User:Cukie Gherkin/Witch

The Witch is a fictional monster in the Left 4 Dead series of video games.

Concept and creation

When asked of the story of the Witch, Left 4 Dead writer Chet Faliszek responded that she is "singular with her obsession" and that she punishes people who disturb her until she runs away to find a place to be alone again. In Left 4 Dead 2, the Witch was given a variation where, during the day, she would walk around, hand held in her hands.

Reception

The Witch has become a fan favorite among Left 4 Dead fans. Writer Ben Richardson noted her as one of the most unique aspects of Left 4 Dead. She was listed among the best video game monsters by GameSpot, while Paste Magazine's Carli Velocci included her in her list of the scariest video game monsters due to a combination of the stress from having to control gunfire and the music that plays when she is near. A reader poll by The Telegraph ranked Witch as one of the scariest video game monsters. Mashable writer Lauren Hockenson called disturbing the Witch one of the more stressful moments in video games, while writer Bobby Bernstein called the fear he experienced from the Witch "unrivaled." GameCrate's Rachel Sharpton called her crying one of the scariest sounds in video games and Game Revolution called her one of the scariest video game enemies for how powerful she is. In her discussion of the addition of female enemies to games, GamesRadar Zoe Delahunty-Lightpraised the Witch for being a "monstrous" female enemy whose monstrosity is not based on her gender. Fellow GamesRadar writers Andy Hartup and Ashley Reed called her one of the best video game witches, though noted that she was not actually a witch.