Valve

Here's the thing: this is not a book, in the normal sense, but it should be studied carefully, nonetheless. This is, from what has been suggested around the internet, the basic guide that's given to new hires at Valve, a well established and successful entertainment (i.e., games) software company (though, they are apparently about to break out of just being a software company). It describes the somewhat unique structure Valve uses for its company hierarchy, direction and community. I won't give away and spoilers by describing how Valve works (come on, it's talked about all over the place, anyway!), but I admire their approach and plan to keep a close eye on their longterm success (they've already been around since 1996, so you could say they've already accomplished success). If you want to get ideas about how a non-traditionally structured company can work, this is one to read and learn from. It probably won't work everywhere (I'm not sure if a very large company could do this, for instance), but that's really a matter for debate and, ideally, trial in the real world.… (mehr)

Originally Reviewed at:Mother/Gamer/Writer
Rating:5 out of 5 controllers
Review Source:NetGalley
Reviewer:Me

Louis, Francis, Zoey, and Bill are up to their eyeballs in zombies in The Sacrifice. In this installment, we follow our four survivors in an attempt to get to a safe zone (flashbacks to the game anyone?). But even when it looks as if rescue is a breath away, things – as we know from the game – are not always as they seem. And this outbreak is NOT the Flu.

The Sacrifice is broken up into four parts, and with each section readers are given the back-story of each character. Can I just tell you how BLOODY MIND-BLOWING this story was? The entire time I was huddled over my computer screaming at the pages as if I was playing Left 4 Dead (if you have NOT PLAYED this game, you must do so NOW) on the console. It gave me the same exact adrenaline rush I got while playing the game. You never know whether someone will live or die, and the overwhelming feeling of death looms over you, page after page. It was exciting to say the least. Bill is still one of my favorite characters. He is a nutty over-the-top character with a death wish. He’s even better to read than to watch fumble around with his grenade loving, cigarette throwing self. Similarly, Francis is a funny character to read. He is so nonchalant I was dying with laughter from his smart-alecky remarks to Louis.

Zoe and Louis are also great additions. Louis is the type of character who would probably get you killed if there really was a zombie apocalypse. He tries to see the best in every situation without seeing the facts. But his banter back and forth with Francis kept me laughing and the whole time I was saying to myself, “better Francis than me”. And what would the story be without an a** kicking female character? Zoe, the character I always played in the game, was not as entertaining as the rest of the crew but she still had her moments and I was happy to read them.

I thoroughly enjoyed the back-stories. Each one brought some humor to the table, ordinary lives turned upside down in the blink of an eye. From their flashbacks you can see why our characters act the way they do. Louis was so worried about his job he was almost bitten while on the toilet. Zoe lost more than she could handle. Francis, well you will just have to read his story. And of course Bill, I just love Bill he is made of pure AWESOME! The art style is comparable horror wise to a graphic novel I reviewed in November, Crawl to Me. It’s gruesome, with tons and tons of blood and gore. Horror fans and adrenaline junkies will love it.

Overall, Left 4 Dead: The Sacrifice is gritty, overly bloody, and told with the same humorous one-liners that you expected in the game. I am head over heels in L-O-V-E with The Sacrifice. That statement might be a little fan-girl bias, but I promise, even if you have never played the game and you are just a fan of zombies, you will not be disappointed. I can’t wait to get my hands on the full graphic novel so I can dive into the other stories.… (mehr)