Nobody likes a whiner. Surprisingly, the best character lore in gaming comes from one. Meet Nick, a protagonist of “Left 4 Dead 2.”
Nick is one of four survivors in a zombie apocalypse who misses an Evac point in Savannah, Georgia, and goes to the last one in New Orleans, Louisiana. He notably sports an expensive white suit, donning the persona of a rich man.
As a kid, I thought Nick was a doctor judging from his white suit, but the only doctor he resembles is Dr. House. He only speaks in sarcasm and negative comments.
A strength of “Left 4 Dead 2” is storytelling without cutscenes or direct explanation. No character’s lore compares to Nick’s because of his shady past, which you learn through environmental interaction and dialogue.
Let’s begin with what’s obvious: Nick is a complete jerk when it comes to his teammate interactions.
During the first campaign, Dead Center, he expresses hate for the South. Thus, his relationship with Ellis, a redneck mechanic, is the weakest. Don’t believe me?
When Ellis says, “Looks like the whirly-bird was heading to the mall,” Nick responds, “You call that thing a whirly-bird one more time, I’ll beat you so bad, your sister’s gonna wish she never gave birth to ya!”
His bond with Coach, the group’s leader-figure, is more stable. Nick respects him during the campaign but occasionally mocks his weight. Coach tells him to shut up when he mouths off, though.
Rochelle receives most of his respect, almost like she’s a priority. Her being the only woman in the group, that may be exactly why. If Rochelle dies and Nick finds her body, one possible response is, “There goes repopulating the Earth.” Besides that, Nick has barely anything terrible to say to her.
Locational interactions explain Nick’s criminal history, with Dead Center initially dropping hints. In the first chapter, he barely introduces himself, only saying, “Name’s Nick, and that’s all you need to know.”
Upon grabbing a gun in the second chapter’s gun-store, he says, “I’m not legally allowed to own a gun, hope everyone’s OK with that.” This implies that he is a convicted felon, as felons are stripped of their right to bear arms.
This idea is extended by one intro to The Passing campaign, starting with Rochelle saying, “I can’t believe you used to be a con artist.”
Other dialogue alerts you to possible crimes he’s committed.
When Nick takes a baton off a SWAT zombie, he admits to theft when he says, “I used to steal these from cops back in high school.” He also says, “This feels good” when holding a crowbar, echoing possible burglary. What’s unique is that he wears a ring bearing a gang symbol that Francis from the original survivors has as a tattoo.
Some clues hint to murder/assault. During Dead Center, he says, “Don’t worry, I’ve done this before,” when healing someone.
In Swamp Fever, he says, “Brains wash out, swamp water doesn’t.”
Similarly, when seeing the Bride Witch in The Passing, he says it’s “not easy to get blood out of a wedding dress.”
Picking up a bat, Nick comments, “This brings back some good memories.” Coach then asks if he’s played baseball, and Nick replies, “Nope. Bouncer at a club.”
Nick also has a complicated history with women. He’s covered in rings and hickeys, but relationship issues definitely show when he deals with Witches.
If Nick startles a Witch, he screams, “This b**** is chasin’ me!” while running. When he finds the Bride Witch, he says the situation “brings back bad memories.” The standout example is in Hard Rain where the group enters a sugar mill full of Witches. Given how crying is normal in a Witch’s behavior, he says, “I bet they’re all crying because I dumped them all!”
All that being said, Nick isn’t heartless. He’s remorseful if he accidentally incapacitates a teammate, reviving them afterwards.
He also shows sympathy for the original survivors in a secret dialogue exchange with Francis after finding Bill’s corpse, saying he’s “sorry for his loss.” Francis tells him, “There’s not many of us left, brother,” and Nick responds, “I’m starting to get that feeling myself.”
Nick even has a change of heart for Ellis in dire circumstances. If Ellis dies in Dead Center before introducing himself, Nick carelessly says, “No time for mourning, let’s go,” but if everyone except Nick dies later on, he tells Ellis’s body, “Hey Ellis, you know all those things I said? I was kidding.”
It’s amazing what can be done with just interactions, which makes Nick a complex character. His negativity and white suit cover up someone full of intrigue who’s incomparable to several video game characters today.
