Here on The Comics Console, we spend a lot of time playing and discussing video games based on comic books. This week, however, we’re looking at a new comic based on a video game. Valve’s mega popular Left 4 Dead series joins Mass Effect, God of War, Resident Evil, and many other video game properties as the latest game to be adapted into graphic novel form, but the most exciting part about Left 4 Dead‘s transition into comics is that it’s absolutely FREE and exclusively found on Valve’s Left 4 Dead official website, l4d.com.
Left 4 Dead: The Sacrifice
Publisher: Valve
Writer: Uncredited
Artist: Mike Oeming
For those unfamiliar with the Left 4 Dead series, the game is a first-person-shooter where you take control of one of four characters as you fight through massive hordes of zombies. It’s an amazing game if you’re a fan of the un-dead. The Sacrifice bridges the gaps between Valve’s new DLC packs for the original Left 4 Dead and Left 4 Dead 2 games which unites each game’s set of characters.
I’m pretty surprised that Valve is giving this series away for free, because so far, The Sacrifice is pretty good. You probably noticed that the writer for this series is uncredited, which is a shame because the writing is so enjoyable. The overall story was developed by the same writers behind the game’s story, and just like the game, The Sacrifice‘s characters are a huge part of the experience. The plot is like something pulled right off the game with the four survivors from the first Left 4 Dead fending off the infected, struggling to reach a rescue rendezvous, which provides plenty of tense moments for characters to come through. Each character is unique and likable (or hateable when necessary), and the dialog is a good mixture of fun and intensity, with just the right touch of B movie quality.
The action rarely slows down for all 42 pages of story, and Mike Oeming (Powers, Catwoman) does a superb job of illustrating every moment. The gore and action in each page is colorful and spectacular.
The overall quality of this series is top notch, and I still can’t get over the fact that it’s FREE. While the story may not be on par with other zombie comics like The Walking Dead as far as depth, Left 4 Dead: The Sacrifice is more than worth the time. If you’re a fan of the game or of zombies in general, The Sacrifice is a no-brainer. It’s also great reassurance that a video game can successfully translate into a comic book when done properly. I honestly have nothing bad to say about this series so far, because one: the series is actually good, and two: it’s FREE! A combined 82 pages of awesome zombie action and beautiful, stylistically penciled gore!
Hopefully this series will inspire other video game publishers to develop their own web comics. How great would a Red Dead Redemption or Bioshock comic series be? There are so many great narrative driven games that have great opportunity to be explored.
Until then, here’s another sample of The Sacrifice.
Left 4 Dead: The Sacrifice parts one and two are available here, with part three coming out September 28 and part four on October 5. Enjoy it for FREE!
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Andrew Hurst
andrewhurst@comicattack.net
Eh, it’s not all that surprising that it’s free. Maybe slightly unexpected. Valve is a pretty rad company.
It’s surprising how good the series is, and it’s still free. Most would expect it to suck. This is worth of it’s own spot on a shelf at the LCS.
Now the Resident Evil or Modern Warfare comics..those should have been free. They suck.
I’ve been playing this thing since it came out and it’s THE BEST ZOMBIE GAME OUT!!
Valve continuing the story in comic form is just as good since this links the story from the newest DLC that came out for L4D: 2 and the one that’s coming out in Ocotober for the first game. The writers definitely should have been credited because the story was great! More than likely it’s the same team that did the dialogue and story for the game since it’s got the same feel to it.
A lot of fans were wondering about the four original characters and what they were doing before all hell broke loose. Now we get that and it’s FREE!!! Good things do happen when Microsoft isn’t invlolved lol
Left 4 Dead is one of the best games ever made! Although I was highly disappointed in L4D2, I see this comic as a step back in the right direction. I love that it’s free, I love how Bill goes out in a blaze of glory, I love that is has that same feel that L4D1 had and over all I just love the comic!
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Just read the newest episode and it was just great! Can’t wait for that DLC on Tuesday!
I must say that i enjoy the amount character development that was left out of the game is put into this, really taking the characters to another level. The largest part for me is that this comic has brought over the humor found in the game that all the characters share. This shows a larger amount of character emotion and brings forth more feeling not found in the game. This really show cases the bound that many people have come to have with these 4 characters as they fight it out to an ultimate ending. Hopefully this is just the begging of these great comics and that there might be more to come.
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