"The most intense co-operative action experience ever created, brought to you by the makers of Counter-Strike. Set in a modern day survival-horror universe, the co-operative gameplay casts four “Survivors” in an epic struggle against hordes of swarming zombies and terrifying “Boss Infected” mutants."
www.eagames.co.uk/game/left-4-dead/xbox360/
Playing Left 4 Dead was a new experience for me. I have very limited experience of networked gaming and have never played a multi-player networked game using Xbox Live. The game itself was a relatively standard first person shooter. We did not dwell on the storyline and went straight into playing the game. The basic premise of the game seems to be that everybody has been turned into a zombie and there are only 5(?) survivors. Players play as one of these survivors (it is also possible to play as a zombie in other areas of the game) and the aim of the game is to work collaboratively with other players over a network to annihilate all of the zombies within a stage. The player is provided with a standard set of weapons, which can be changed throughout the game if the player happens upon a weapon or ammunition upgrade. Health decreases when a player is attacked by a zombie but can be restored by self healing using a health pack or by another player choosing to heal one of team. The headset can be used to communicate verbally with other players, this feature may be used for co-ordination or general chat, introductions and comments.
Earlier in the evening we had been looking through and discussing the older games available for download on the Xbox and the essence of this conversation continued when playing Left 4 Dead. The game was compared to early first person shooters such as Doom and Duke Nukem 3D and Rise of the Triad. The game format of Left 4 Dead is extremely simple and refers back to these original first person shooters with the focus being on networked and collaborative play. I found it interesting that even though I was experiencing a game title and method of video game play (networked and collaborative) that I had not encountered before the conversation featured old game titles and technologies. As previously mentioned this may be due to our original discussion of retro games available for download on the Xbox but there seemed to be something more important about these discussions than just the previous conversation spilling over.
On reflection there seem to be several key reasons for recollection taking place during the experience of playing a new video game. Players and viewers of the game use recollection and nostalgic references to situate the game in a long video game history. By discussing the original first person shooter titles it is easier to work through the developments between original and current game titles. Left 4 Dead is essentially the same, in terms of game format, as Doom for example. But by comparing the two games the key differences between the two games begin to emerge (in terms of new features and vastly developed/enhanced features): collaborative networked play, graphics, narrative, AI, 'live' interaction with other players etc. So nostalgic recollection and reference to previous game titles is used to 'situate' the game in relation to previous titles. A judgment can then be made by players with regards how successful or 'good' a game is.
Nostalgic recollection, or maybe just recollection is also positions the players in relation to each other as well as the game itself. By discussing the games that form part of the history of the title being played the players are able to establish each others gaming pedigree. This is not a tactical move during versus play (at least not in the experience currently being reflected upon) but is instead used to establish a connection with fellow players. A certain amount of respect(?) is given and received for those players that have an understanding of the meta history of a particular title, console or technology.
Recalling previous gaming experience also assists a player when encountering a new game. A comment such as "it is pretty much the same as Doom" being directed towards a new player by an experienced player (experienced in this specific game) instantly provides the new player with a framework with which to understand the game, which allows meaningful and enjoyable play to take place. Nostalgia does not come in to play quite as much here, instead previous experiences of different 'sets' of games that have been played are being recalled and the skills/techniques associated with them applied.
Once again the game itself acts as a trigger for recollection, just as the Xbox Arcade thumbnail previews did. Players have experienced elements of play before and this can lead to discussion of previous game titles and player experiences. These initial recollections descend into a nostalgic voyage into what used to be played in the past and player-specific recollections of both general and more specific game play experiences. A general comment may run something like "I used to play Doom for hours when I was younger" and a more specific recollection of experience might be "I remember playing the game (Doom) with my friends in the dark with the light switched off and the sound turned up. We were genuinely scared by the breathing sound effects of the game as we searched out enemies to destroy". Sharing these experiences and personal 'game biographies' seems to be a very important part of the game play experienced and discussed so far. As outlined in my initial research proposal the level of importance mentioned may be directly related to the age of a player, and I hope to investigate this further.
Above: Left 4 Dead being played by an experienced player whilst the headset is used to listen-in on the conversations occurring during play. The subject listening-in was experiencing live networked discussion between players for the first time.
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