'Back 4 Blood' open beta guide: 3 tips and tricks to make you unstoppable

It’s time to get bloody. Back 4 Blood’s open beta is in full swing for those with early access.

Like Left 4 Dead, this cooperative zombie shooter can get quite tough as hordes of zombies close in on your team. While the odds are always stacked against you, bearing a few basic strategies in mind will give you a noticeable advantage as you fight your way through the open beta’s levels.

If you want to survive Back 4 Blood’s post-apocalyptic wasteland, here are three tips that you’ll need to know.

1. Choose your cards wisely

The Card System is the backbone of Back 4 Blood, so pay attention to it and engage with it. These cards all give you different boosts, skills, and more. Equipping the right cards to fit your playstyle is key.

If you’re going to be a support class or medic, get the cards that will let you carry more grenades, bandages, and first aid kits. If you’re going to be an assault gunner, cards that increase your ammo count or decrease your reload speed. Also, keep an eye on the Corruption Cards that can make your game tougher so you’ll know what you can expect.

Executive Producer Matt O’Driscoll tells Inverse that every card from the final game is in the beta, and you don’t have to worry about unlocking them all. That makes this a great time to test builds and see what works for you.

2. Always have a tool kit on hand

Between missions, your team can purchase items, upgrades, and weapons from vendors in the saferoom. While there are many types of grenades, healing items, and traps to buy, one item you’ll always want to have on hand is a tool kit. While this item seems inconsequential compared to the others, you need these to access secret areas.

Throughout almost every level in Back 4 Blood, you will find a door with a special marking on it that can only be accessible if someone uses a tool kit. Inside, you’ll find lots of free ammo, weapons, cards, and healing items. If you’ve just gone through a particularly tough encounter and are low on health, these rooms can be a godsend.

When Inverse played the beta for the first time, it took several levels for us to notice just how important these rooms are. Don’t make the same mistakes as us, and take advantage of these rooms as soon as you can.

3. Teamwork, Teamwork, Teamwork

If you’re going to play Back 4 Blood, try to communicate with your team via voice chat or the ping system as much as possible. The game can get tough, but if you work together you can find good team synergies and handle objectives in a more effective manner.

For example, there’s a setpiece where you must place bombs on a ferry and get out in time. Send two players in with the bombs, one in to protect the other two, and one player can stay on a turret outside of the ferry. There are multiple opportunities for good synergy like this throughout the Beta, so try to get some friends together before you start playing.

Back 4 Blood will be released on PC, PlayStation, and Xbox on October 12, 2021.