Edge: Left 4 Dead's $10M Ad Campaign

Half-Life house Valve Software is counting on a horde of living dead and tight co-op play to rake in the cash this holiday season with the horror shooter Left 4 Dead.

But the studio is trying to leave as little to chance as possible, as the firm told Edge exclusively on Thursday it will be spending $10 million (£5.9m) on a consumer campaign that will incorporate television, online, print and outdoor advertising across the country. The game is slated to ship on November 17 on Xbox 360 and PC.

"People had really strong reactions to Left 4 Dead when we started showing it," said Valve managing director Gabe Newell in an interview. "Our pre-orders are running 60 percent ahead of Orange Box. This in combination with the fact that it is a new IP made us think that an extensive marketing program made a lot of sense."