Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Hello. The topic for today is:
Left 4 Dead was launched in November 2008, and since then, it has become a really popular game. I got it on launch day, and I got bored with it a few weeks later. So I was kinda surprised to find out that not only is the game one of the most played games in Singapore, it's popularity is also rising here.
Left 4 Dead was created by Valve, who are the ones behind the Half Life and Team Fortress games. It is a survival-horror first person shooter game that can be played by up to four people. You can play as one of four survivors, and you have to survive hordes of zombies.
Each level is broken up into five different parts, and you need to get to a safe room at the end of the level in order to complete that portion of the level. At the final part of every level, you will have to survive several hordes of zombies, including several boss zombies, until rescue arrives.
There are only a small variety of weapons in the game. There's the pistol, shotgun, SMG and hunting rifle, as well as improved versions of each one. There are also several healing items that can be used to help you survive longer.
As for the enemies, you will mostly be facing normal zombies, and there are a few boss zombies. The normal zombies aren't the usual sluggish and dumb zombies you usually see in movies. These guys can run, and they can climb over obstacles that are between them and you.
There are 5 different varieties of boss zombies.
There's the Boomer, and extremely fat zombie that spews zombie attracting bile all over you.
There's the Smoker, whose long tongue can be used to disable you and drag you away.
There's the Hunter, who can leap onto you, causing you to get pinned onto the ground as it ferociously attacks you.
There's the Tank, which is this huge, muscular zombie that runs around like a huge gorilla. It can throw chunks of concrete at you, and it can knock you back if it charges into you.
Finally, there is the Witch, which will not attack unless you startle it by shining your flashlight into its eyes. The Witch can disable you with one attack.
So what is it that makes this game so popular here? I have been wondering the same thing for a while now, and I managed to think up several reasons.
Firstly, the game is easy. Ok, it does have challenge on the higher difficulties, but the first two difficulties are pushovers. Anyone can play the game on these difficulties, male or female, young or old, gamer or not.
Next, it's a fast paced shooter that is really fun to play with three other friends. Left 4 Dead can be considered a twitch shooter, which are shooting games that require very fast reactions. Alright, it's not as fast paced as Unreal Tournament, but it is still faster than most shooters.
Thirdly, there is no competition when playing with friends. Games like Halo and Call of Duty are also very popular worldwide, but Left 4 Dead happens to be more popular locally. That is because Singaporeans aren't big gamers, and Halo and Call of Duty will be possible to play online for people who have not played them before.
Sure, Halo 3 has a decent 4 player option, but we have to remember that Left 4 Dead is available on PC and Xbox 360, whereas Halo 3 is only available on Xbox 360. Everyone has a PC, but not everyone has a Xbox. Also, since not everyone has their own Xbox 360, you will have to play online games with people you don't know, rather than playing with your friends.
Fourthly, Left 4 Dead, while considered a horror survival game, isn't scary at all. If you really are the kind that will get shocked easily, then perhaps you may get an occasional shock, but Left 4 Dead is nothing compared to games like Dead Space and F.E.A.R. In fact, the horror factor in Left 4 Dead cannot even be compared to a game like Bioshock.
Finally, Left 4 Dead is available in LAN shops, while most other games aren't. Teenage guys and girls go to a LAN shop, they see Left 4 Dead, they play it, and find it fun. Then they get back home and get the game, then they start playing it online. Yeah, that's how it works. How do you think DotA became this popular?
I'm sure there are many other reasons why people play the game, but those I mentioned above are the ones that I thought up. The Left 4 Dead crazy is still increasing, and I don't see the game losing it's popularity any time soon.
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I didn't do much in the morning. Used my computer and slacked around. In the afternoon, I went to my grandmother's house for a while to have my dinner.
At night I watched V for Vendetta. Great movie. Wonder why I never watched it before. I didn't stay over since I wasn't allowed to, and also since it would feel weird being the only guy there. Now I'm going to play DotA.
Ok, I'm done for today. Thanks for reading. [KOAS KW!!] Ending off, see you tomorrow.
posted @ 11:12 PM
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