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Valve addresses Left 4 Dead 2 server lag on Xbox 360

by Griffin McElroy { Nov 26th 2009 at 11:00AM }

What's the only thing worse than having two dead team members, an approaching wave of special infected, and a fresh sheen of Boomer puke on your person? Having to suffer all those things while also -- fighting -- server la -- tency issues. Fortunately, that experience has become less common, as Valve recently did a bit dusting around their network infrastructure, reducing lag during bouts of Left 4 Dead 2 on Xbox 360.

Of course, even without the lag, you're still going to die. But at least now you'll be able to see where it's coming from. (Hint: It's probably from those three oncoming tanks.)

Undead Labs' Jeff Strain is totally into zombies

by Justin McElroy { Nov 25th 2009 at 9:30AM }

We've already told you about Blizzard/NCsoft vet Jeff Strain's startup, Undead Labs, which is creating a zombie-centric, console-based MMO (sorry, marketing dept., we're not going to call it an MMOZ), but we haven't told you much about the game itself. Though this Eurogamer interview still provides next to no perspective on that topic, it does offer a considerable amount of insight into how much Strain thinks about zombies.

Take this gem for instance: "People are passionate about zombies ... the reason I'm talking about it is because I want zombie fans. I want the best developers in the industry that love zombies to want to work here."

Or perhaps this: "The reason zombies are so powerful and transcend fantasy is because right now they are the modern, societal guilt-free meat-puppet. We've been through the Nazi phase, we've been through the communist phase, we've been through the terrorist phase. Those were all at various times in history fair game in the gaming culture. Right now zombies are fulfilling that need for us. That no-rules, no-guilt mentality is something that people really resonate with."

So, what Strain is saying is that we used to be really angry at terrorists, but now, instead of that, we hate zombies. Will history remember how close Strain just came to inventing the zombie terrorist, the video game enemy that will someday unite the world, Wyld Stallyns-style? We suspect it will not.

Borderlands' Zombie Island DLC trailer has us in stitches

by Griffin McElroy { Nov 24th 2009 at 2:45PM }

Are you enjoying the zombie-massacring action presented in Left 4 Dead 2, but wish the game had more ... panache? The upcoming DLC pack for Borderlands, titled The Zombie Island of Doctor Ned, might just offer the stylish undead action you crave. Check out the trailer after the break to see what we mean. Spoiler alert: In the video, zombie faces get punched into gooey paste, Were-Skags get euthanized, and birds get flipped. It's probably not suitable for the faint of heart.

The walking corpse-infested landmass is downloadable today on 360 and PS3 for 800

/$9.99.

Undead Labs creating zombie MMO for consoles

by Justin McElroy { Nov 23rd 2009 at 7:30PM }

Poor zombies. By hungering for nothing so much as our brain matter, they've turned themselves into the most widely-slaughtered video game villains after Nazis and spiders. Now a start-up developer called Undead Labs is taking the zombie genre to the next logical step with a currently untitled zombie-based MMO made specifically for consoles.

In the announcement, company boss Jeff Strain said "Every time I see a good zombie movie with friends, we spend days debating our strategies for surviving the zombie apocalypse. The police station, or the supermarket? Garden rake, or staple gun? Bach, or the White Stripes? I'm a game developer, so I'd probably be useless for anything other than ghoul bait, but I'm excited to have the opportunity to build an MMOZ that lets us put those strategies to the test and find out for sure."

Strain, who helped found ArenaNet and was the executive producer for NCsoft's Guild Wars, certainly has the right pedigree for a project like this. But it's hard to say if this will be the ultimate zombie experience, or the title that finally (re)buries zombies for good. Here's hoping it's the former.

Left 4 Dead 2 gets patched on PC

by Griffin McElroy { Nov 22nd 2009 at 6:30PM }

A few minor glitches which Left 4 Dead 2 players on Steam were experiencing have been squashed by a recent patch. The update includes fixes for an error which impeded matchmaking for players looking for higher difficulty games, for a bug which allowed special infected to team up on players who are being pummeled by a Charger, and for performance problems which cropped up when the game rendered too many decals, "notably when fighting Tanks with shotguns."

Well, thank goodness for that. If there's a better way to kill a Tank than with a few well-placed shotgun blasts, we've yet to find it. Check out the full list of changes after the jump!

Continued →

Achtung! Call of Duty: World at War: Zombies infests iPhone

by Christopher Grant { Nov 16th 2009 at 11:00AM }

No doubt strategically timed between last week's Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 launch and this week's Left 4 Dead 2 launch, Activision just announced Call of Duty: World at War: Zombies, a $9.99 iPhone game based on the zombie-themed multiplayer antics of the series' console counterpart. Since the only thing the publishers sent us by way of details was an 8GB iPod Touch and iTunes code for the game (Joyswag, ahoy!) we'll turn to the App Store description.

Call of Duty: World at War: Zombies supports up to four players over Wi-Fi, and two players over a local Bluetooth connection. You can use the iPhone's tilt sensors, or the always enjoyable virtual analog thumbsticks, to control the game. With Apple remaining hands-off in the space, the game supports "Achievements" and a "Leaderboard," but they're presumably isolated from other games. The description also promises that the game will "fully support future Downloadable Content, ensuring that the classic survival experience will live on with new maps." Thanks, in-game purchasing!

What's less clear is who is behind the development of Call of Duty: World at War: Zombies. The iTunes Store lists the game under "Vivendi Games Mobile," the presumably outdated name of Vivendi Games' mobile gaming arm, taken over during the 2007 merger. We've put a line into Activision. [Update: The press release just went out over the wires, and it states that Zombies was "developed by Ideaworks Game Studio" who have brought other high-profile cell phone games to market, including Metal Gear Solid Mobile, Project Gotham Racing, and Dirge of Cerberus Lost Episode Final Fantasy VII.]

Gallery: Call of Duty: World at War: Zombies (iPhone)

Call of Duty: World at War: Zombies –

Left 4 Dead 2 pre-loading now available through Steam

by Griffin McElroy { Nov 7th 2009 at 8:30PM }

It was bad enough when Valve enabled pre-loading of the Left 4 Dead 2 demo, forcing potential zombicidal maniacs to stare at the game they have and yet don't for an entire madness-inspiring weekend. Now, the developer has begun allowing pre-loading of the full version of Left 4 Dead 2 through Steam. If you've pre-purchased the game through Valve's digital distribution platform (which still nets you a 10 percent discount off the price of the title), you can now put it on your computer, and just ... let it sit there until it finally unlocks on November 17.

In the immortal words of Tom Petty, the waiting truly is the hardest part. Except for the zombie apocalypse. We suppose that part is pretty difficult as well.

[Via Big Download]

Left 4 Dead 2: now with 4 times as many pre-orders

by Ludwig Kietzmann { Nov 5th 2009 at 9:30PM }

As if blissfully dancing on the grave of its opposing and recently deceased boycott, Valve's shambler-shooting sequel, Left 4 Dead 2, seems destined to surpass its predecessor. Speaking to CVG, Chet Faliszek revealed that pre-orders for the game had quadrupled those enjoyed by the original game. "As we get closer to launch we see the reaction to the demo, pre-orders are four times what Left 4 Dead 1 was, people's excitement, the boycott itself and how it's changed..." he said. "I think people are just excited now."

Having tested what the power of the people can accomplish (most of all when wielding skull-smashing implements) Valve can finally let that excitement wash over them, content that fans have latched on to what's in the game -- and not what's missing. "Honestly I made the joke and it's true: If you put $20 in a box and charge $10 for it someone would complain you didn't put $50 in a box," added Faliszek. "Not to say some of the concerns raised aren't valid, but you're always going to have some kind of upset and that's not how we work. We work at looking at the project and trying to get it out."

Valve gets Left 4 Dead 2 out on November 17th.

Zombified Londoners take to the streets for Resident Evil

by Ben Gilbert { Nov 4th 2009 at 1:00AM }

Resident Evil: Darkside Chronicles may not come out until November 27 in the UK, but a gaggle of Resident Evil fans recently took to the streets to celebrate the impending release regardless. Following the end of the London Games Festival, Capcom organized around 50 undead at the Tate Modern for a good ol' group shamble.

As you can see in the image above captured by The Tanooki, the event erred on the side of Shaun of the Dead rather than 28 Days Later. Though now that we think about it, we're not sure if it's more or less terrifying if zombies are smiling. We're thinking more.

[Image credit]

Stay indoors and visit PlayStation Home for Halloween celebrations

by Andrew Yoon { Oct 28th 2009 at 12:30PM }

Don't want to bother going outside with friends on Halloween? Good! PlayStation Home is hosting two different virtual events, one for Europe and one for America.

On Halloween Day, from 6-8PM GMT, SCEE will be hosting a virtual party in the Burn Zombie Burn space. Participants that purchase and wear appropriately undead attire will receive a special "treat" upon arriving. For more details, visit the EU PlayStation.blog.

SCEA is celebrating one day earlier, on Halloween Eve. At 11:59PM EST, the Central Plaza will feature a zombie rally that will put Hamsters vs Humans to shame (cough). Once again, virtual prizes will be handed out to all that participate -- and isn't that so much better than going outside, only to get tooth decay? For more details on America's festivities, visit the US PlayStation.blog.

Source - Halloween comes to PlayStation Home
Source - Celebrate Halloween PlayStation Home-Style at the Zombie Rally

Left 4 Dead 2 demo pre-loading available, madness to follow soon after

by Griffin McElroy { Oct 24th 2009 at 2:30PM }

Valve recently began offering pre-loading of the Left 4 Dead 2 demo which pre-orderers will be able to play this coming Tuesday, October 27. This sounds like a sweet gift, but in reality, it's a double-edged sword on which you probably be impaled. See, if you'd like, you can download it now -- but you won't be able to play it until Tuesday, giving you three days to fester in your impatience, all the while gazing at the demo which you have and yet you don't. Sounds to us like a recipe for a slow-boiling sort of madness.

However, the alternative is that you don't pre-load the demo, and waste precious time downloading the game on Tuesday -- time which could be spent hitting the walking dead with sports paraphernalia and gas-powered agricultural implements. This fact alone could send you down an inescapable spiral of depression.

So, what's it going to be? Madness, or depression? Sure, neither are extraordinarily pleasant -- but hey, you get to play Left 4 Dead 2 early. We don't want to hear your complaining.

Capcom shambles to the Toronto Zombie Walk

by Richard Mitchell { Oct 22nd 2009 at 4:30AM }

First: Toronto has an annual Zombie Walk? How cool is that? Anyhway, in order to promote Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles, Capcom will have a presence at this year's brain-munching jamboree, which takes place on Saturday, October 24. The company will have a tent at the event, giving people free zombie makeovers. We presume Capcom will do this with makeup and not by doling out actual zombie bites. Capcom has also sponsored a series of rather disturbing ads for the event, one of which you will find after the break. Warning: It's gross.

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Zombie Apocalypse plaguing XBLA and PSN next week

by Griffin McElroy { Sep 19th 2009 at 10:30PM }

Though it may lack the ever-catchy soundtrack of another recently released, undead-centric twin stick shooter, we're still pretty pumped for Nihilistic Software's Zombie Apocalypse. Imagine our rapture when a recent news post on the developer's blog revealed that the title will be landing on XBLA and PSN next Wednesday and Thursday (respectively) for 800

($10). If you lack imagination, we'll clue you in -- our rapture was immeasurable.

Not only does this seem like the perfect training manual for the actual, inevitable zombocalypse, but it's a great refresher course on undead genocide before the year's more substantial zombie-action game comes out.

An amusement park full of zombies, care of Left 4 Dead 2

by Ben Gilbert { Aug 14th 2009 at 6:58PM }

How exclusive is this footage? So exclusive it's not even named yet! At least that's what Valve's Chet Faliszek told Geoff Keigley about Left 4 Dead 2's amusement park campaign on the most recent episode of GTTV. If you skip past the first half of the episode found after the break (which, inconveniently enough isn't available as a standalone video), you'll get a few minutes of new gameplay from the upcoming zombie-murdalizin' sequel.

As you might imagine, there are zombies. There are also amusement park rides. As if clowns weren't terrifying enough! Come on, Valve!

Gallery: Left 4 Dead 2

Continued →

Zombies run amok in Call of Duty: World at War Map Pack 3 trailer

by David Hinkle { Jul 30th 2009 at 2:30PM }

If thrashing guitars, zombies and Call of Duty: World at War are all things you enjoy, we have a treat for you! The above trailer for Map Pack 3, a new set of maps featuring three locales for multiplayer and one zombie-specific map, incorporates all of these things while highlighting the exploits of a group of Russian soldiers fighting off hordes of the undead. If you've enlisted for duty in all of the previous map packs (a very real possibility), then you'll probably be foaming at the mouth for this new bit of DLC while watching. Just, uh, check and see if you have glowing eyes. You may just be a zombie yourself.