Back 4 Blood Reviews
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
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.
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.
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
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.
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 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
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 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 isn't Left 4 Dead, and it doesn't even try to be it, doing away with the classics' straightforward campaign in favor of a more modern experience that rewards progression and offers plenty of replayability. The excellent map and mission design, the huge variety of builds made possible by the card system, and satisfying gameplay make the game by Turtle Rock Studios the one to get for those who have a team of friends ready to take on hordes of undead, but those who are looking to play the game solo would do better to look elsewhere, as Back 4 Blood doesn't offer much for those not too keen on teamwork.
Despite a messy start, this spiritual successor to Left 4 Dead becomes more challenging and characterful the longer you spend with it
Despite a few shortcomings, Back 4 Blood is nevertheless an excellent and fresh take on the beloved Left 4 Dead formula.
It's safe to say that we're probably not going to be getting a Left 4 Dead 3 in our lifetimes, but Back 4 Blood is going to be as close as we'll get in the time being. The game preserves mostly everything that made the two Left 4 Dead games so great while integrating it into the modern gaming sphere.
Back 4 Blood takes an old-school approach where it makes sense, and modernises where it doesn’t. It’s heartening to be engaged by a game purely for its gameplay and variety, and not to pad out a progress bar somewhere.
Back 4 Blood manages to live up to its predecessors, offering an improved, deeper, funnier and more addictive experience.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
The creators of Left 4 Dead return with Back 4 Blood, a cooperative experience in which to pass over hundreds, thousands of zombies with their hearts in a fist. But this is not just about killing; Back 4 Blood also has a truly interesting strategic component that is nourished, above all, by its customizable system of card advantages.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
We're back to the old cooperative mode of busting zombies like there is no tomorrow with Back 4 Blood, the heir to Left 4 Dead that keeps the essence of the franchise alive and incorporates new mechanics, but with lessons to be learned in the field of PvP.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Whether I’m laughing out loud over a brilliant strategy gone awry or just barely getting onto an escape vehicle with Ridden right on my heels, Back 4 Blood has the right formula for a good few weekends of co-op fun. If it gets even more support and updates down the line, I could see this taking up a spot as a go-to social game for quite a while to come. Really, it just feels good to have this sort of game back again.
The biggest question about this game is whether the player base will stay strong or not. Left 4 Dead still gets a steady stream over a decade later, but it’s still up in the air whether Back 4 Blood will inspire the same loyalty. Fortunately, it’s on Xbox Game Pass for console and PC, so there’s little to no risk in giving it a try.
Back 4 Blood shines when playing with others and has enough systems, spooks, and FPS fun to make players want to come back for more