L4D2 supported by $25 million ad campaign

Valve has announced a $25 million consumer advertising plan to support the launch of upcoming action thriller sequel, Left 4 Dead 2.

“Based on the strength of pre-orders, Left 4 Dead 2 will be the fastest-selling product in Valve’s history,” said Gabe Newell, president of Valve. “Left 4 Dead 2 has consistently run at 300 per cent of Left 4 Dead’s numbers.”

Last year’s Left 4 Dead, the top selling new property for both Xbox 360 and PC, was supported by a $10 million advertising campaign.

“We’ll be supporting Left 4 Dead 2’s launch with a $25 million campaign,” said Doug Lombardi, Valve’s vice-president of Marketing. “Left 4 Dead 2 has already set the record for greatest number of pre-orders in our company’s history, and we’re still over a month out from shipping.”

Coming exclusively to Xbox 360 and PC, L4D2 promises to set a new benchmark for co-operative action games. New to the winning formula is melee combat with items such as a chainsaws, frying pans, axes, baseball bats, and more.

The AI Director has also been given an overhaul. The 2.0 version promises to take L4D’s dynamic gameplay to the next level by giving the Director the ability to procedurally change weather effects, world objects, and pathways in addition to tailoring the enemy population, effects, and sounds to match the players’ performance.

Left 4 Dead 2 is scheduled for release on November 20.