Updates (Left 4 Dead)

The following is a history of updates applied to Left 4 Dead. The updates, when on the PC version of Left 4 Dead, will be applied automatically when you restart Steam, and on the Xbox 360, you will be prompted to update the game when you start it up—however, this only happens if you have Xbox LIVE. The list goes from the most recent at the top, and the earliest at the bottom. These are only the specific changes made to Left 4 Dead itself. Note that the PC version gets the updates first, and that the Xbox 360 version gets all of the updates to that point in time in a pack. Due to this, it's possible that some of the more recent updates have not yet be released for the console version.

July 16, 2009
Left 4 Dead has been updated to include a lobby browser. The lobby browser (under Play Online) will show you a list of optimal games available for you to  join. The browser pares down the thousands of lobbies and games currently being played to show you the best list of games available to you. This list includes official and add-on campaigns, including add-on campaigns you have not yet  installed, making it a great way to discover them. You can filter by difficulty, official and/or add-on campaigns and by lobbies and/or games in progress. The specific changes include:

Left 4 Dead Add-on Campaigns
 * The Play on Steam Group Server screen now displays which Steam group it's searching while updating the list
 * After calling a vote to change difficulty in game it is now correctly updated in matchmaking

Server
 * When downloading a new version of an add-on and installing it (by double clicking the .VPK file), it will now correctly overwrite the previous version,  even while Left 4 Dead is currently running
 * Addressed a crash when two mission files with the same name are installed
 * Steam Group Servers now will now correctly offer download links when running add-on campaigns

SDK
 * The server will now warn if the public or private tags exceed their limits. Public tags are limited to 63 characters. Private tags used for matchmaking are  now limited to 1024 characters. Note that the private tags include the name of  each add-on campaign installed on the server, so an excessive number of add-on  campaigns can hit this limit


 * The VPK tool should be able to handle campaigns larger than 500MB now
 * You can now drag and drop or pass a VPK file to the vpk.exe tool to have it extract the contents of the add-on to a folder. This mirrors the functionality  of passing a folder and having it create a VPK file
 * Detail.vbsp and lights.rad have been added to the distribution

June 29, 2009

 * Removed the "Are you ready to play Versus?" confirmation.
 * Fixed a crash when using mouse wheel or keyboard to select Campaign chapters.
 * Fixed sv_steamgroup_exclusive servers advertising for public lobbies.
 * Restored the ability to vote for a new campaign in Versus mode.

Client

 * Removed an infinite ammo exploit for molotovs.
 * The team swapping issue in Versus has been fixed.

Add-on Campaign Support

 * Players download third party campaigns as single .VPK file.
 * Players can manage and select add-on maps and campaigns via game UI.
 * Added matchmaking support and download/update prompt for add-on campaigns.
 * Custom campaign support in Leader boards.
 * If not already registered, left4dead.exe registers .VPK extension to allow automatic install of add-ons.
 * Servers and the steam API have been extended to allow servers to send up a list of keys for matchmaking up to 1200 bytes in size.

Left 4 Dead Authoring Tools

 * Fixed missing fgd error.
 * Added vpk.exe command line tool for extracting, creating, and appending .VPK files.
 * Removed info_versus (not used).
 * Added info_gamemode which fires outputs for Coop, Versus or Survival depending on what game mode the map is loaded in.
 * Updated tutorial_standards example map, repackaged as 'Dead Line' campaign example add-on.
 * Sample content now includes source files for official maps.

Survival Mode

 * Removed an exploit from The Construction Site
 * Fixed issues with Survival Mode medals not being awarded properly in rare cases
 * Times will no longer be awarded when joining mid-round and cheats had been active during that round

Servers

 * Server will now reset correctly after all players leave a Versus game

Match Making

 * Fixed a mismatch between lobbies and servers that will remove the "Server is full" errors when quickmatching
 * Fixed match making issue affecting Vista64 users

April 27, 2009

 * Removed a survival related command exploit
 * Achievements with multiple critera can now be expanded to show progress
 * mp_gamemode is now included with other console variables for server logging

Survival Mode Changes

 * Darkened the Lighthouse background movie and increased the contrast with the user interface elements
 * Chapter selection is now available when creating a Survival lobby
 * Single player coop now works correctly after playing Survival online
 * The correct game mode will be set when playing back a demo
 * Changed holdout server spew to be development only
 * Stats are no longer updated while viewing a demo
 * Correctly update the leaderboard based on the player's personal time, not the team best time
 * Show the player's best time in the scoreboard
 * Removed Survival exploits from The Terminal, Last Stand, The Crane, The Boathouse and The Warehouse
 * Fixed tanks sometimes not spawning after 15-20 minutes

April 21, 2009
The Left 4 Dead Survival Pack is now available for the PC and Xbox 360, free of charge to all owners of the game. The full change list for the PC release is below. In addition, both the retail and Steam versions of the game (PC and 360) are now available for a special price. Check Steam and local retailers for pricing details. For more information about L4D, please visit www.l4d.com

Survival Mode

 * New Gameplay Mode
 * 16 maps including Last Stand
 * Leaderboards
 * 7 new achievements

Versus changes

 * 2 new versus campaigns.
 * Fixed a case where versus team score would continue to be recalculated after the score panel was displayed.
 * Fixed an issue with recalculating the versus score health bonus for a player when they are rescued from being incapacitated.
 * Fixed being able to start a swing as an infected, then teleport to the survivors and have the claw swing hit a survivor.
 * Fixed a case where teleporting to the survivors would not reset the ability timer.
 * Fixed an exploit where you could load the chamber of a weapon with bullets by holding down the melee key.
 * Fixed a case where it was not possible to join a game while it was in a finale.
 * Fixed a rare case where listen servers would speed up the game over time.
 * Removed convars related to melee fatigue.
 * Fixed a case where infected players would get a respawn time on their initial spawn into a map.

Server changes

 * Made ms_force_dedicated_server not require cheats.
 * Add a message when queuing a heartbeat.
 * Simplified setting of game mode.
 * Removed convars director_no_human_zombies and director_holdout_mode.
 * Added mp_gamemode [coop,versus,survival].

General

 * Added lobby join and leave messages

Game and client changes

 * Introduced fatigue to the melee attack in versus mode. You will see a HUD display when your melee swing is cooling down
 * Boomer vomit will now pass through common infected
 * Addressed some surround sound detection issues
 * Fixed a rare crash when exiting Left4Dead on Windows Vista
 * Fixed a case where the complete all expert campaigns achievement was not being rewarded

Dedicated server changes

 * Corrected an issue where Windows based dedicated were sending spurious shutdown notifications to the master causing them to delist temporarily
 * Fixed dedicated servers not resetting the versus team swap correctly--you could join a dedicated server that had a previous game that was swapped and arrive on the other team than what was selected in the lobby
 * Renamed the tags for sv_search_key to use "key:" in the server tags instead of "sv_search_key." This should help with issues of the 63 character limit of server tags
 * Fixed an occasional server crash related to voting

March 13, 2009

 * Lobby leaders can now specify in lobby settings whether to search for an official dedicated server or for the best available dedicated server. If the official dedicated search fails it will then default to the best available dedicated server automatically

March 12, 2009

 * Fixed sv_search_key appearing in server browser
 * Fixed issue where changing the sv_search_key did not update the master correctly
 * Fixed master server issue with Linux fork mode that affected availability of Valve dedicated servers
 * Tank melee attack can now hit multiple Survivors in one swing
 * Missed from the previous list changes: Fixed achievements to match stats. Past achievements not previously awarded will be shown in the game UI

Versus Mode Changes

 * Tank melee attack can now hit multiple Survivors in one swing (false; fixed in update above)
 * Fixed Tank punch being able to hit targets behind walls
 * Fixes to 'Tank parking'. The Tank will now run back and attack the Survivors if he becomes AI due to two players expiring the frustration meter
 * Fixed a case where a Tank frustration meter could run out right as he was in his death animation and he would come back to life
 * Fixed a case where the Tank was moving too slowly while crouching and being shot
 * Tanks now have the possibility of spawning in a slightly different position for the first and second teams
 * The order that the teams play as Survivors is now determined by which team has the higher overall score. The winning team will play as Survivors first
 * The Smoker tongue can now target and grab victims through common infected
 * Increased the cone in which a Smoker can grab a target
 * The Witch no longer cuts Smoker tongues in a radius around her
 * Boomers that explode in mid-air will now hit Survivors directly below them with Bile
 * Reduced the damage that burning Hunters do to pounced victims
 * Adjusted the time at which players take over from bots to avoid 5 seconds of the bot standing idle while the player finishes connecting.
 * Fixed some cases where versus score was not being recalculated properly. It is no longer beneficial to pass pills between players at the end of the round or heal other players and then shoot them
 * Fixed a case where it was possible to spectate an AI infected and hit +use to take them over

Server Changes

 * Added convar sv_gametype that allows server operators to limit the types of games that will start on their server. Default value is 'coop,versus'. Can be changed to just 'coop' or just 'versus' to limit to those game types

General changes

 * Fixed a case where players would join as a dead Survivor when a living Survivor was still available
 * Fixed a case where restarting a level due to the team dying would give more than the max primary ammo on restart
 * Fixed the speaking icon showing up on the local player during level transition if voice_vox was set to 1
 * The scoreboard now shows the numeric value of a player's ping

GameUI

 * Quick match will now try to match to any campaign. Removed the preference to match to games according to the player progressing through all campaigns
 * Games in a finale are now joinable via the Friends and Steam Group games list

February 05, 2009

 * Downloadable Content (available this spring): a new multiplayer game mode entitled "Survival", in addition two complete campaigns for Versus Mode (Dead Air &amp; Death Toll).
 * A Critic's Choice Edition of the game is also heading to retail stores this spring, and will include access to all the content introduced in the L4D: Survival Pack.
 * In addition, for PC gamers and aspiring developers, the first Left 4 Dead release for the Source Software Development Kit (Source SDK) will allow the creation of custom Left 4 Dead campaigns that will be discoverable via L4D ' s matchmaking system. The SDK update is also due for release this spring, and is free of charge to all owners of L4D on the PC.

January 23, 2009

 * Fixed an exploit with melee where swapping weapons ignored the intended delay between swings.
 * In Versus mode, the Tank's health now reflects the damage it takes from burning.
 * Fixed an exploit related to the "joinclass" command.

January 15, 2009

 * Fixed client crash on certain video cards.

General

 * Fixed Survivors being able to climb surfaces marked for versus infected only.
 * Fixed a class of SurvivorBot bugs dealing with rescuing downed players.
 * Players can no longer grab ladders while flying through the air after a Tank punch.
 * Shooting near a car with an alarm that has already fired the alarm will no longer make chirping noises.
 * Improved loading time.
 * Fixed mini-gun physics exploit.
 * Fixed issue where propane tanks (and other physics objects) caused players to fall through elevators when one was thrown at a survivor.
 * Fixed rare achievement bug issues.
 * Fixed several map exploits.
 * Fixed various match making issues.
 * Fixed NAT traversal issues.

Versus Changes

 * Added HUD elements to show status of other infected players.
 * Changed color of infected player name in chat to red.
 * Fixed exploit where players could spawn infected bots.
 * Fixed instance where a Survivor changing to the infected team would be attacked by infected bots.
 * Normalized special infected melee damage.
 * Made the following client commands cheat protected: "Kill" and "explode".
 * Fixed exploit where infected players could run away and teleport back to gain health.
 * Players can only change teams once per map.
 * Players can't change teams while other players are still loading.
 * Tank spawns at the same&#160;% through the map for both teams in versus mode.
 * Made the Tank and Witch spawn directly on the escape route.
 * Increased chance of getting the Tank or Witch.
 * Fixed team swap issue.

Hunter

 * Easier to pounce a Survivor who is meleeing.
 * Increased minimum damage a Hunter pounce does.

Smoker

 * Fixed Smoker tongue tolerance
 * Smoker now has to be killed or the tongue destroyed for the tongue to break.
 * Survivor's cannot bash someone off the tongue until the Survivor being pulled is paralyzed or hanging.
 * Tongue attacks that fail to paralyze or hang a Survivor will use the shorter ability delay timer.
 * Fixed cases where the ability timer was not using the correct time.
 * Fixed case where you could point at a Survivor but not register a tongue hit.
 * Fixed Smoker tongue not targeting and landing properly through PZ ghosts.
 * Smoker tongue does damage every second while dragging paralyzed Survivors.

Tank

 * Bashable objects now appear with a red glow.
 * Tanks hitting a car with an alarm disables the alarm permanently.
 * Tank frustration timer is only reset by hitting Survivors with rocks or fists.
 * Reduced auto shotgun damage against Tanks.

Witch

 * Witch spawns at the same&#160;% through the map for both teams.
 * Avoids spawning within a certain&#160;% of the tank.
 * Fixed an exploit where the Witch could be woken up and tricked into attacking Survivors.

December 5, 2008

 * Fixed Infected Players melee pushing large objects to block the survivors path.
 * Fixed +lobby exploit.
 * Fixed exploit of "hugging" the Witch from behind where she can't hit you:
 * Fixed players not being kicked from a vote by changing their name before it succeeds.
 * Disabled difficulty change votes from the console in versus mode.

December 4, 2008

 * Finding a dedicated server when starting the game from a lobby is now faster and more reliable.
 * Versus mode is now locked to Normal difficulty.
 * Difficulty on a server is now locked to the one set by the lobby reservation.
 * Fixed lagouts/spikes after level transition.
 * Fixed directory issue with spray logs in some cases.
 * Fixed video settings not saving after closing video options dialog.
 * Corrected a boomer suicide exploit.
 * Several minor localization fixes.
 * Fixed disabling cheats incorrectly resetting data.

November 25, 2008

 * Fix for alt-tab crash in certain cases.