Back 4 Blood Reviews
Back 4 Blood is the co-op survival shooter that we’ve been waiting for since Left 4 Dead took the world by storm. The introduction of Corruption Cards really helps the game stand out, while offering players varied gameplay that doesn’t feel stale at any point. The current issues surrounding solo play are certainly a turn-off, but not enough for me to not recommend playing it, especially if you have a group of friends ready to go. With a little TLC, Back 4 Blood has every ingredient necessary to flourish, and perhaps even dethrone its predecessors… maybe.
Back 4 Blood stands as a new standard in co-op shooters. With vibrant, intricate level design, solid gunplay, and intense moments brought on by a variety of dizzying enemy types balanced through a deep card system, it stands as a great achievement. The difficulty wall is annoying and other in game choices feel odd, to say the least, but that doesn't stop you from having an absolute blast, especially playing with friends.
Back 4 Blood isn't perfect and doesn't revolutionize zombie-themed co-op FPS, but it effectively demonstrates that, thirteen years later, the right ideas can revitalize superb but dusty gameplay.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Having spent a lot of time with Back 4 Blood, we think it's well worth your time and, crucially, your money. It's just a lot of fun blowing Ridden heads off or smashing them with a baseball bat like a watermelon in an anime beach episode. It doesn't really deliver a compelling experience solo – the bots are just a touch too stupid for that – but Back 4 Blood ought to become a multiplayer fixture for the rest of the generation to come. Unless they bring out Back 4 Blood 2 in, like, a year.
Back 4 Blood is a worthy successor to the Left 4 Dead franchise. It maintains the fundamentals of what made the original so addictive and satisfying while adding its own little flair with the rogue-like deck building system. What holds Back 4 Blood from getting a better score is its high price tag and lack of solo play progression.
Back 4 Blood is indeed the Left 4 Dead 3 that we were all waiting for, even if it would be clearly reductive to limit ourselves to this simple comparison as the Turtle Rock studio has made great efforts to expand and modernize a recipe of which he is still the father. The result is a tasty soft in cooperation, jubilant and surprisingly demanding as soon as you increase the difficulty. Its build card system, the complete arsenal and the many small tools next to it, offer a lot of depth to the gameplay.
Review in French | Read full review
Turtle Rock Studios have made a triumphant return to the genre that kickstarted a whole zombie craze so many years ago. That return isn’t perfect though, issues with the controls, missing game modes and bugs have marred what is otherwise an enjoyable zombie killfest. At the time of this writing a few patches have gone out that have corrected most of the larger bugs, but there are still issues with spawning too many special infected at a time and other little issues. While these things can be frustrating, they don’t destroy the fun of Back 4 Blood when playing the game as it’s meant to be. That is playing multiplayer with a group of friends smartly navigating a nightmare filled world.
It can feel unbalanced and unfairly punishing at times, but when all of its systems click into place Back 4 Blood is a ton of fun.
Back 4 Blood is certainly not a perfect title, but overall the proposal of the Californian team is effective and well thought out. It goes without saying that to fully enjoy it you will necessarily have to find companions at the height, but we can assure you that the game is worth the candle.
Review in Italian | Read full review
In spite of its shortcomings, though, Back 4 Blood is already starting to feel like it could very well become my go-to zombie shooter whenever I just want to have a fun, social experience with friends. Despite how saturated the zombie game market has become, Back 4 Blood cuts through all the noise and delivers a solid co-op shooter that oozes charm and prioritizes fun with friends over everything else.
Back 4 Blood certainly improves upon the gameplay formula of Turtle Rock's earlier Left 4 Dead, with a deeper feature set that allows for greater strategy and customization while fending off Hordes of the undead. But the world of the game and its characters lack the charm of its spiritual forebear, and a few curious design choices keep it just shy of greatness.
Back 4 Blood lacks the personality and charisma of the Left 4 Dead franchise, but at the same time, it also introduces some quality of life changes that make this game blast to play with friends. However, playing alone feels unrewarding because of the lack of progression.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Back 4 Blood is an excellent co-op zombie shooter, with a card-based perk system and wonderfully satisfying gunplay building upon the fantastic foundations of the Left 4 Dead series. But if you’re planning on playing solo you may want to stay clear, with a design clearly optimised for multiplayer.
Back 4 Blood is a solid evolution on Left 4 Dead's co-op action that could be further improved with some slight quality-of-life tweaks.
Back 4 Blood is a good game, it improves on the Left 4 Dead formula in a way that is challenging and creative. However, the move to forcing people to advance the overall game by going online, being forced to work with randoms in a very badly connected cross-platform multiplayer games where without a solid communication base, resulting in Back 4 Blood being an experience in frustration rather than a very enjoyable game. If Turtle Rock allows for private games where you can do under 4 players with bots instead, then maybe this game can truly be something that is a must-own. But at the moment Back 4 Blood is only worth playing if you have a premade group of friends.
Whether it’s your first time shooting zombies or you’re a Left 4 Dead veteran, Back 4 Blood is frantic action that you’ll love.
A blistering return to zombie-slaying nirvana, Back 4 Blood is an excellent spiritual follow-up to Left 4 Dead that ticks almost all of the right boxes, except for the one labelled 'solo progression' – if you're planning on playing offline on your own, you might want to steer clear for now. Otherwise, jump right in.
Back 4 Blood is more than Left 4 Dead 3 with another name. It presents a strategic use of cards and a well developed progression system that guarantees a lot of fun and replayability.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Back 4 Blood is not just a new coat of paint. It tries new ideas to shake up its legendary formula, mashing together their learning to create a cohesive, insanely fun co-op experience.
Back 4 Blood wastes no time trying to divert your attention from its obvious influences, but it doesn’t need to when it nearly lives up to the expectations its spiritual predecessors set so high.