Back 4 Blood - Is it a L4D Refresh? (2021)

Channel:

VideoGameLoop

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Published on December 30, 2020 10:59:07 PM ● Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y0EnFXY4Rh0

Game:

Back 4 Blood (2021)

Category:

Review

Duration: 3:57

12 views

1

Back 4 Blood is an upcoming multiplayer survival horror game, which is set to release on June 21st, 2021. It's developed by Turtle Rock Studios. The same company that made the original Left 4 Dead (and L4D2), that many horror genre loving gamers have played or heard of. They also worked with Valve on another small series called Counter-strike.

The game takes place after an outbreak where most of humanity is infected and turned into something called the "Ridden," (Zombies) leaving players in a post apocalyptic world controlling a group of veterans called the "Cleaners." (Humans) To be quite frank, the lore of the setting seems to be very weak. While they, Turtle Rock Studios, are trying to make it appear mystifying, Turtle Rock needs to hire a writer or two that actually cares about the setting. That or allow more creative freedom with the current writers on hand. Assuming there are actually writers and not just game developers acting in the role.

The gameplay of Back 4 Blood is very similar to Left 4 Dead, in fact most would call them identical twins. Only this twin is very dark and twisted, and not in a good 'scary' way. I'll get to what I mean in a few moments.

Both of the titles are a 4 player co-op, that include a 8 player PvP mode. They both are focused on replayability, using various means to entice the user in playing the game over and over.

The game introduces a new feature compared to their older title, simply named cards. At the start of each level or map, players need to build their deck with cards that modify gameplay elements. Such as modifying the player's health, damage and stamina. While this does seem like a good idea, I'll soon talk about why it's not. Especially with who is publishing the game, and just how desperate the studio is with their cash flow. There does appear to be a silver lining, as the developers have included a classic mode. A more traditional experience that removes all the cards, but it may be locked to new players only and may be taken away from players over time.

The game also has an AI director which will use 'Corruption' cards against the player in order to make the game more challenging. The AI can spawn more or stronger enemies, and affect environmental effects such as having a stronger fog.

Now let's talk about the elephant in the room. The $60 price tag for this game is quite ridiculous. Not only that, the game also includes paid DLC (slash) microtransactions. I can't fathom what the publisher (Warner Bros) or the developer (Turtle Rock Studios) was thinking when they came up with that brain child.

The developers keep bringing up multiple times how they plan on evolving the genre, but they have yet to give practical examples on doing so. A card system was the thing they brought up, and it appears lackluster. If you go watch their 'our vision' video you'll even see the desperation to not call their game Left 4 Dead 3. Perhaps I'm imagining things but I feel like one of their 'co-founders' is angry at Valve, and the studio has thought it was a good idea to put that emotion in their video even if imaginative.

The game is going to be fun to play, for sure, but only for a bit of time before it tanks. The very nature of having a competitive game mode in a 'fun' co-op with a dynamic system that modifies your gameplay, is…. a confusing mess that dilutes the direction of the game. How can you make the game very competitive, and also feel like a badass when killing zombies. Keep in mind that the game's creative director stated that the characters, the "cleaners" are more confident and capable compared to the characters from Left 4 Dead.

I haven't even discussed the 1-to-1 similarities of the zombies, and just how linear all the maps are. The game… is… going to be a disappointment for Left 4 Dead fans. Unless there's some feature that they plan to cram into the game that will be unique and change their game dramatically, I see the game being a flop in the long run.

Perhaps the number 3 is a curse… I'll be sure to keep you all up to date with any new details about the game.

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