Better hit up your friends on XBL to handle all this.

Ok, so maybe I should have titled this article “not surviving the new survival mode” of Left 4 Dead’s new downloadable content pack released yesterday. Myself (Crutchboy), Gritskrieg and Nerdiest-Kids.com‘s ViggoTheCarp had a chance to experience some of the new free, yeah we emphasize FREE package available on Xbox Live for this game. And considering that Left 4 Dead has been noted as being a little short on content from the get go, it is a welcomed addition to your zombie gaming pleasure.

The first word that comes to mind to us at BusyGamer.com concerning this new survival mode would definitely be “unforgiving”. The object is clearly simple, stay alive. No escaping, no rooms to run to, and very few health power ups (and most which are just not worth running back for). The wave of enemies will eventually over run you and your partners. You are scored on how long you are able to fend them off in a variety of available maps, including a new “Lighthouse” area. I believe our first attempt got us to about 70 seconds before we were hosed. You are granted a medal for each map, on how long you can hold out (4 min bronze, 7 min silver and 10 min gold) before your last non AI player dies. After a good deal of strategizing (thanks to the nice directing of Viggo) we were able to grab a few bronze medals, but not without a large amount of grumbling and yapping in a frenzy over Xbox Live. You have to be able to communicate with your partners to pull any of this off with success. And you can forget about the AI helping out too much, with just two real players we had a tough enough time lasting longer than 3 minutes, some levels ending with us yelling things at each other like “Dude just run! Keep running!” (haha).

We did like that fact that you get as much time at the start of each the levels to prepare. With a nice assortment of moltovs, gas and butane canisters around that you can move about, it makes it very entertaining to try and anticipate what would ‘concievably’ be a good idea. Some of us later found out that certain rooms are just too small to spread fire in, as we laughed and burned to our doom, all so gracefully of course.

As was noted amongst our group, Viggo pointed out that it was the sheer number of normal infected (zombies) that deal you the most damage over your entire run in this mode. With an above average amount of skill, the tank, smokers and hunters can be manageable utilizing all the resources available and the ability to find a decent place to “turtle and hole up”.

Over all we highly recommend, you’d have to be really thick in the skull (where even zombies can’t smell you), to not get this new add on for your Left 4 Dead game. It’s free. And free is good.

- Crutchboy Out

Check out our ‘BusyGamer’ review for Left 4 Dead by Gamette Miss Genocide.

Publishers are saying that both PC and Xbox 360 owners of Left 4 Dead will receive the upcoming DLC for free when it goes online this coming spring. The ‘Left 4 Dead Survival Pack’ will add some new flavor (human most likely) to the multiplayer mode as well as two new campaigns in versus mode.

Reports are saying that survival mode features up to four players against wave after wave of onrushing zombies across a dozen or more maps (sounds like they are taking notes from Gears of Wars 2 and COD WAW since this type of scenario is seen in both of these titles.) Times are then logged, as all players compete online against others on the leaderboards to see who can stay alive the longest.

The update will provide new campaigns (we think in the versus mode) for the Death Toll and Dead Air scenarios.

Sounds like this will add some great longevity to this title, and it’s free which sweetens the prize even better, zombie brains are bitter enough as it is.

[Source]

-Crutchboy out.