disappointed you can't play as a Witch. Start out just like the other Infected, but once you spawn at a point, you can't move. The instant you are startled or attacked, then you can move and attack as you want.

She may be unable to move most of the time but her stats give her enough speed and health to inflict serious damage (and immobilize) on at least one of the survivors, something that only the Tank and Hunter can really do. The Smoker needs distance, opportunity and a few seconds to do this, and the Boomer can't do this at all without getting a very lucky hit in an already severely weakened Survivor. Being a Witch could be very strategic if you could put yourself right where the Survivors have to go.

Imagine being a Witch in a hallway, almost right by where the Survivors have to go, like the hallway out of the saferoom on the last level of No Mercy. The Survivors must either try to sneak by her, which carries not only the risk of setting her off, but also slowing their progress, giving time for the other Infected to catch up to them and set their traps. The other option is to attack her, and risk serious damage.

Obviously some restrictions would have to be in place to prevent completely blocking the Survivors path, but that's what play-testing is for. Maybe alter some stats like health to mke it easier to one-shot her.

It seems to me that Witches have a pretty deterministic AI though, i.e. attack the person who startled her, then run away. Letting the Witch choose whom she attacks would partly defeat the purpose IMO.

[InitiAteScan]

It seems to me that Witches have a pretty deterministic AI though, i.e. attack the person who startled her, then run away. Letting the Witch choose whom she attacks would partly defeat the purpose IMO.

That's so true. In the commentary mode it's mentioned that the whitch originally would berserk after getting startled and so whipe the complete group of survivors.

To prevent one from whiping all by incidently or what ever startling the whitch they changed it.

So letting someone control the witch would somehow make no sense.

[The Damned]

BOO! Beatdown, Bahamt and I, as well as a truly competent player by the name of "stunna" (awesome teamwork man, it was a pleasure to play with you) finished Death Tollon Expert last night, only to be screwed out of our rightful achievement "Zombicidal Maniac", whereas stunna not only got it, but three others as well.

Valve needs to fix the achievements so that random server disconnects don't fuck up the "do ____ throughout a whole campaign". At least make it within a certain time limit. When a server begins to drop you, and it gives that 30 second countdown, but you get back in with time to spare, don't make that count.

Fucking fuck fucker fuck.

[SirChadlyOC]

I played a bit of L4D yesterday before going to work at GameStop. Is it bad that I then proceeded to view all of our customers as Infected? They're all running at me like my boxes of Wiis are pipe bombs, I swear.

I suppose as long as I don't see Boss Infected in the crowd, I should still be OK, right?

[Inimitable]

I fear that whenever I hear someone scream I'm going to turn around immediately and punch the hell out of whoever's standing closest to me.

Luckily this hasn't happened yet, but it may be only a matter of time.