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New Left 4 Dead DLC coming soon

Published on 3rd July 2009 by Joe Martin

Valve has promised a Left 4 Dead 2 demo will be available before the end of the year, as well as DLC for the original.

Valve has promised gamers angered by the too-soon unveiling of Left 4 Dead 2 that it will continue to support the original game for a long time to come - starting with a new bunch of downloadable content that will be with gamers in the near future and which should be unveiled later this summer.

Speaking to CVG at a Left 4 Dead 2 press event in London yesterday, Valve's Doug Lombardi confirmed that the new pack of content will be unveiled by the end of the Summer and that it'll be out a good long while before Left 4 Dead 2. Lombardi wouldn't comment on what exactly it might be though.

Responding to questions about the fan reaction to the sequel, Lombardi claimed that although he understood the feelings of fans who thought that it was too soon for a sequel Valve did know what it was doing with the series. It'll all make sense after the event, promised Lombardi, who indicated that Valve had a long-term plan for the franchise.

Talking about the next game in the series, Lombardi also took a moment to confirm that Left 4 Dead 2 will be getting a demo before release and that Steam users should expect it to arrive in November. There wasn't any mention about whether it'll be a public demo or a private one for pre-order customers or those who already own Left 4 Dead 1 though.

We had our own chat with Valve's Chet Faliszek at the event yesterday and he assured us that there's still a lot more info to be unveiled about Left 4 Dead 2 in the coming months, including new special infected and campaign details. Keep an eye out for our interview with Chet and our thoughts on the latest build of Left 4 Dead 2 in the next few days.

Are you looking forward to Left 4 Dead 2, or are you a member of the on-going boycott? Let us know your thoughts in the forums.

28 Comments

Discuss in the forums Reply

OnyxLilninja 3rd July 2009, 15:05

Left 4 Dead 2 still looks like an expansion pack to me. To warrant putting '2' on the end of a game requires major engine modifications, otherwise I feel shortchanged. This is the first time Valve have disappointed me in 10+ years though, so no real tears here.

flibblesan 3rd July 2009, 15:05

Looking forward to L4D2. The so-called boycott is lame, imho.

Veles 3rd July 2009, 15:23

Quote:

Valve has promised gamers angered by the too-soon unveiling of Left 4 Dead 2 that it will continue to support the original game for a long time to come - starting with a new bunch of downloadable content that will be with gamers in the near future and which should be unveiled later this summer.

Then why bother with the sequel? They've said that both games are gonna keep on going side by side with updates. I don't really see how this really makes any sense. I'm fine with paying for the content in L4D2 because they seem to have done quite a bit, but this looks like no more than an expansion pack to me, there just hasn't been enough done to really call it a whole new game. It's the same game with new campaigns, new characters, and a couple of new enemies/weapons/etc.

faugusztin 3rd July 2009, 15:27

They still avoid the main point what people expect from Valve - HL2E3.

HL2 : November 16, 2004
HL2E1: June 1, 2006 (=19 months after HL2)
HL2E2: October 10, 2007 (=16 months after HL2E1)

Where are we now ? 21 months since HL2E2 and not even a word about HL2E3. Didn't they said they go for episodic content to release more often ?

Psy-UK 3rd July 2009, 15:41

I agree. Where the hell is EP3?

Carpet3 3rd July 2009, 15:43

ARGH! Valve you're killing me. Where's EP3?

MajorTom 3rd July 2009, 15:51

Quote:

Originally Posted by flibblesan
Looking forward to L4D2. The so-called boycott is lame, imho.

It's worth reading their manifesto, because it makes a lot of sense. Basically, Valve promised content and never delivered and now are asking for money for the content and are asking customers to trust them even though they trusted them the first time and got burned.

It does make a lot of sense. Unless you are a console owner in which case this is fairly normal but you wouldn't have been promised more content in the first place.

http://steamcommunity.com/groups/L4D2boycott

xaser04 3rd July 2009, 16:14

Release EP3 already FFS....

Oh and don't make it the weak pathetic excuse EP1 was either. (Following HL2 it was a massive dissapointment for me). EP2 was good though.

Mentai 3rd July 2009, 16:56

All I want is a campaign (in vs) with crescendos that require you to run to turn them off instead of camping, and a couple of new special infected, so here's hoping.

The Infamous Mr D 3rd July 2009, 17:01

For goodness sakes! What with so many games companies overcharging for substandard tat and releasing games to manufacturing only playable with bountiful patches, I think if this is the worst Valve had done in 10+ years worth of releases, then I wish there were more companies like Valve and more games like HL, L4D and TF2. I happily pay for L4D2.

sub routine 3rd July 2009, 17:36

^^ what so your saying they are taking the pi$$ then but thats ok ???

*i see the games industry is slowly going down the pan**

tejas 3rd July 2009, 19:32

Anyone know when Valve are going to announce Left4Dead 3?? Probably just after L4D2 comes out....

Horizon 3rd July 2009, 21:02

Can't remember the article, i remember it was about orange box, it was quoted that HL2EP3 was a good 3-4 years away. So don't excpect before late 2010-2011, possibly 2012. My guess is they are building a new engine for it.

CardJoe 3rd July 2009, 21:53

Quote:

Originally Posted by Horizon
Can't remember the article, i remember it was about orange box, it was quoted that HL2EP3 was a good 3-4 years away. So don't excpect before late 2010-2011, possibly 2012. My guess is they are building a new engine for it.

Lies.

Late 2010 a possibility, but I very, very much doubt it'd get a new engine.

Otis1337 4th July 2009, 00:51

Quote:

Originally Posted by CardJoe
Lies.

Late 2010 a possibility, but I very, very much doubt it'd get a new engine.

I predict HL EP3 will be the finally of the good old source engine as we know it now.
HL3 will introduce a DX11/13 (or something completely different) version of source i think

feedayeen 4th July 2009, 04:05

Where are the user created maps and content in L4D? Why is it that Valve created a perfect TF2 nearly 2 years ago and allowed us to play other user's maps but we are stuck with the same 4 campaigns in l4d?

Mentai 4th July 2009, 04:15

Well I'm guessing EP3 will include portal technology since they're going to an Aperture science vessel, and if I recall correctly it was quite difficult to make portals run smoothly without using very small rooms, ie testing chambers. Therefore there's probably significant engine work required to get portals working in larger areas, and knowing valve, hugely iterative playtesting to make portals in those areas a lot of fun.

If this is not the case I'm going to be pretty disappointed, although I want to see the conclusion to this so much that I don't think I'll care either way. I wonder if HL3 will take place another 20 years in the future etc.

I also can't imagine it before late 2010. I wonder if they'll bundle it with anything. Best surprise of the year would be if it turned up with L4D2 haha.

r4tch3t 4th July 2009, 05:28

Quote:

Originally Posted by feedayeen
Where are the user created maps and content in L4D? Why is it that Valve created a perfect TF2 nearly 2 years ago and allowed us to play other user's maps but we are stuck with the same 4 campaigns in l4d?

There are user created maps out there, I have played quite an interesting campaign which was full of traps, fake switches that impale you instead of opening the door and other interesting things. What needs to be done is to have these mods more integrated and have the ability to host the maps on the servers so that you don't have to install them before hand.

As for the DLC, hopefully they will have a few more campaigns in there and maybe a new type of special infected.

OWNED66 5th July 2009, 09:41

u idiots didnt u hear what Gabe newel said about EP3
he said thats its taking this long because of the new engine so WAIT FOR IT

Saivert 5th July 2009, 21:21

Gabe Nevell needs to get his company coordinated and get everyone up to speed with his plans.

capnPedro 6th July 2009, 00:58

Quote:

Originally Posted by OWNED66
u idiots didnt u hear what Gabe newel said about EP3
he said thats its taking this long because of the new engine so WAIT FOR IT

[citation needed]

r4tch3t 6th July 2009, 03:59

Citation

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bit-tech
Although Gabe adamantly refuses to talk about why exactly Half-Life 2: Episode 3 is taking so long to develop given that the episodic model should focus on a smaller game with a faster release, he hints that a major reason for the delays could be new features being added to the Source engine.

That is, updates to the engine, not a whole new one. Although that is not a definitive answer, but I cannot find any info on a new engine being developed.

Brooxy 6th July 2009, 12:10

Remember how much HL2 was originally pushed back? I'll tell you - a very long time.

Admittedly the source engine was created for HL2, but if they have to make vast changes to it, and that takes time - so be it.

We can't really do anything to rush them, and if quality takes time, I'd rather the nurtured the changes over time, than the alternative of taking half the time and having a buggy game to play.

impar 7th July 2009, 10:56

Greetings!

So a new DLC in the Summer for L4D, then a full-price expansion in November?

Whoever boycotts L4D2 will become even more entrenched in L4D;
Whoever buys L4D2 without having played L4D will have the feeling of missing something.

liratheal 7th July 2009, 12:22

Quote:

Originally Posted by faugusztin
They still avoid the main point what people expect from Valve - HL2E3.

HL2 : November 16, 2004
HL2E1: June 1, 2006 (=19 months after HL2)
HL2E2: October 10, 2007 (=16 months after HL2E1)

Where are we now ? 21 months since HL2E2 and not even a word about HL2E3. Didn't they said they go for episodic content to release more often ?

HL: November 19, 1998

So.. Could be anywhere up to six years!

Bauul 13th July 2009, 13:54

Quote:

Originally Posted by OnyxLilninja
Left 4 Dead 2 still looks like an expansion pack to me. To warrant putting '2' on the end of a game requires major engine modifications, otherwise I feel shortchanged.

This is a mentality I never understood. A sequal does NOT need an engine upgrade. Did we see people boycotting Doom 2 because it uses the same engine as Doom 1? Did the world give up on Mortal Kombat 2 because it used the same engine as MK1?

Funnily enough: no.

Sequals often take ages because the devs decide the want a new engine. If the dev chooses to keep with the same engine, often sequals come out much quicker. Ala L4D2.

Krikkit 13th July 2009, 14:09

I know what Onyx is saying - for it to be a new game in an age of expansion packs and DLC it has to be noticeably different to the previous incarnation.

impar 13th July 2009, 14:20

Greetings!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Krikkit
I know what Onyx is saying - for it to be a new game in an age of expansion packs and DLC it has to be noticeably different to the previous incarnation.

Totally!