Scoring suggestion for the Infected.

[QuotidianTemerity]

We've received very little information on the scoring system that has been implemented in L4D. It is probable that there are two separate scoring systems; one for the Survivors, and another for the Infected. Chances are that the Survivors' scoring system basically entails informing the player that "Ur ded lol" or adjacent, whereas that of the Infected is more complex. Seeing as we know very little of said scoring systems, it may seem asinine to post a "suggestion" thread. Well, this is more of a "pliz implementt dis b4 j00 relis teh gaem".

Now, it's no secret that playing as Infected will be challenging. Supposedly the developers are working on improving upon that predicament, but I expect no miracles, nor do I really want any; players will undoubtedly have a difficult time adjusting to the Infected playstyle(s).
I reasoned that in order alleviate this, a proper scoring system should be implemented - and the system I propose is more or less a twin of that found in The Battle Grounds. (http://www.bgmod.com/)
In BG, it's fairly difficult to actually kill enemy players. If you've played the mod, you'll know what I mean. Rather than getting points for kills, however, the players are awarded for wounding enemy players! As there are no medics in BG, decimating an enemy's health without actually killing him is still a major contribution to one's team's efforts - as it is in any game. No other game I know of awards this as well as BG, however.

Now, think of the implications of implementing this in L4D.
Let's say you're a Boomer. You're fat (always a detriment), slow, and your lifespan in combat is measured in µseconds. If you somehow do get close to the survivors, or manage to ambush them, it's still unlikely that you'll actually kill them, unless you're supported by your fellow infected.
However, if one of the survivors is foolish enough to fire at you while you're in the near vicinity of his teammates, you'll explode in a violent exothermic reaction, severely damaging maybe one or two survivors.
These survivors, who are now possibly crippled or fatally wounded, will be needing medpacks - and once those have been used, they're permanently gone.
I'm hoping that you can see how awarding these unsuccessful attempts at killing the survivors is beneficial. It makes for very satisfying gameplay, as even though you didn't quite get that one survivor, you gave him one hell of a fight - and got a few points for it too.

[Reptile]

2 points for a kill, 1 point for puking on someone, or exploding near him, strangling him or pouncing on him?

The scoreboard would have "Score - Kills - Deaths - Latency".

Edit: Or 3 points for a kill, 2 for using a special attack and 1 for wounding a survivor.

[GuStick]

This idea is awsome

[Dead Fish]

Nice to see a post that has got some effort put into it. And I agree with you about the scoring system. The odds for a single Boss versus the Survivor team are very uneven, so actually hurting them is a contribution too. Also, this probably helps ceep up the pace of the game, since Boss Infected are encouraged to make full use of their limitless spawning instead of planning out every move in much detail, which would be another valuable strategy.

Maybe they have already implemented a similar system, who knows. :)

[Puscifer]

if u can drop in the middle of the survivours u will have time to cover 2 - 3 of them with vomit, and get in a few melee attacks:P

combine this with there other boss infected attacks and u can cause chaos for the survivours;P

[frogopus]

The merit/demerit/achievement system is implemented for both Survivors and Infected. Along with keeping track of infected killed (including a break down on each boss), this report card shows how you behaved with med kits, friendly fire, and the like. For Infected, merits are rewarded for successful attacks. For example, it will show how many times you pounced on a Survivor as a Hunter. I'll quote a section from our hands on that I think shows that you'll be getting just what you're asking for:

"The Infected merits are achieved by successfully connecting with an attack: hit with your melee and you get a merit, explode on a Survivor and get another merit. If this seems unnecessary, it isn't. Let this be an example of how difficult it can be to play the Infected well. Also, as the Infected get far fewer kills than the Survivors do, breaking down the Infected successes like this is a great way to see just how much a player is contributing to the mayhem."

[QuotidianTemerity]

The merit/demerit/achievement system is implemented for both Survivors and Infected. Along with keeping track of infected killed (including a break down on each boss), this report card shows how you behaved with med kits, friendly fire, and the like. For Infected, merits are rewarded for successful attacks. For example, it will show how many times you pounced on a Survivor as a Hunter. I'll quote a section from our hands on that I think shows that you'll be getting just what you're asking for:

"The Infected merits are achieved by successfully connecting with an attack: hit with your melee and you get a merit, explode on a Survivor and get another merit. If this seems unnecessary, it isn't. Let this be an example of how difficult it can be to play the Infected well. Also, as the Infected get far fewer kills than the Survivors do, breaking down the Infected successes like this is a great way to see just how much a player is contributing to the mayhem."

Terrific!

[Reptile]

The merit/demerit/achievement system is implemented for both Survivors and Infected. Along with keeping track of infected killed (including a break down on each boss), this report card shows how you behaved with med kits, friendly fire, and the like. For Infected, merits are rewarded for successful attacks. For example, it will show how many times you pounced on a Survivor as a Hunter. I'll quote a section from our hands on that I think shows that you'll be getting just what you're asking for:

"The Infected merits are achieved by successfully connecting with an attack: hit with your melee and you get a merit, explode on a Survivor and get another merit. If this seems unnecessary, it isn't. Let this be an example of how difficult it can be to play the Infected well. Also, as the Infected get far fewer kills than the Survivors do, breaking down the Infected successes like this is a great way to see just how much a player is contributing to the mayhem."

Just gotta love that system. I hope we get achievements too!

[OBLITROX]

hope we get achievements too!

Do you have the 360 because the 360 does have achievments for stuff like that.

[QuotidianTemerity]

Do you have the 360 because the 360 does have achievments for stuff like that.

Achievements have been confirmed. TRS (or VALVe, rather) can also add new achievements, which isn't possible on the 360 due to Microsoft's idiocy.

[Reptile]

@Oblitrox: Nope. I was kinda hoping they'd put achievements for the PC version (too). Like, "Succesfully kill a boomer" or "Kill a tank without getting hit", "Kill a witch", "Give your friend your medkit", and things like that. I would like them a lot, they'd keep me playing for a lot longer.

Edit: Quotidian, for PC or XBox?

[frogopus]

Nope. I was kinda hoping they'd put achievements for the PC version (too). Like, "Succesfully kill a boomer" or "Kill a tank without getting hit", "Kill a witch", "Give your friend your medkit", and things like that. I would like them a lot, they'd keep me playing for a lot longer.

Edit: Quotidian, for PC or XBox?

Reptile, the merit/demerit system is implemented on the PC. In fact we haven't seen the xbox but assume it will be similar, just related to the 360 achievement system as well. So you will see this list of achievements and merits and they are permanently attached to your character. So before a game, I can check out your history and see just how you handle yourself and whether or not you're prone to team fire or what have you.

http://www.left4dead411.com/left-4-dead-preview-pg 7 (http://www.left4dead411.com/left-4-dead-preview-pg7)

[QuotidianTemerity]

Nope. I was kinda hoping they'd put achievements for the PC version (too). Like, "Succesfully kill a boomer" or "Kill a tank without getting hit", "Kill a witch", "Give your friend your medkit", and things like that. I would like them a lot, they'd keep me playing for a lot longer.

Edit: Quotidian, for PC or XBox?

Sigh, there are achievements, just like on the 360. TF2 featured them, and it's extremely improbable to suggest that L4D won't.

[dontleave]

... *downloads Battlegrounds again*

[Reptile]

Sigh, there are achievements, just like on the 360. TF2 featured them, and it's extremely improbable to suggest that L4D won't.

Thank you for making it clear.

[Chronos]

The game will definitely have a good infected scoring system. Don't worry about it.

[hooray for zombies]

Given that it's been stated that the boss infected are not there to kill the survivors outright (though it can happen.) Plus that they're also more suited for quick hits which cause chaos rather than full out warfare, I think an infected scoring system in the vein of this concept would be both the simplest to understand and the most rewarding for the players. Thumbs up all the way (though I was rather tempted to vote for the second option due to the way it was phrased. Quotidian, why do you tempt us so?)

[Armored_Zombie_Cow]

didnt they already implement this into TF2?
i noticed that when some1 dies it says all the player who contributed to his death

i just checked the battle grounds 2 mod site.
any1 have it? i was thinking of dl-ing it; that is, the hl2 mod, not the old 1