Left 4 Dead 2 talk - Fans ready for a Boycott, you too?

Valve and Left 4 Dead fans are preparing to boycott (lol) the sequel to everyone's favorite zombie-filled game.  I wanted to sit and stew on this piece for a few days because my initial reaction to the game was utter shock over the rapid turn around on a sequel and because it looked quite nice. 

If you haven't followed the boycott news I will catch you up real quick.  This forum thread started it off over at the Steam forums.  This thread's list of complaints and the supporters moved on to creating a Steam Community Group here.  L4D2 Boycott (NO-L4D2) is the group name and the users have doubled just in the past day from 3k to 6k. 

Here is the group's list of complaints:

• Significant content for L4D1 was promised, and never delivered  (True - my biggest gripe)
• Valve put little faith in L4D1 since they almost certainly started working on L4D2 right after release (Subjective - arguably they had plenty of faith as they decided it was worthy of an immediate sequel)
• The fact that L4D2 is nearly identical to L4D1 will decimate the community for both games (A minor gripe, more on this later)
• The announced date is not nearly enough time to polish content or make significant gameplay changes (Ridiculous - considering their size, and lack of other games they have of people to work on this)
• The new character designs seem bland and unappealing so far (Subjective - I like them just fine, don't be afraid of change, plus they have top notch voice acting this time)
• L4D2 is too colourful to fit in with L4D1's visual aesthetic (Subjective - looks just fine to me)
• The fiddle-based horde music is extremely disliked, though the differently orchestrated music is otherwise welcome (Again, I have zero issues with this, why is everyone so afraid of change?)
• L4D2's release will result in a drop in quality and frequency for L4D1 content, even compared to before (This is a repeat of point one)
• The community has lost faith in Valve's former reputation for commitment to their games post-release (False, just you 6,000 or so)

The biggest issue in this whole Left 4 Dead 2 fiasco seems to be the promise of support much like Team Fortress 2.  In interviews before the game's release Valve promised TF2-like updates of content, which is far above and beyond pretty much what any one in the game industry provides. 

Because of this promise people seem to think they are getting ripped off.  If you feel you were "ripped off" by this game then you probably feel that way regardless of any updates.  I doubt a couple updates over the next year were going to have people proclaiming "what an amazing deal".  If the recent update and your play time so far hasn't "paid off" then I doubt it ever would have.  I've more than got my money's worth out of the game and it was totally worth the 40 some dollars I spent. 

They have admitted that besides for new matching options and user created campaigns that they may not have much time to provide further updates.  So what?  I didn't buy Left 4 Dead for the promise of future content, it was worth it from the get go.  With reviews now days you know exactly what you are getting.  Additional content was merely a bonus.

Their new plan is to make Left 4 Dead 2 "the platform".  I have zero issue with this.  Am I a bit disappointed that there aren't going to two years worth of updates like TF2?  Sure, but I don't feel ripped off.  The game is a blast, I've many moments with friends and pubbers alike that rival some of the best of times in Counter-Strike or Team Fortress 2. 

My only other concern is bullet point three.  Valve split the communities between Counter-Strike 1.6 and Source and to this day it has caused tension between player bases.  I don't want to see something like this happen on the pub community front or the competitive aspect.  This can easily be remedied.  They have to find a way to make the sequel backwards compatible so those playing the new one can still play users from the old game.  This is a must.  If that means the maps, player models and Director 1.0 are ported over than so be it. 

I do hope they take heed and focus on not splitting the communities.  If the player base suddenly halves or worse when Left 4 Dead 2 launches then that is really unfair to current players.  Thus they need to find a way to merge the two communities.

As far as the game overall it looks and plays great from my sources at the show.  The incendiary ammo rules, the melee weapons are a blast though I hope they switch them from "gas tank-like" functionality to taking up a weapon slot like the knife in Counter-Strike.  The dynamic changes in map layouts and weather offer some added awesomeness.  New specials like the Charger (shown early here) really add to the game.  If the changes don't appeal to you they boycott the sequel.  No sweat off of my back. 

There are talks that part of Valve's rush for a sequel was that Turtle Rock originally developed the game and Valve wanted to put their own spin on it and a more cohesive narrative.  You can look at it two ways, they were disappointed in the final product and they wanted a even better sequel out as soon as possible.  If you weren't disappointed with the game then you can't fault them.  If you were, you shouldn't be playing it now or complaining over a sequel anyhow.  I see it as a positive that see this much potential in the franchise to improve it and build on it and rush out a sequel faster than they ever have. 

This is going to be a full priced sequel.  They have confirmed this in recent interviews.  This very well may piss some of you off but it doesn't really bother me.  I can hope that Valve offers some kind of deal for PC users, a pre-order sale or a price cut for buyers of the existing game.  The reality is 360 users are going to get screwed if they are expecting a deal.  They are going to pay $60 no matter what, welcome to the wonderful world of consoles.  I'll spend the $40-50 on this because there was plenty of value and fun in the previous game.

If Valve delivers TF2 style updates with the sequel than so be it.  If they don't, who cares?  It is going to be a great game either way if you want to skip out on it that is well within your right.  Don't buy games in the hopes of future fixes and updates, buy them because they are great right out of the box.

You can sign me up the moment it is available for pre-order.  Valve has never made a bad game that I have played and I don't expect it this time around.  If you want to boycott it and complain, try playing other studios titles and realize some of the crap they offer up as full and complete games and then wait two to three years for a sequel to fix all the flaws...