A reddit user pointed out that main characters of Left 4 Dead 2 don't actually know each others' names as the game begins, a detail many gamers might have missed the first time around.

Left 4 Dead 2 is the 2009 sequel to the original Left 4 Dead, developed by Valve (you know, back when Valve still made games). The game is a mostly cooperative multiplayer experience, with each player taking on the role of one of four survivors of a zombie outbreak. The game was well-regarded for its dialogue, which not only revealed a lot of character but helped direct the action, as well. Some of the best-written moments in the game were the interactions between the characters, as they went from being thrown together by chance to becoming close friends that relied on one another.

However, according to reddit user u/kwertyuoip (and everyone who paid better attention to the game's dialogue when it first came out), the game's protagonists were literally strangers to one another at the outset. In Dead Center, the game's first campaign (the one that begins on a rooftop and ends with stealing Jimmy Gibbs Jr.'s stock car), they didn't know each others' names; instead of referring to each other as Ellis, Rochelle, Nick, or Coach, they each get nicknames like "sharp dresser," "little guy," "sweetheart," or... well, just "coach."

It's only once they all gather in the relative safety of an elevator that they are able to take a breather and establish each others' names, and from that point on, the nicknames are largely done with.

More images can be found here.

Similarly, the special infected don't have consistent names until later in the story. The Charger is just a "big arm guy" until the Survivors know better, for instance.

The Left 4 Dead series was a delight - a multiplayer-focused game in an era before microtransactions became so rampant, with more bonus content given away for free than some modern games and their paid DLC put together. It also had one of the best video game trailers of all time.

It's been nearly 10 years since the original Left 4 Dead; nearly 9 since its sequel. Will we ever see more of the nearly-perfect coop shooter? We are in the midst of E3... maybe today is the day.