Earthfall’s likeness to Left 4 Dead provides the industry with much-missed co-op gameplay.

“There’s some ammo here!” an unknown voice exclaims in my ear. Three other random players and myself are linked via headphones. Strangers brought together in the innovation of a new experience; bound by our mission to activate the power system of a dam and survive waves of alien creatures. While I don’t know the people playing with me, I am immediately open with them: profanity and all. And we march onward toward our goal. Collaborating. Pointing out weapons to each other. Waiting. Planning. Discussing. Pushing each other through the chaos and calamity of a world scorned by a meteor-traversing army of aliens.

It’s this feeling of working towards a goal, often with people I don’t know, that I love about co-op games. They provide a sort-of hopeful light on the human psyche. We rely on each other to survive. We help each other. Despite the unknowing, despite our differences or distrust, in the face of goals (or survival) we will work together. And whether that collaboration stems from a selfish need to survive or something more mutual, it still benefits everyone involved.

Outside of providing a social experiment, co-op games are just generally a good time—especially the ones that require you to work together for survival. Valve found this when they released Left 4 Dead ten years ago. Techland tried to take the formula and revamp it with some Assassin’s Creed-level parkour in Dying Light. Now Washington-based developer Holospark is bringing it back—not afraid to flaunt its love for Valve’s original franchise without sacrificing originality.

Earthfall’s premise should sound familiar, because it is. Four player co-op. Progress map-centered campaigns. Hordes of enemies incessantly flooding your location. 1^st person camera with a range of weapons available. Satisfying headshots and rewarding grenade throws. Heroic moments of rescuing a teammate who makes poor-life choices. It’s a formula we know well, but unlike the formulaic Call of Duties that have been beaten to death, it’s one that still has much life left.

When my team and I started the demo at PAX EAST we had no weapons, but it only took a few minutes of exploring a lush forest landscape for us to gather an arsenal. Players can hold two weapons (primary and secondary)—a partner next to me chose a shotgun and pistol while I picked up a sniper and two pistols (secondary weapons can be duel-wielded). Later the arsenal spread into a flame-thrower type weapon with extremely satisfying results (i.e., aliens running around on fire, lighting other things on fire because fire), incendiary grenades, and mines. Outside of weapons there were also door barricades that could be selected and placed, as well as automatic turrets… both useful items when bunkering in a house to gather supplies or camp out part of the mission. All of these features create a fantastic combination of collaborative defense building and responsive combat. Outside of combat, you can resurrect teammates and heal using stim-packs or healing stations found throughout various buildings. Or you can stand over your dying teammate (who accidentally shot you in the head earlier) and laugh while he gets overrun by aliens. Hah. Loser.

The aliens themselves offer options of diversifying gameplay and are designed with attention to detail and art. Enemies range from the Whiplash, which uses its long neck to intimately grab your face before mercilessly carrying you away from the safety of your team, to a martian that explodes into clouds of poisonous gas (which does not explode if you light it on fire). There are aliens that sprint. Head-butt. Buff or call on others. Aliens that, when combined, create a chaotic swarm where communication, defense, and attack strategies become necessary to succeed.

Overall, Earthfall offers smooth and satisfying gameplay and a strong sense of what Left 4 Dead made us crave in the face of cooperative chaos. Currently the game will have two co-op campaigns of five maps each. While you can access the alpha of Earthfall now, the full title will be released in late spring on Steam, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4.