Those who have pre-ordered Left 4 Dead will hopefully have noticed that the demo’s actually gone live. We only just managed it, as jetlag is preventing me noticing anything other than the taste of tea and Hobnobs. The demo is one and a half maps of NO MERCY – worth noting that the saferoom where it ends is one that’s been added for the demo – the full version of that level is a lot bigger. You can play single-player or co-op, but there’s no access to the versus mode. And everyone else gets a shot on November 11th.
However, it’s not entirely a smooth launch.
Firstly, there’s the usual bunch of PC launch technical problems – there’s a lot of complaints about bluescreens floating around. In fact, I just had one when I quit out of the demo – and, I stress, this is after I’d updated my drivers, as requested. Also, having some trouble joining servers. Or finding them.
Secondly, there’s a little bit of a furore over its server system. Left4Dead411 reports, quoting a mail from the HLDS mailing list explaining the new system:
Left 4 Dead will use the new matchmaking system we’ve been working on.
The new matchmaking system replaces the traditional server browser. By running a public dedicated server your server will be added to a list of servers available for clients to use when playing. Games are started from a Game Lobby by clients, who are then connected to a dedicated server when they start the game. When they’re done, your server is added back to the list of available servers. Clients will be able to “Quick Match”, “Play Online”, and “Play With Friends” when they want to play a game.
You will still have access to the traditional Message of the Day for your server. For Left 4 Dead, we’ve added a banner ad you can create that will be displayed to clients when they’re playing on your server. There is also a ranking system to show the popularity of your server.
This is the first version of what we’ve been working on, and we’re going to want feedback from all of you once things start turning up tomorrow.
In other words, there’s no traditional browser or explicit way to join a set server, etc. Which has caused 411 to get uppity – though, to their credit, they do add that, “This is about all the information we have at this time, so we warn you that the following is an overreaction caused by lack of knowledge of the situation.”
You will not be able to select a specific server to play on. If your clan pitches in for a dedicated server, it will just be added to the system. You will have no easy/intuitive way to just connect to the server you’re paying for. You could spend $100 a month on a super high-quality server while some other guy runs one out of his basement, and instead of enjoying what you paid for you’d be equal with everybody else.
Anyone got any thoughts on the matter?
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Old news, The_B! That’s like sooo 2 minutes ago! ;)
Uhmm. It’s basically a beta people. If it’s not fixed by release, then go on a crazy bitch fest. I will play the demo, and I will tell Valve what I like and what I don’t like. Bitching won’t change anything.
It seems to me that if you want to play on a LAN, or you want to play on a specific server with your friends, then you have to run a dedicated server and join it using Steam’s built in server browser, rather than through the game. It’s not ideal, but it will work.
I can see why Valve made the decision they did though – it’s not like these are 24 player servers and you’re going to jump in with randoms – they want L4D to be a game you play with buddies – servers don’t need to be powerful for 4 people.
direct connection to a server works via the console and always has, if you set the server variable “only allow lobby connections” to “off”. There’s also a variable that determines whether or not your server asks to be listed in the global server list.
The thing that isn’t here in the demo only is the ability to password a server, which has been confirmed as appearing in the full game. As a workaround, me and my mates are just firewalling all IPs but our own from connecting to one* of our servers.
so, basically, storm, meet teacup :P
*one of many, because the linux server performance has undergone an astonishing transformation: l4d is described as being more cpu-intensive on servers than tf2, yet on linux, due to the improvements, it’s about 3 times faster. Yes, 300%
Thus far I would have to echo Blake’s post above. At this stage, I strongly discourage anyone from pre-ordering. There are quite simply too many issues that need to be fixed.
I have had terrible luck getting into games. The matchmaking is fine, but when it comes time to find a server and get into a game, everything goes to hell.
I’ve been playing all morning so far and have not had a single round where every player who started it manages to finish it. It’s very unreliable.
And still not polished enough. Clipping has been problematic. As has spawning, which is quite arbitrary at times.
Wait to hear the all-clear on these issues before you consider buying this. Single player is fun for a little while, but this game absolutely requires a smooth and reliable online experience.
With expectations this high, the backlash from angry internet men seems predetermined. I just wasn’t expecting it so early. I sympathize with the 3 last posters who show some common sense. Calm down people, it’s not like Lobby systems or random games are stupid console stuff. Have you ever heard of a little genre called rts?
My God. For all the praising of this game, it’s such a shame the demo’s in such a state. I haven’t connected to one solid game yet. Lagging and disconnects abound. I just want one decent match… However, for all the annoyances, I can see how much fun this will be when it’s running properly. Everyone I’ve matched up with so far have been friendly and good with the teamwork malarkey, despite the issues. It’s just not the first experience I wanted from the game.
Ach, back to trying to like Fallout 3 then…
When it works, it amazing, I’m only angry because having been trying for 6 hours, we have only had 3 games that have worked.
I really hate the “angry internet men” meme. I’ll be glad when it goes away forever. Expressing unhappiness with a product is not an example of irrational anger.
“this console crap needs to be removed its fine for the xbots and other console tards, but I was hoping for a proper server browser on which I could join servers with FRIENDS on not random people”
Enough irrational anger for you?
I dunno, he’s meeting Internet standards. We’ve a quota to fill, after all.
Well, okay, Dorsch. He might be angry internet mans.
Well, now that I re-read the comments, there is really less anger than I thought at first. I apologize to everyone I called AIM except for the one I quoted. Sorry for selective reading.
ITS CALLED HAMACHI, L2 PLAY GAMES ON THE INTERNET
Reply to Blake
No but doing it anonymously, to strangers with no connection to the company or product whilst being all indignant and dickish. That aint exactly helping now is it?
It depends; it could help someone make a decision about pre-ordering.
1. Enable dev console
2. ~
3. openserverbrowser
Enjoy your server browser.
Actually it works acceptably with the workaround now.. just bind openserverbrowser to a key via console or cfg. There are enough servers that allow connections without going through the lobby – can take 5 mins to find one with the right ping and not full, but when it works, it works – not like that idiotic matchmaking crap.
Now what I DON’T get is why they didn’t simply add an option for this in the menu, would have axed this complete shitstorm before it had time to reach dozens-of-pages-thread/newspost proportions. Probably their try to let the early demo access players betatest their needlessly developed matchmaking abomination backfired in a big way.
Intense, this game is.
Unfortunately, the workaround is exactly that. It’s a bugfest, and at least in my case as soon as a connection fails for whatever reason, the browser window just locks up and you have to restart the entire game.
Maybe next time you decide to engage in a pointless display of hysteria you’ll all have one of those lovely free browser dictionary plug-ins installed so there’s only one thing to feel ashamed about in the post knee-jerk-off calm.
Being arrogant and patronising certainly helps things.
“I’m FILLED with RAGE WITHOUT DIRECTION.
L4D demo doesn’t live up to the standards I have set in my head?
THAT WILL DO”
Rumours aside; can you really not connect to a server of your choice without using a workaround?
But if the servers are ranked by popularity surely that can’t be right.
Can people who have the demo confirm that?
@Radiant: using the “quick match” or “connect to game in progress” buttons inevitably leads me to a server with high ping and/or disconnects. The workaround is a server browser exactly like the one you’d find in any other Valve game. Since I found that, its been ace hav’nt had a problem with it.
Work around works fine. Just fired it up, found a low ping server and double clicked it. Guess it has to be a game in progress though, not a lobby.
I bet they didn’t really mean: “The new matchmaking system replaces the traditional server browser.”
as in non-matchmaking is gone for ever. It’s probably just been hidden for the demo so that everyone will beta test the matchmaking.
Also, “By running a public dedicated server your server will be added to a list of servers available for clients to use” kinda suggests that there will be a private dedicated server option too.
Guys, i think the deal is they want to test out the matchmaking, hence why they’re “forcing” it right now, remember, they really hadn’t had a chance to test this out till now.
I also kindda hate the matchmaking as it is at the moment, but I have trust in Valve. Remember, they’ve made multiple patches on the same day before.
After all the awesome games and over one year of continuous, free and excellent support for TF2 I think they deserve a get out of jail card for once.
Their stated missions is to support the community and i really doubt they’re about to break away from it with their biggest release yet.
It looks like they’re working on it, so I’m not too worried. In my very short play experience last night, I was first told by the matchmaking system that the server I was trying to join was full (which does seem rather counter-intuitive, when I didn’t choose it!), but I got in the second time and had a smooth-as-silk game, which was lots of fun until right near the demo’s end, when Windows firewall decided to block the IP and booted me.
Still, was very promising, and Valve have a history of going above and beyond to fix things as quickly as they can.
Please update the news, it is now possible to choose individual servers.
Has the console key changed, or something? I enabled it, but my trusted | key wouldn’t open it. Maybe I should have tried after I had to reboot (both the computer and the game, that is).
the workaround is fine.. unless you want to play with 4 of your friends. You invariably can’t connect to the same server that way.
@jonfitt that’s what I thought too. If the server browser is hidden that would make sense too. [also to stop people from just playing the demo ala Q3 demo.]
How so?
When you use the server browser, you have to join a server that already has people in it. I have been unsuccessful in joining any servers that have 0/4 people.
Radiant: Because other people can join it before you do, it might get snagged by the matchmaking system before you have everyone ready to hit join at the same time, stuff like that. Unless it is passworded and you all know the PW, it’s pretty tough to do.
I have played it for hours, I only just turned it off, I can still hear the dry throaty Donald Duck-esque screaming :( I need to try to sleep now….I want my Mum
tried 8 times, could not get in a multplayer match. Very disappointed in Valve, hope they fix it fast. I would prefer a server browser also. It is fun though.
ZOMBIES ZOMBIES ZOMBIES ZOMBIES
You get the idea. I found it to be a lot of fun; but for the brief games I played I stuck to SP just to get an idea of what was happening. We’ll see what the online is like on Saturday maybe.
Single player is fun, and it has that good old familliar ‘Source-yness’, although i’m not massively impressed by the look, which as nice as it is, just doesn’t match TF2’s brilliance.
It has the feeling of a mod, such as Sven Co-op and feels totally stripped down, the director feature is great too, although the music can take the surprise and suspense out of the game as much as it can add it. I do like the mouse gesture voice commands which i’m surprised that noone has mentioned. would like to see them in tf2.
Same probs for me, massive lag, no real chance of reliably joining a stable game, but then i put this partially down to auto server choosing of servers that aren’t appropriate.
Glad to see a half implemented traditional browser but i’m not too keen on the front end myself preferring Valves usual tried and tested and modest menuing since HL days.
its fucking brilliant this. though you got to play it on the harder settings or its too easy.
Expert difficulty is mental. And fun.
That is all.
Christ, just played through impossible difficulty on a fast server (courtesy of McWorkaround) and finally finished it. Took the best part of two hours to complete with people coming in and dropping out. Glad I was stubborn enough to stick it out although that bloody preview vid at the end of the levels is no kind of reward. I’d prefer not to have something advertised to me that I’ve already bought…
Can anyone tell me what the console key is? My favourite (|) doesn’t work =P
Sadly I could only get the single player to work. Myself and a friend each tried launching a game from a lobby only to have the game fail to find a dedicated server. With a third friend it found a server but when it tried to load the game our connections repeatedly timed out. Attempting to join via the server-browser, things again failed (though I was going only for servers with 0 people in – would this have an effect? I’ll try again later). So poor marks for reliablity.
I wasn’t too fond of the matchmaking either, but I’m confident this, as others have suggested, is simply Valve testing the system. I’m in no doubt that we’ll have a normal server browser when the full release hits. I would, however, like a return to the normal, minimalist menus.
As for the single player I found it good fun, but the meat of the game is surely in the multiplayer.
It is ` but you have to enable it in the options.
Look at that, Steam Cloud has started – just restarted Steam and it started “synchronizing”, which is part of Steam Cloud. Apparently. It said so in a little box. Which was nice.
Anyone getting memory leakish degrading performance? Sometimes my game starts off fine only to gradually turn into a slideshow. Otherwise, when I can get a game, its great fun.
I pre-ordered on steam and cant open the game due to “game is currently unavailable” wtf?? I dont want to delete local content and re-download and waste bandwidth again.. how did you people make it work?
@ EyeMessiah
Yeah, I was wondering about that. It’s pretty awful, and it never get better. My computer can handle this game with no problem, but every once in awhile the game just tanks. Eventually the program just locks up and I have to go to Task Manager to kill it.
There is a long list of things I hope to see fixed soon.
Originally there was no server browser and no connect command, they updated the CVARs when everybody complained.
This is why I love Valve – Yes, they dropped the ball but they responded instantly and have provided a work around until they create a better solution.
The “Game currently unavailable” error indicates that there has been another patch for the demo – autopatching doesn’t quite work yet… So far there were none below 100MB. Restart Steam and it should start loading.