The mild spoilers contained herein reference dialogue in the finale for the final campaign of Left 4 Dead 2. As much as the story in the game is fairly transparent, there is one present. It’s nothing critical or major, it was just something fairly interesting. Read on, but don’t be upset if I spoil the surprise!
So last night, the group I play with and I finished up the last campaign – The Parish – and we made a very interesting discovery. Numerous times in the original Left 4 Dead through the graffiti on the wall in the safe rooms, there were references to ‘carriers’, people who are immune to the infection but still carry it, causing people who are not immune to catch the nasty rage-inducing disease. This was never really expanded upon, and it was never clear if the four survivors in the first game were carriers or just had a full immunity. During The Parish campaign in Left 4 Dead 2, there are points where fighter jets will fly overhead, bombing seemingly random targets, yet as the campaign progresses, it becomes more than clear that these military planes are targeting you.
Once your team reaches the finale (which honestly to me looks like a slight reworking of the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway that I have driven across once or twice which really improved the atmosphere for me), one of you will use a walkie-talkie to contact the military who seem to have raised road blocks to stop people from crossing the bridge. The conversation goes something like this:
(I’m going with Ellis for this one): Hey, anybody out there?
Radio Voice: Hello? Are you a survivor? Tell me, are you immune?
Ellis: Immune? Well I ain’t infected or anythin’ if that’s what your askin’.
Radio Voice: Tell me, have you come into contact with any infected?
Ellis: Yeah we fought a buncha zombies!
(Radio Voice talks to Second Radio Guy): Do you hear that? Are you equipped for ‘carriers’?
Second Radio Guy: Affirmative.
Then the Radio Voice tells you to get across the bridge as fast as you can, and the bridge escape finale begins.
I find this extremely interesting, and it leaves me wondering just what happens next after the chopper carries the survivors away. Are they taken to a safe zone with other carriers? Are they experimented on in horrible research facilities to get a cure out of them? I really want to know, and I am surprised that this game could have such a cliffhanger at the end. It also lends to the fact that carriers are being targeted by the military to take them out before they can escape on their own and cause any more damage, only letting them live if they can get them into a controlled environment.
I would love to see this expanded upon in further expansions or downloadable content for the game, as Valve look like they’re really trying to build a sense of narrative into the survivors experiences this time around.
