Back 4 Blood has developed an enthusiastic fanbase thus far, and many players are wondering if a new PvP mode is in the works for future expansions and new content. At this point in time, players on teams can attempt to outlast an opposing team on Swarm mode, but this remains the only style of versus players can engage in. Going forward, it does not appear a new versus mode is happening for Back 4 Blood, but it will contain a new co-op and solo offline mode.
Back 4 Blood’s competitive multiplayer consists of being on a team of four players. Each team is either a group of humans or a group of Ridden, a creature once human but now infected with the Devil Worm parasite. The human team’s objective is to survive the swarm, while the Ridden team’s objective is to eliminate all humans, and depending on whether a player is human or Ridden affects what attributes and/or weapons a player can choose or scavenge to defend or attack. The best of three rounds determines the winning team.
While many players of Back 4 Blood are looking forward to the release of new content and expansions during the next several months, perhaps one aspect of the game fans have most looked forward to was a new PvP mode, such as a versus campaign. In early November, Turtle Rock Studios announced its roadmap for releasing new content during the remaining months of 2021 and into early 2022 via Twitter. While this roadmap boasts plenty of new features and aspects, such as new solo offline mode, co-op mode, and player cards, the absence of a new versus mode may prove a losing gamble toward continuing the success of the game.
Back 4 Blood Will Not Bring Players A New PvP Mode
One reddit user, BioDomeWithPaulyShor, does point to a particular problem in Back 4 Blood Turtle Rock Studios might have in attempting to develop a new versus. “Adding a campaign versus mode would require the developers to pretty much completely overhaul the Special Ridden in the game to give them more unique abilities, because right now the Special Ridden serve very little purpose other than being a DPS check you backpedal from every minute or so.” Essentially, Back 4 Blood was never designed with the intention of being more than a survival game, and director Chris Ashton seems to have confirmed as much (if screenshots are to be believed) when asked by a player on Discord (as reported by RadiumPwd): “We have a lot of defensive equipment and our specials are good at ambushing. Defending worked far better for our game than running from A-B.”
Back 4 Blood's roadmap appears to further cement Ashton’s confirmation concerning the intended scope and direction of the game. It’s clear that Turtle Rock Studios will continue to stick to the formula that made Back 4 Blood successful early on. However, the next several months will determine if B4B’s expansions can make up for the absence of a new versus and if its developer made the right call in maintaining the status quo with its current PvP.
Next: Back 4 Blood Is Harder Than Intended & Will Be Fixed In Future Updates
Sources: Back 4 Blood/Twitter; BioDomeWithPaulyShor/Reddit; RadiumPwd/Reddit