Thanks to Jamie for sending me these news items. It’s been awhile since I played Left 4 Dead 2 on the old XBox. I still enjoy the occasional zombie massacre, but somehow the mutations feature never really gripped. For those who haven’t played the game, the mutations feature basically adds a twist to the gameplay. One mutation had players constantly bleeding while another equipped players with just chainsaws. The latter sounds much cooler than execution. It was like playing the game with a circular saw running in your television.

This update sounds pretty cool. Titled Four Swordsmen of the Apocalypse, this mutation equips people with just swords. The sword is probably my favorite weapon in the game, so I’m thinking that I will like this mutation although no promises.

Valve also released the results of the favorite finale poll. Surprise, surprise … the finale for Dark Carnival took the cake. Although I’m not really surprised. That is a kick-ass finale with some great music juxtaposed against good old fashioned zombie slaying. I love rushing the stage with a guitar and smashing some skulls.

Also not surprising is that Hard Rain earned the worst finale which also make sense. It’s flat and boring. It’s way too easy to get divided and even easier to take people out. It was a letdown since I think that campaign is one of my all time favorites, followed closely by Dark Carnival. I’m just surprised that Swamp Fever scored higher. That’s my least favorite campaign in both games.

Valve has also released a patch for the XBox version of the game. If you are wondering what has been changed, just scroll down the blog. You’ll see a pretty detailed listing. It looks like some of the survivor bots get a little bit of intelligence, some exploits have been patched, and car alarms continue to be an infected zombie’s best friend.

Left 4 Dead 2 Official Blog (l4d.com <- new window)