Despite being posted on April the first, it appears that this Left 4 Dead blog post is accurate: Valve are to update the matchmaking system for PC users of Left 4 Dead. The extension adds support for third-party campaign servers (custom maps) and support for a party system. this will allow you and three buddies to team up and find another four players for versus mode. Also changing is the way that the game auto-matches you based on skill.

Why people still play the game without people they know is beyond me, but whatever floats your zombie-infested boat, I suppose. That said, I’m glad that these features are coming; it’s a chore finding servers with the things that you want to play, and the party system will, I’m sure, be a lot of fun.

Capcom have announced (accidentally) that Dead Rising 2 will feature a multiplayer component of some kind, although just what was not mentioned. The comment came out in a GDC panel during which a Capcom representative also made a silly comment about there being 6000 zombies on-screen at once. Take a look at your TV, and you’ll see that to fit 6000 rotting undead on the screen at once, they’ll have to be tiny (or squashed in, making it unplayable).

Either way, a multiplayer mode is always welcome. Unless it’s not very good, in which case it’s not welcome at all. The game is also going to feature 800 types of zombie, meaning you won’t be seeing the same models over and over as you smash their heads in with/against your buddy/buddies.

Capcom executive Keiji Inafune has mentioned in the newest issue of Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu that “We’re finally putting out new Dead Rising and Lost Planet games! As a main principle we’re thinking about multi-platform, and expanding upon both slightly from the Xbox 360 version.” That’s a pretty strong hint towards both games being multi-platform; not to mention that most of Capcom’s games are multi-platform now.

Dead Rising is a game I’ve been wanting to play since it was released, so I’m certainly hoping for a PS3 version. I enjoyed the Lost Planet demo, too (although the full game is either nowhere to be found or way overpriced), so this is good news all round.

Steam news has details of a huge Left 4 Dead PC patch, available now to all Steam users. The patch has a lot of bug fixes, as well as gameplay tweaks and changes. The Hunter gets “Increased Minimum damage” for a pounce, solving the frustration that a short-range pounce is almost worthless. Hopefully it should increase the hunter’s worth indoors.

Plus, “Survivors cannot bash someone off the tongue until the Survivor being pulled is paralyzed or hanging,” and the “Smoker tongue does damage every second while dragging paralyzed Survivors.” This comes as a relief; smokers were almost useless most of the time without this extra damage. Also, you can now browse the web while in-game on Steam. Full notes after the jump, and remember: don’t fuck with the witch.

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Left 4 Dead is the kind of game that helps you figure out who your friends really are. Do they run off to pick up that pipe bomb while you get bamboozled by zombies? Do they stray from the group in search of personal glory? Do they accuse you of kill stealing after you just saved their ass? Left 4 Dead helps you sort these things out while also managing to put the “survival” back in “first-person shooter with zombies and a cooperative attempt at survival”. Read more…

Left 4 Dead 411 reports that Valve’s much anticipated Left 4 Dead has gone gold, meaning that the game is finally ready to be shipped. Steam users will find that if they have pre-ordered the game, they can pre-load the game ready for it to be played the second it is released on the 18th of November. The game releases in stores on the same day.
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Warning: The Watercooler is the best thing you will see on the Internet today, mainly because it is the best thing I saw on the Internet yesterday. Be advised that The Watercooler is not necessarily videogame related (it usually won’t be), and is often silly, controversial, and/or not safe for work (NSFW). If this type of content frequently offends you, please be aware that I just warned you — if you still click through and get offended, it will be your own stupid fault. Otherwise, please continue…

Today’s Watercooler features a news report detailing the aftermath of the 2008 presidential election. The biggest problem? Obama zombies. You may have friends that are suffering just like this, and if so, you clearly need to get them help before something terrible happens to them. Read more…

Steam owners can now download the public demo of Left 4 Dead, Valve’s upcoming zombie shooter. Xbox 360 owners can also get their zombie freak on via XBLA, as the demo has been released there as well. This of course comes a week after the release of the pre-order demo, available to those who had pre-ordered the game. As you can see, I feel that this demo is much better than most full games out there, so I strongly urge all zombie fans (and everyone else) to download the demo and try it out. Look forward to the Ripten review of the game in the near future!

Although I was only able to play the XBox 360 version of Left 4 Dead at the Eurogamer Expo, I have been playing the pre-release demo for the PC in the comfort of my own home, to my delight. The perspective I’ll be giving on the game is from a PC standpoint; to me, playing a Valve game on a console is like eating Ben and Jerry’s with a rusty nail- it still tastes nice, but the sheer pain (of using a controller) ruins the experience. Before you begin to shout at me, make sure you read the preview after the jump. Here’s a spoiler: it’s unbelievably good.

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After rumours earlier in the year that stated that Canadian developer Blue Castle (famous for…well, baseball games), not Capcom itself, will be hard at work on Dead Rising 2 in the future, Eurogamer, speaking to a “source familiar with the project”, has now confirmed that the studio will be handling the game. According to the source, “Everyone’s really excited; the team has obviously seen the rumours and it’s been hard to keep quiet, but they can’t wait to show off the game.” No details are given pertaining to the title itself, unfortunately.

I’m hoping that Blue Castle can take the weight of Dead Rising on its shoulders: the original was an excellent game, and I hope the new developers can capture the magic of that game in the sequel. I’m also hoping that, as long as the game is good, it is released for the PS3 as well as the 360. I loved the original game, but I don’t have a 360, so I never got to own it. What are your thoughts? Can this development team handle the pressure and make another great Dead Rising game, or do you think it will never live up to its predecessor’s standards? Let us know in the comments.

For those who have pre-ordered Valve’s much-anticipated zombie shooter Left 4 Dead, the demo was released earlier today, for both PC and 360. Don’t worry if you haven’t pre-ordered; the demo releases for everyone on the 11th November, and the full game on the 18th.

I’ve been playing it as much as I can since it was released, but it seems to be going through some teething troubles right now, at least on the PC version. It seems the server files weren’t provided far enough in advance and they can’t keep up with the huge demand- it’s very difficult to find a game online at the moment, and when I have managed to, it has been plagued by lag. Valve are reported to be fixing the issue as fast as possible. Despite this, the single player portion of the demo is still fantastic, and the fact that it will never play out the same way twice means that the demo should easily last until the full game releases on the 18th.

[Update] Left4Dead411 reports that you can now use a server browser by typing “openserverbrowser” into the dev console. This solves the issues with finding dedicated servers.

It might come as a surprise that Resident Evil 5 was playable at the Eurogamer Expo, as it certainly was for me when I saw it. There were only 3 screens playing it, one 360 and two PS3 (I played the PS3 version)- not much when you consider how anticipated the game is. Since the game is expected to be released in March of 2009, it was certainly a pleasant surprise to be able to play the game months before the release date. Hit the jump for my thoughts.
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Left 4 Dead surprises me everyday with the amount of sheer awesome that’s being generated by the game’s hype machine. If you kill every zombie in the infected town of Willamete, you get an achievement. Doesn’t sound so bad, right? I mean, when the zombie apocalypse comes around that’s kind of the plan. You know, to kill everyone. Want to know more? Of course you do. Read more…

With a reported 10 million dollar advertising budget (half of which is said to be for television spots) Valve is doing everything they can to make sure you and your friends are ready to kick some zombie ass.

The game hits store shelves in the US on November 18th, but a boat load of money says you’ll be seeing severed digits everywhere you look long before then. In fact, Kotaku reports that the commercial above will begin airing on November 8th.

Succès Full has the full list of achievements for Valve’s upcoming zombie shooter Left 4 Dead. As per Valve fashion, some are straightforward, some are devilish, and some are hilarious. Here are some of my favourites:

101 Cremations
Set 101 Infected on fire.

Zombie Genocidest
Kill 53,595 Infected.

(A 1-up on Dead Rising- there, you had to kill 53,594 zombies.)

What Are You Trying to Prove?
Survive all campaigns on Expert.

Hit the jump for the full list.

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Valve’s Gabe Newell today confirmed several details pertaining the demo of the much anticipated Left 4 Dead to EDGE-Online. The level featured in the demo supports up to four players, and it to be a section of the “No Mercy” campaign.

Newell also stated that the estimated release date for both the PC and XBox 360 demos is “early November”; looks like we’ll be able to start shooting zombies before the game even releases. We know we’ll be trying out the demo as soon as we can, but how do you feel? Will you be downloading the demo the day it’s released, or will you wait for the full game?

Are you even looking forward to the game? Let us know in the comments.

A stunning new batch of RE5 screens confirm what we’ve known for a few months now: that Resident Evil 5 is shaping up to be a much nicer-looking version of Resident Evil 4. A few of these screens also show off the co-op dynamics, with Sheva seeking help and assistance after grappling with some vicious zombies.

These new screens show off the look of the game, but we’re still waiting for confirmation of RE5’s gameplay variations. The on-rails vehicle scenes in RE4 were among my favorites, so hopefully we won’t have to wait long for a glimpse of the other action setpieces in RE5. A gallery of all the new screens can be found on the next page. Read more…

San Francisco is apparently a hotspot for zombie activity. With several zombie attacks in recent memory, a group of daring individuals devised a plan to funnel all of the undead Rice-A-Roni’s into a secure location. This Saturday, August 16th, radio-attraktor towers will be powered on that will telepathically guide the zombies to an “undisclosed location” where they will be dealt with.

One warning, though: The radio-attraktors will cause the zombies to crave duct tape instead of human flesh, so don’t traipse about San Francisco with any duct tape on you unless you desire to be living impaired.

(May be somewhat unsafe for work) Read more…

The good news about Resident Evil 5 is the same as the bad news: It plays very, very similarly to Resident Evil 4. The stage we played at E3 was just like the Ganado Village at the start of RE4, only with a greater variety of zombies, ultra-sharp environments and lighting, and a few gameplay tweaks like instantaneous weapon changes. Read more…

Andrew and I tackled the first level of Valve’s co-op survival horror shooter, Left 4 Dead, on PC. In case you don’t already know how cool this game is, let me first just say that (if you didn’t catch it on our final E3 podcast) it was definitely the best thing I got my hands on at the show.

Zombies! From whence do they hail? We don’t really care. Honestly, do you really have time to care when there are like five of them mauling your face as you fire off desperation shots from your incapacitated position on the floor? Andrew didn’t, I can tell you that. Read more…