Valve has, most unexpectedly, released the official SDK this week, officially titled Left 4 Dead Authoring Tools. The SDK is still in beta, but we had a lot of fun tearing it open and playing with all the goodies inside nonetheless.

The updated version of Hammer still feels like the same ol’ Hammer we know and love. It has been redesigned, though, specifically for Left 4 Dead campaings, versus, and survival map editing. One of my favorite new features is that, once the model files are loaded, they stay loaded during a session. The SDK also comes with tons of example files to help newbies (such as us) get started. Read more

It’s hard to tell, but work behind-the-scenes continues at a rapid pace. The first level, entitled The Suburbs and which takes place amongst the sprawling McMansions of modern suburbia, is making some decent headway. The layout of the house is complete, though exterior detailing needs to be finished up. The interior is missing a few textures in doorways and windows, but it is otherwise finished. Read more