Left 4 Dead

This article is about the game. For documentation of Left 4 Dead tools, see Left 4 Dead Documentation.

Left 4 Dead

Developer(s)

Valve, Turtle Rock Studios
Certain Affinity (assisted with TRS for Xbox 360 version)

Publisher(s)

Valve

Series

Left 4 Dead series

Release date(s)

November 18, 2008 

Windows
November 18, 2008
Xbox 360
November 18, 2008
Mac OS X
October 27, 2010

Genre(s)

First-person shooter, Survival horror

Mode(s)

Co-operative multiplayer

Platform(s)

Windows, Xbox 360, macOS

Engine

Left 4 Dead engine branch

Steam AppID

500

Mod support

Yes, VPKs in addons folder

SDK

Left 4 Dead Authoring Tools

Documentation

Left 4 Dead Docs

System requirements

Minimum:

• Windows 7 (32/64-bit) or newer
• Pentium 4 3.0 GHz
• 1 GB RAM
• NVidia 6600 / ATI 9600 or better (128 MB VRAM, Shader model 2.0)
• 7.5 GB disk space
• DirectX 9.0c compatible sound card
• Windows XP and Vista were previously supported, but as future updates for this game and Steam occurred; the support was dropped, even with retail copies.

Recommended:

• Intel Core 2 Duo 2.4GHz
• 1 GB RAM
• NVidia 7600 / ATI X1600 or better, Shader Model 3.0

Distribution

Retail, Xbox Marketplace, Steam

Official website

Left 4 Dead series website

Links

Steam page
Xbox 360 Marketplace (archived)
Microsoft Store (Xbox One/Series X|S, backward compatible, delisted digitally)
ModDB page

Previous game

The Orange Box
(by release date)

Next game

Left 4 Dead 2

Left 4 Dead is a co-operative multiplayer survival horror that pits four playable or AI-controlled survivors against hordes of aggressive "infected" - the victims of an apocalyptic plague.

The Survivors' goal is to help each other make it through various scenarios to safety. The Infected are controlled by an AI director that dynamically balances difficulty and mood depending on the players' progress and situation. In an alternate game mode, human players can control up to four mutated Special Infected with special abilities and cooperate to stop the Survivor players.

Details

Uses the NextBot system:

• Survivor bots
• All variants of the Infected

Other versions of Left 4 Dead

Demo version

The demo version only features two playable maps, taking place in the No Mercy campaign. The first map remains unchanged from the final version, however the second map ends just after the generator room panic event. Once you reach the saferoom in the second map and close the door with everyone inside, the credits roll. The demo version can be also played online or locally.

The demo version of the game is no longer available.

Console version

When it comes to the game consoles, Left 4 Dead was only released on Xbox 360 as Valve had a difficulty porting The Orange Box to the PlayStation 3 due to its complex Cell processor and microarchitecture, and had to outsource the PS3 port to Electronic Arts. Valve did not develop or port any Source games for the PlayStation 3 until the release of Portal 2.

The Xbox 360 version, aside from graphical differences, is nearly identical to the PC version, but there are few differences:

• Menu: The menu was a map background (like Half-Life 2, its episodes and Portal), as opposed to a animated background video on PC.
• Downloadable Content and updates: Unlike The Orange Box, the console version of the game received all content updates (such as new campaigns) up to 2010 (The Sacrifice). However unlike the PC version which was free, these downloadable content (with the exception of "Survival Pack") must be purchased on the Xbox 360. Additionally, the console version did not received any engine updates or bug fixes, only receiving content updates.
• Multiplayer: Xbox 360 version - online features are powered by Xbox Live (requires Xbox Game Pass Core subscription, formerly Xbox Live Gold), and PC version is powered by Steam. Both servers are still active as of 2026.

The Xbox 360 version is backward compatible with Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S, with resolution enhancements (up to 4K) on Xbox One X (or Series X/S), however the game is no longer available digitally on Xbox 360, since it was delisted around March - May 2023 for unknown reasons, even before Xbox 360 Marketplace was shutdown in June 2024. The game is also not available for purchase digitally on modern Xbox consoles. Obtaining physical copy of the game is now the only way to play it on Xbox 360 or modern Xbox consoles.

Official Maps/Campaigns

Left 4 Dead has the following official campaigns and maps included:

Expand/Collapse Left 4 Dead CampaignsExpand/Collapse
No Mercy	Crash Course	Death Toll	Dead Air
1. The Apartments - l4d_hospital01_apartment 2. The Subway - l4d_hospital02_subway 3. The Sewer - l4d_hospital03_sewers 4. The Hospital - l4d_hospital04_interior 5. Rooftop Finale - l4d_hospital05_rooftop	1. The Alleys - l4d_garage_alleys 2. The Truck Depot Finale - l4d_garage_lots	1. The Turnpike - l4d_smalltown01_caves 2. The Drains - l4d_smalltown02_drainage 3. The Church - l4d_smalltown03_ranchhouse 4. The Town - l4d_smalltown04_mainstreet 5. Boathouse Finale - l4d_smalltown05_houseboat	1. The Greenhouse - l4d_airport01_greenhouse 2. The Crane - l4d_airport02_offices 3. The Construction Site - l4d_airport03_garage 4. The Terminal - l4d_airport04_terminal 5. Runway Finale - l4d_airport05_runway
Blood Harvest	The Sacrifice	The Last Stand (Survival)
1. The Woods - l4d_farm01_hilltop 2. The Tunnel - l4d_farm02_traintunnel 3. The Bridge - l4d_farm03_bridge 4. The Train Station - l4d_farm04_barn 5. Farmhouse Finale - l4d_farm05_cornfield	1. The Docks - l4d_river01_docks 2. The Barge - l4d_river02_barge 3. Port Finale - l4d_river03_port	The Lighthouse - l4d_sv_lighthouse

Note:

When Left 4 Dead was released, only 4 campaigns (No Mercy, Death Toll, Dead Air and Blood Harvest) were available.

• Crash Course was released in September 29th, 2009.
  • Free and included with the game on PC, paid on Xbox 360 ($6.99, formerly 560 Microsoft Points).
• The Sacrifice was released in October 5th, 2010.
  • Free and included with the game on PC, paid on Xbox 360 ($6.99, formerly 560 Microsoft Points).

Content

• Left 4 Dead (left4dead)
• Left 4 Dead engine branch

See also

• Left 4 Dead Level Creation
• List of Left 4 Dead console commands and variables
• Left 4 Dead 2 - the sequel to Left 4 Dead

External links

• Official website
• L4Dmaps.com
• Unofficial L4D Wiki
• Left 4 Dead on Wikipedia