Left 4 Dead: The Sacrifice, Part III

[simiansyndicate]

So, Drexer posted the first part of this lovely free interwebs comic based on the adorable tale of four precocious scamps skipping merrily through the zombie apocalypse (hereafter referred to as the zombipocalypse). We're now three weeks in, and HOOT MON, is it a doozy!





So at this point, people were separated and now they're back together like one zombie-slayin' family. Each character has had a moment of backstory in each part, and now it is Francis' turn. It begins when Zoey asks how he can crack jokes when the world is falling apart. Turns out, the zombipocalypse was the best thing to happen to Francis.

Duke: "Who's crazy now?"







To the surprise of no one, Francis is a little off-kilter. It adds to his charm.

Once they've come up with a plan, the survivors have a Jerry Bruckheimer slow-walk moment!



Yeah...BADASS!

But not as badass as this.

No, really, you aren't prepared for how awesome this is. Could I be geeking out a bit? Maybe. But it is totally justified.

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...here goes.




Just so we're clear, Bill, someone who's nearly a septuagenarian, Batman-style one-punches a military officer holding Louis at gunpoint. Coldcocks the bastard right there and then. I half expected Francis to "Bwa-ha-hah" at this point, if it weren't for, y'know, the Tank.














For those who don't want spoilers regarding the ending and want to read it on your own, then I direct you to the website for part three.

For the curious...



The gang reaches the previously mentioned train. Bill seems to know how one works no problem, and starts it up, taking off down the track. Unfortunately, as awesome a hero Bill was earlier, he does something decidedly less heroic at the end...








So, yeah. Bill clearly has some issues, as you can see by the pain in his expression on that last page. The Sacrifice wraps up next week, and we'll get to delve deeper with his character, something that I've been waiting for for a long time. How do you all feel about what he did here?



I have to say, this is a brilliant bit of marketing that Valve has come up with here. Not only do I want to play the L4D games again, I actually care even more about these characters than ever before. If anyone plays on Steam or XBLive, PM me and we'll trade info.

(Dibs on Bill and Nick. Just saying.)

Comments

[neev]

I love this comic simply because it lets Zoey be a goddamn badass without any mitigating factors or needing to be rescued. It's so refreshing. Also, her backstory, I bawwwwwwwed.

All in all, really enjoying the writing. The art is...um...it's a thing. But I find that it doesn't bother me so much since 1) the comic is free and 2) the writing really is good. I love the banter between all the characters.

As for what Bill just did...well...I'm waiting for the next part before I make any judgments. I'm thinking this is gonna tie into HIS backstory... I mean, it's still a dick move but I get the feeling he has his reasons and it's also the zombie apocalypse and those dudes were probably gonna die anyway.

[simiansyndicate]

I'm kinda thinking that maybe Bill did it because, as carriers, that means those other guys were pretty much doomed anyhow. But your theory is probably much more likely.

[neev]

Well, I think the fact that those guys weren't carriers definitely plays into it. They had a MUCH smaller chance of surviving and their inexperience and vulnerability to the disease really only makes them a liability that would decrease the chances of Our Heroes being able to make it out alive.

[falseaesop]

the early days of L4D, right after release were the best times, when we were still figuring out the tactics and rhythms of the game, before people got snobbish, when there was a real sense of "we're fucked".

The paniced cries of "TAAAAAAAAAAAAANK!" or "I GOT LICKED!" "HEEEEEELP" coming from your headset rather than the game.

Of course now the community at large has established tactics, can even predict the director. I liked 2, I did, but it never had the same gripping panic as those first weeks on 1 when no one knew what they were doing, just staying together hoping to fgure out a way to survive to extration.

[simiansyndicate]

Question: is it snobbish, when playing on XBL, to pass on a potential player if they don't have a mic? Because really, the L4Ds pretty much require player support to advance. Every game I've played, 360 or PC, has ended in total failure when I was the only guy with a microphone.

And is it sad that after all this time I'm still panicky and nervous when I play?

[falseaesop]

Nah, mics are pretty essential. Its a general attitude, if I ask what's the plan I expect you to tell me what stratagy you're using, I don't want to be called a newb cause 'you don't know what to do'.'

First level of No Mercy "We going in the building or bypassing?" immediatly after you leave the ally there's a door to the right you can go through or around. I would like an answer rather than suddenly have a vote to kick me pop up.

Experienced a lot of crap like that.

Got to the point where I stopped playing with pugs and only got online when my brother called me and he and his friends needed a 4th.

[meatwhichdreams]

Goddamn, this is actually really, really good for a video-game tie-in. Hell, it's not bad just taken alone. Enjoyable, brisk pace, solid, fairly clever writing, some interesting twists...and great character development. I like how the creators take advantage of fan's familiarity with the audio side of the game without being too obvious about it. What a pleasant surprise.