Telltale’s The Walking Dead Began as Left 4 Dead Spin-Off

A new documentary reveals that Telltale Games’ iconic The Walking Dead was actually almost a Left 4 Dead game. Valve’s signature co-op zombie shooter was a massive hit in the late 2000s, resulting in an even bigger sequel which went on to be a core staple of the Xbox 360 era. Over the years, many have wished to see a Left 4 Dead 3, but like many of its other big franchises, Valve has yet to continue its series and it doesn’t seem like there are any plans to do so on the horizon. With that said, it seems like Telltale almost took the baton from Valve to expand on the world.

In a new documentary to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Telltale’s The Walking Dead, it was revealed that Telltale had been prototyping a new narrative-based Left 4 Dead game that would help expand the universe Valve had created. Ultimately, the game fell apart, but Telltale realized that it could probably repackage a lot of its ideas into The Walking Dead universe and take it from there. At that time, The Walking Dead was a successful comic book and by the time the game had released, the tv series was still in its second season. The Walking Dead hadn’t become a total cultural juggernaut that it is today, but the game likely helped create that.

Details of what a proper Left 4 Dead 3 would have been have popped over the years, with some of the most noteworthy suggesting it would’ve been an open-world game set in Africa. The game would’ve reportedly featured massive hordes of zombies akin to the ones seen in films like World War Z and eventually, games like Days Gone. As of right now, no one knows if Valve will ever pick the series back up. Ex-Left 4 Dead devs went on to make a spiritual successor in Back 4 Blood, which received a decent reception from fans and critics, but still isn’t really the follow-up fans have been waiting for.

Would you have liked to see Telltale’s Left 4 Dead game? Let us know in the comments below or hit me up on Twitter @Cade_Onder.