With Left 4 Dead 2, Valve’s showing its full hand. It’s going all out. After all, with no other major franchise to help line the developer’s pockets, what other choice does it have?

“We’ll be supporting Left 4 Dead 2′s launch with a $25 million campaign,” said Doug Lombardi, Valve’s vice-president of Marketing. “Left 4 Dead 2 has already set the record for greatest number of pre-orders in our company’s history, and we’re still over a month out from shipping.”

“Based on the strength of pre-orders, Left 4 Dead 2 will be the fastest-selling product in Valve’s history,” said Gabe Newell, president of Valve. “Left 4 Dead 2 has consistently run at 300% of Left 4 Dead’s numbers.”

So yeah, Left 4 Dead 2 – no pressure.

Now if only Valve tried its hand at building up another series – perhaps something with, say, physicists and small crablike creatures that reside on or around the head. They could be called… cranium crustaceans! Too bad Valve hasn’t been keeping a sequel to a crazy idea like that under wraps for nearly three years. [via MaximumPC.com]