Back 4 Blood is finally coming out. It was first announced in March of 2019, and players have been waiting with bated breath since Back 4 Blood's delay and very successful open beta.
Turtle Rock Studios hasn't been shy about how Back 4 Blood is a successor to Left 4 Dead. But there is a major difference in these games' design philosophies: how they approach playable characters.
In the Left 4 Dead games, the only difference between the characters were their appearances and dialogue. By contrast, each of Back 4 Blood's characters have different stats and abilities.
Doc's Abilities
One of the more useful characters, especially for newer teams, is Doc, Back 4 Blood's designated healer. While every character can heal using healing kits, Doc can heal low-health characters for free. She also passively increases Team Trauma Resistance, so any group having trouble surviving should add her to the lineup.
There is a snag, however. Doc isn't available in the starting character lineup. The only characters available in the beginning are Walker, Mom, Holly, and Evangelo. That being said, it's pretty easy to unlock the rest of the cast, so players shouldn't have to go long without her.
Unlocking Doc
Back 4 Blood is a game that's split into acts, and each act is further split into levels. The first act, "The Devil's Return," is only 4 levels long, and acts both as the game's introduction and tutorial.
The Devil's Return ends with a particularly violent ferry ride to the game's main base of operations: Fort Hope. Once the players arrive there, they'll be treated to a cutscene introducing the other half of the cast: Doc, Kaylee, Hoffman, and Jim. From there, each one is available in the character select screen before each mission.
It's disappointing that the whole cast isn't available from the start. That being said, if a player is dead set on playing a healer in act 1, they have options. Walker passively increases team health by 10%. Mom can instantly revive a downed teammate once each level, and has a bonus inventory slot that can be used for healing kits.
In the end, though, players shouldn't rely too heavily on healing. Like Left 4 Dead, Back 4 Blood has an A.I. director, which alters the number of enemies and supplies throughout each run. If players are taking too much damage, the director might ease up on the difficulty, and if they're getting healed too frequently, it might make things more hectic.
Back 4 Blood releases on October 12, 2021, for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.