Left 4 Dead almost didn't have zombies in it

gamesradar.com:

Left 4 Dead almost didn't contain any zombies, reveals ex-Valve writer Chet Faliszek. 

In an interview with YouTube channel Kiwi Talkz, Faliszek revealed Left 4 Dead almost didn’t have any zombies in it because of Steam president Gabe Newell. Newell thought zombies were cheesy, a bit cliché, and was unable to see their continued appeal. 

Newell’s cynicism came from the films at the time. He believed zombie movies were overdramatized with some jarring concepts, with Faliszek recalling him mentioning “Night Of The Living Dead [was] about racism, [and] Dawn Of The Dead [was] about consumerism”. Luckily for us, the concept for a zombie-driven game was pushed for, and Newell’s opinion was disregarded.

Faliszek tried to get rid of the tropes that Newell was scared of by giving the characters a conscience. He wanted to “make some of the characters in the world aware that they [were] in a zombie movie”, but they were to take every situation seriously. The team behind Left 4 Dead wanted to create a game for friends, a co-op game where partners relied on each other, and the game even penalized individualistic thinking. 

Games like The Anacrusis and Back 4 Blood are building on the legacy left behind by Left 4 Dead using a similar AI director. Before Left 4 Dead, similar games abided by set rules or player interactions. However, Left 4 Dead changed that dynamic when the AI director monitored health, ammo, and progression and had the ability to throw hordes at you if it felt like it.   

For more games that do include the undead, here's our pick of the best zombie games to play right now