New Left 4 Dead Content Coming! Finally!

At this point, I think, there are two commonly accepted truths regarding Left 4 Dead about which I can avoid writing a boilerplate introduction.

• Left 4 Dead is freaking awesome.
• Left 4 Dead needs more content.

Valve just put out a release detailing their intentions to capitalize on the first point and rectify the second. The official Steam site has word of the first L4D DLC (L4DLC?) release, the Survivor Pack, and the development kit tools that will let intrepid modders make their own campaigns. And you know they will.

Here's the relevant dirt.

The first L4D DLC — dubbed the L4D Survival Pack -- is due for release this spring and introduces a new multiplayer game mode entitled, Survival, plus two complete campaigns for Versus Mode . A Critic's Choice Edition of the game will be heading to retail stores this spring, and will include access to all the content introduced in the L4D: Survival Pack.

In addition, for PC gamers and aspiring developers, the first Left 4 Dead release for the Source Software Development Kit (Source SDK) will allow the creation of custom Left 4 Dead campaigns that will be discoverable via L4D's matchmaking system. The SDK update is also due for release this spring, and is free of charge to all owners of L4D on the PC.

Say it with gusto! Survivor Pack! No new media out yet, or even the clever titles of the two campaigns, but I'm really excited about this thing, sight unseen. Two whole new scenarios and a new mode would breathe a lot of new life back into Left 4 Dead, and I'm not even tired of the existing content yet. Join me in looking foward to this, won't you?

UPDATE: In my excitement for this release I seem to have written this story in undue haste. First of all, it is, in fact, the Survival Pack. Not Survivor. Duh.

More distressingly, a careful reading of the phrasing in the release--specifically, "two complete campaigns for Versus Mode"--sounds more like Valve is patching in the ability to play the two existing campaigns Dead Air and Death Toll in Versus mode, since you couldn't before. I shot those guys a note asking for clarification on that, so I'll update again with the final word. Thanks to several comment peeps for bringing this to light.