Back 4 Blood (PC) Preview

Anyone familiar with Left 4 Dead will know the kind of style and premise on offer here. Basically, this first-person shooter pits four players working together against a whole hoard of zombies whilst working through a narrative experience.

In Back 4 Blood, the zombies (known in the game's lore as the Ridden) have taken over and have left humanity on the brink of extinction. How these creatures came about is as of yet unknown, but they are far from simply humanoid creations. Like Left 4 Dead, Back 4 Blood has a vast array of different types of Ridden - from those fast movers who will jump around, to great hulking monstrosities who really pack a punch and take a lot of damage. There is even a super large setpiece boss-type Ridden, where suddenly it is a case of running and using guerilla tactics to overcome them.

It's lucky then that there are eight human characters (known as Cleaners) hell-bent on stopping them in their tracks, alongside a whole arsenal of powerful weapons and upgrades. From the usual assault rifles, to Molotov's, sniper rifles and even the trusty bat - there is plenty here to indulge in some monster killing.

The first test on offer was just one of the multi-stage campaigns that can be played through both in online co-op and also as a solo player. This campaign - Evansburgh - took place across four maps, as the Cleaners fought through this abandoned industrial warehouse area to reach safety. It was brilliant how each stage further ramps up the difficulty and sense of tension, culminating in a fantastic and cinematic final section onboard a ship, as two players in the team race to plant explosives, while another two provide cover. The sense of scale and drama is definitely off the charts.

Weapon handling and gunplay in Back 4 Blood feels very intuitive and those making the step from previous titles like this will definitely appreciate that this is a 2021 title in terms of how satisfying the gunplay feels. Equally, melee weapons are super fun to use in the game and pack a real punch. Batting zombies to death is never going to feel anything other than fun - if not a tad overpowered in the game. While this might all sound very familiar to those who played Left 4 Dead back in the day, Back 4 Blood throws a few very interesting mechanics in the mix that definitely feel inspired from modern gaming trends.

Firstly, the weapon attachments and upgrade system was on show in this test event. Money picked up while looting houses can be spent to upgrade weapons or buy med kits etc. While there is still a lot to improve upon, it is a solid start in terms of this mechanic, although hopefully they add to it further.

Secondly, there is a 'game director' system in operation here. What this means is that in theory each run at the campaigns should feel somewhat unique. Of course, the actual mission structure is largely going to remain the same as per the narrative. However, the 'game director' system will alter the number of zombies, their difficulty and generally react to how the players are doing.
The more interesting addition to gameplay comes in the card system that has been implemented. This system - taken from the ever popular 'rogue-lite' genre - gives the player buffs that enhance their stats and players can also put together their own custom decks of cards that fits with their playstyle.

Where this system gets really interesting is that the 'game director' will draw cards before each stage, with these 'Corruption Cards' applying random effects - everything from weather types to more powerful sets of Ridden. The team of Cleaners then have the chance to draw their own cards to combat this. It's an intriguing system and it will be fascinating to see it develop and be built upon as a way of creating really unique runs.