Back 4 Blood

 Xbox Series X
User Score
6.4

Mixed or average reviews- based on 203 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 103 out of 203
  2. Mixed: 39 out of 203
  3. Negative: 61 out of 203
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  1. ehtaco
    Oct 6, 2022
    5
    One of the most disappointing games I've ever played. It's not awful, and I don't regret playing it, but damn. For what's intended to be a spiritual L4D successor, it's like the devs aren't aware of what made the L4D games consistently fun and enjoyable.

    Serious lack of tension. Just constantly fighting off mindless hordes of zombies. Like, nonstop. Special infected lack any personality    One of the most disappointing games I've ever played. It's not awful, and I don't regret playing it, but damn. For what's intended to be a spiritual L4D successor, it's like the devs aren't aware of what made the L4D games consistently fun and enjoyable.

    Serious lack of tension. Just constantly fighting off mindless hordes of zombies. Like, nonstop. Special infected lack any personality and spawn way too frequently. The tension is taken out of the big bads when they spawn almost as frequently as regular zombies. Also, terribly lazy boss fights.

    What makes games like this still somewhat 'horror' is the tension. You fight off the waves of zombies, and then there are a few minutes of eerie quiet until the next wave. B4B hardly has moments like this. It barely lets you off the hook. 95% of the time, you are holding RT and shooting zombies. There's a severe lack of tension. It feels more like a "boomer shooter" than an action-based horror game, in the worst way possible. That's not even mentioning this game's lackluster gunplay in the first place.

    The game is, in almost every area, worse than the original L4D - never mind L4D 2. And I've confirmed this is not nostalgia talking, at least for me. I was so sure of this that I booted up L4D 1 and 2 for the first time in years and sure enough, it just feels... better. In almost every conceivable way. Notably the AI. Of both teammates and the zombies. It is somehow way worse in this 2021 release than it was in 2008, and everybody thought that AI was horrendous then!

    If you want your L4D fix without playing L4D, this'll do just fine. But it's simply not the same.

    I do appreciate how certain runs of the same level do feel & look a bit different thanks to the corruption card system. But I'd say about 75% of those corruption cards hinder the experience. Not in a challenging way, but in an annoying way. The ones that change things about the levels like time of day, fog, weather, and even removing power from certain areas are nice and are appreciated.    … Expand
  2. M-Reviews
    Oct 13, 2021
    7
    As a spiritual successor for Left 4 Dead, Back 4 Blood is great to pick up with a few friends by your side, no matter on what platform they play - at least for a night or two. Although it´s gameplay is really fun besides some annoying bugs and horrid soloplay, the game fails to offer enough endgame-content to motivate much further than for it´s six to ten hour long campaign.
  3. Thirdrail
    Oct 12, 2021
    7
    This is a story of two steps forward, one and a half steps back, for the Left 4 Dead series. So many thing have been improved. The levels are so good in this one. There is a ton of variety in terms of what you're doing, and where you're going, and the overall structure of the game. B4B has cool survivors (although they're now called cleaners, which is somehow less interesting) and it hasThis is a story of two steps forward, one and a half steps back, for the Left 4 Dead series. So many thing have been improved. The levels are so good in this one. There is a ton of variety in terms of what you're doing, and where you're going, and the overall structure of the game. B4B has cool survivors (although they're now called cleaners, which is somehow less interesting) and it has more of them. There's tons of stuff to unlock, and decks full of little gameplay modifiers to build and play, both fun ideas that play out well. It's all progress. Except...

    There are two things, as of launch day, keeping this from being a great game (and it IS a good game, just not a great one). One is the staggering amount of onscreen nonsense at any given time. There's always goo and blood and explosions and I've literally never spent so much time playing any game having to wonder what the heck was going on, simply because the game blasts you with visual clutter every ten to twenty seconds. It's not enjoyable. It just makes a hectic game needlessly confusing. The other problem is the endless rain of special infected (now called ridden, another boring choice in naming). Encountering the specials in L4D games was always a thrill, because it didn't happen all the time, and when it did you had to completely change your style of play to deal with them. In B4B, they never stop. There's a special ridden showing up every ten seconds, most of the time. There's nothing special about it, and it serves to undermine SO MUCH of the progress they made in terms of the level structure being more interesting. Two steps away from Boring, followed by one giant step back towards it.

    B4B could patched into being a much better game, but whether or not that happens depends on a lot of things we simply don't know yet. As of right now, I'd say, yes, definitely give it a try on Game Pass, but I would be pretty sad if I'd actually paid $60 for this title. In the state it's in right now, I have trouble imagining playing this game for 600+ hours, like I did L4D2.    … Expand
  4. Merc67
    Oct 17, 2021
    6
    Starts off ok, but when you reach act 3 turns into a grind, constantly respawing enemy’s, far to many specials, and this is recruit difficulty.
  5. Bato
    Apr 20, 2022
    7
    Story: 5/10
    Gameplay: 7/10
    Graphics: 6/10
    Enjoyability: 9/10
    Overall: 7/10
  6. Its_Shatter
    Oct 20, 2021
    5
    Super average zombies game and only playable with at least 3/4 friends playing. Play on game pass but don't drop any money for this one.
  7. OGMANLC
    Oct 26, 2021
    7
    Feeling like I'm playing L4D again. Brutal and fun to play solo or with friends. Card system works very well in game like this, but if you want better cards and want better chance to complete the game on Veteran or Nightmare you must grind the supply points. I recommend to play swarm, you will not receive so much SP, but it's better then playing same missions over and over again.
  8. Allissei
    Oct 17, 2021
    6
    It's a good game... but it has many flaws

    Positive: Card sistem (it makes it a bit more complex that only mindless shooting) Variety in survivors Variety in weapons Fun game A nice modernization of Left 4 Dead Variety in levels and gameplay A game to play with friends It looks gorgeous Negative: Card System (it makes it TOO complex and a bit grindy) Bad use of weapons    It's a good game... but it has many flaws

    Positive:
    Card sistem (it makes it a bit more complex that only mindless shooting)
    Variety in survivors
    Variety in weapons
    Fun game
    A nice modernization of Left 4 Dead
    Variety in levels and gameplay
    A game to play with friends
    It looks gorgeous

    Negative:
    Card System (it makes it TOO complex and a bit grindy)
    Bad use of weapons (some wepons are useless and the ammo is hard to manage)
    Unfair difficulty
    Bad Endgame
    Not much variety in game modes
    Brain dead AI (mostly when one of your teamates leaves and is replaced by a bot)
    A bad game to play without friends
    You play it solo, you get a bit punished
    If temates aren't great, then you get punished

    At least in Xbox I can play it with game pass... so that's the only positive... don't waste money for now and try it with game pass
    MAny of my issues can be easily fixed with patches... but at launch... this are the issues.    … Expand
  9. Bobparty
    Oct 23, 2021
    6
    Had really high hopes for this, and played left 4 dead a huge amount in the past. This game just doesn’t draw you in the same, and is meh compared to its predecessor and what’s out there now. WWZ with the aftermath DLC and first person is way better
  10. mkgvz27
    Oct 17, 2021
    6
    This is my first review ever and I just wanted to say that this game is not as good as L4D, not even close. It is entertaining for a while but then it just gets boring, specially during the solo campaign. The story is just dull and if I could sum up the game in one word, that'd be vapid.
  11. dan-man
    Jun 19, 2022
    7
    I had a lot of fun playing through this. The gameplay gunplay is excellent, Everything else though is pretty average such as the characters, story, online and customization. But for a few hours mowing through zombies on single player and occasional randoms online, free via game pass, it is worth your time. Just dont expect it to be as memorable as L4D.
  12. notifycritic
    Jun 22, 2023
    7
    Os gráficos estão bons A jogabilidade é muito boa e o match para coop funcionou sem problemas.
    Acredito que o jogo precisava de uma história melhor.
  13. Stan_Osbourne
    Mar 5, 2023
    5
    The main problem of the game, in my opinion, is its attempt not to be an independent cooperative zombie shooter (which in itself is not very relevant), but the fact that in an attempt to jump over your head and create a "Left 4 Dead killer," they did not succeed do.

    Despite the fact that the game has beautiful locations, the level design itself is very simple - it's a straight corridor    The main problem of the game, in my opinion, is its attempt not to be an independent cooperative zombie shooter (which in itself is not very relevant), but the fact that in an attempt to jump over your head and create a "Left 4 Dead killer," they did not succeed do.

    Despite the fact that the game has beautiful locations, the level design itself is very simple - it's a straight corridor without any branches, where everything happens strictly according to the same script, which greatly kills the variability. Shooting at enemies feels pretty bland, there are few unique enemies and they do not pose any particular danger, the plot in the game is from the category of nothing, there is only one company in the game and it is short. There are 3 additional acts, but each of them is sold separately (!), which is unacceptable with such a high price tag for the standard edition.

    By the way, online is dead and you can’t play in other modes except for the company, and in the story company, we couldn’t find anyone, especially with a friend. I do not recommend it to anyone. Glory to Ukraine!    … Expand
  14. DzmitryBoston
    Feb 10, 2023
    7
    The story is basically not existent, otherwise, it could be one of my favorite games. You must only play with bots or with friends, playing online matching gets you a stupid team. Expansions are adding a more interesting story though. But it should have been in the original release.
  15. Nikop23
    Sep 5, 2023
    7
    Loving this game so far. The gunplay is excellent and the multiplayer actually forces you to play together as a team

    Things that could be improved are Single player (Feels like this is just for practice with focus on the multi). Needs more maps. I also feel like the difficulties are slightly out of balance but that just might mean I need more time in the game. I will for sure be putting    Loving this game so far. The gunplay is excellent and the multiplayer actually forces you to play together as a team

    Things that could be improved are Single player (Feels like this is just for practice with focus on the multi). Needs more maps. I also feel like the difficulties are slightly out of balance but that just might mean I need more time in the game. I will for sure be putting in a lot more hours in to this one.    … Expand
  16. L3Fari0us
    Dec 20, 2021
    7
    Back For Blood feels like a game so close to greatness, whose biggest enemy seems to be itself.

    Pros: +Amazing gameplay loop +Interesting enough narrative +Extremely polished experience +Beautiful graphics & art style +Good character roster Cons: -Forgettable soundtrack -Gets repetitive after a while -Card system only gives minor stat boosts instead of a power fantasy    Back For Blood feels like a game so close to greatness, whose biggest enemy seems to be itself.

    Pros:
    +Amazing gameplay loop
    +Interesting enough narrative
    +Extremely polished experience
    +Beautiful graphics & art style
    +Good character roster

    Cons:
    -Forgettable soundtrack
    -Gets repetitive after a while
    -Card system only gives minor stat boosts instead of a power fantasy
    -Enormous difficulty spike, specially if playing solo
    -Progress through the storymode only saves if you're the host
    -PvP feels half baked

    Overall, while being a deeply flawed experience, I believe Back for Blood is capable of making a comeback if the team behind it chooses to do so. Most of the issues that plague the game can be solved with time, however the game's bound to feel repetitive after a couple of runs, which is a shame.
    If you're looking for some mindless fun with your friends or just by yourself, then I recommend the game, but if you are looking for an experience that you can sink hours and hours in, then you'll be thoroughly disappointed.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

47
#47 Best Xbox Series X Game of 2021
18
#18 Most Discussed Xbox Series X Game of 2021

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
74

Mixed or average reviews - based on 40 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 25 out of 40
  2. Mixed: 15 out of 40
  3. Negative: 0 out of 40
  1. Gamers' Temple
    Nov 18, 2021
    85
    Back 4 Blood is loads of fun no matter which mode you play. The game supports cross platform (and cross gen) play for both multiplayer and co-op modes. The campaign is easily the best part of the game, but the multiplayer mode is a good companion mode. So long as you don’t mind that the game is always online and that there isn’t much of a single player mode at the moment, the game is quite good. I’m not much of a fan of online multiplayer shooters, but this type of game with loads of replay value is what I look for whenever I do play one. Like I said at the start, I don’t know how the game compares to Left 4 Dead, but that really shouldn’t matter much since Back 4 Blood is its own game, and it’s a lot of fun.
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  2. ComicBook
    Nov 14, 2021
    70
    Back 4 Blood isn't perfect by any means, but it's absolutely the closest we've gotten to a new Left 4 Dead game in the years since Left 4 Dead 2. Because of this, it's hard not to have fun with B4B, even if it doesn't always feel inventive and has some notable drawbacks. Despite some qualms, if you're hungry for a new co-op shooter to jump into with some friends, Back 4 Blood has more than enough meat on the bone to keep you entertained for quite some time.
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  3. Malditos Nerds
    Nov 9, 2021
    85
    Back 4 Blood is a gory party that begins as soon as you start the first level and never decreases in intensity. It still has some of the Left 4 Dead's essence, but it's a completely different game and the changes suit it wonderfully.
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