Left 4 Dead 2 Zombie Photo Contest

Valve announced the sequel to its Zombie Photo Contest that ties into the out of home advertising campaign for its upcoming Xbox 360 and PC game, Left 4 Dead 2. Like last year’s contest, gamers are challenged to take a creative photograph of themselves in front of one of the outdoor media placements in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Seattle, Miami, Phoenix, Dallas, Minneapolis, and the San Francisco Bay Area.

Contest rules and submission guidelines can be found at www.L4D.com/contest. All entries will be reviewed and judged by Gabe Newell, president and founder of Valve. The top 25 entrants will win a free copy of Left 4 Dead, and the overall winner will receive a custom engraved L4D2 Xbox 360.

Left 4 Dead 2 will be released on Xbox 360 and PC next Tuesday via retail and - for PC users - via Steam.

Massive Assault series now on Steam

Waraming.net’s Massive Assault series is now available on Steam All the games from this turn-based strategy, sci-fi themed war game series are available including Massive Assault, Massive Assault: Phantom Renaissance and Massive Assault Network 2. The Massive Assault series uses an original Secret Allies concept - an ally who waits for the right moment to disclose itself as loyal to the player or the opponent. The game charges players with fighting your rival for survival in the 22nd century hostile surroundings using air land and naval units .

Learn more about these game by visiting www.wargaming.net or www.steampowered.com.

It Came from G4: Left 4 Dead 2 Blowout

It’s a Left 4 Dead love fest over at G4TV.com as the site offers a variety of features that highlight Valve Software’s soon to be released follow-up to the zombie apocalypse survival game for Xbox 360 and PC coming in Nov. Here are some of the features about that game that you may want to check out:

- Left 4 Dead 2 Survival Mode Interview

- Left 4 Dead 2 Level Designer Interview

- Left 4 Dead 2 Realism Mode Walkthrough

- Left 4 Dead 2 Realism Mode Interview

- Left 4 Dead 2 to feature Avatar Awards

Enjoy the ride and be ready; the zombie apocalypse could happen at any time.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 gets SteamWorks support

Activision Publishing and Valve have inked an agreement to use SteamWorks in the PC version of Infinity Ward’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. Steamworks will provide PC gamers with auto-updating, anti-cheat technology, Steam Achievements, and the recently introduced Steam Cloud. Launched in Nov. of last year, Steam Cloud allows user settings to be stored and reused no matter what system you are using - as long as you are using your Steam account and a supported game - in this case Modern Warfare 2. Steam Cloud also stores multiplayer game progress.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 for PC will also include 50 Steam Achievements, enticing players to train a local militia to earn the “Back in the Saddle” Achievement or infiltrate the snowy mountain side base and earn the “Cold Shoulder.”

Beginning today Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is also available for pre-purchase via Steam. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is slated for worldwide release the week of November 8 at retailers and via Steam. Learn more at www.steampowered.com.

Left 4 Dead 2 demo details

Valve has revealed a few details and the release date for the demo of its upcoming zombie thriller sequel, Left 4 Dead 2. Most notable is what will be in the demo: it will feature gameplay taken from “The Parish” campaign, set in the New Orleans French Quarter. This will be playable by 1 to 4 players over local or Internet connections on both the Xbox 360 and PC (with two-player split screen available on the Xbox 360), the demo features all the new boss infected zombies and all the new melee weapons included in the full game as well.

Those who pre-order the game (at participating retailers or via Steam) will obtain early access to the demo on October 27. The demo will then be made available to Xbox LIVE Gold members and PC gamers on November 3. Then all Xbox LIVE members will obtain access to the demo on November 10.

The full game on Xbox 360 and PC will be released on November 17.  For further details on the full game, check out www.l4d.com.

Left 4 Dead players get a Crash Course

Valve Software announced that it will release the second downloadable expansion to Left 4 Dead called Crash Course on the Xbox 360 and PC next Tuesday. The Crash Course DLC includes a brand new campaign that ties the plot missing in between the No Mercy helicopter ride and the events in Death Toll. Crash Course will be playable cooperatively and in Versus mode

And on a related note Left 4 Dead has received a few update this week offering 10 new achievements and some minor tweaks. Also related, the Left 4 Dead 2 demo will be ready for primetime on Oct. 27, according to Valve. The full game is set for released November 18.

Valve reveals more L4D2 at PAX

Over the weekend at the Penny Arcade Expo Valve Software showed off Left 4 Dead 2 to fans and the media and revealed some new stuff about this second foray into the heart of a full blown zombie apocalypse. Shown off and playable at Valve and Microsoft’s Xbox 360 booth, Valve revealed even more information about Left 4 Dead 2 including a new campaign, new infected and new weapons.

After debuting “The Parish” campaign (set in the New Orleans’ French Quarter) at E3 and “Swamp Fever” at Comic Con San Diego, Valve revealed Dark Carnival - the third of the five campaigns shipping with L4D2 this fall.

Valve also unveiled a new Boss infected monster Known as “The Jockey.” This is the third new Boss infected from L4D2 revealed thus far (the Charger was revealed at E3, The Spitter at Comic Con). The Jockey lets you attack lone Survivors and wrestle control of their movement away from them-into fire, off ledges, or straight into the middle of a zombie horde.

In addition to the new campaign and boss monster the PAX showing of L4D2 marks the debut of the “Zombie Clown,” the “uncommon common” exclusive to the Dark Carnival campaign, and a few more of the 20-plus new items coming in the full product (electric guitar, machete, and the American baseball bat being offered as a pre-sell exclusive with select retailers).

Left 4 Dead 2 will be released for Xbox 360 and PC on November 17.