Left 4 Dead 2

Left 4 Dead 2

Left 4 Dead 2 PC

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars expands the basic gameplay of the previous game
The polished successor to last year’s hit “Left 4 Dead”, Left 4 Dead 2 expands the basic gameplay of the previous game and adds several new features to the mix. The game provokes mixed feelings, on one hand coming out only a year after the original L4D (which didn’t receive much downloadable content) and on the other hand being full of enough new content to justify a sequel.

Like the first L4D, the game puts players in the shoes of four survivors of a zombie apocalypse. The survivors battle waves of the infected to move from one safe area to another. In L4D, the tools used by the survivors were primarily guns and explosive objects like pipe bombs and fuel cans. One of L4D’s shortcomings was that it never really felt like “survival” – ammo could be found easily, and you were never really short on resources.

L4D2 keeps the basic premise – pistols still have infinite ammo, occasional caches of ammo can be found – but generally increases the scarcity of resources to make for a tenser survival experience. In addition, the choice of weaponry is greatly increased from L4D: in addition to a wider range of guns (rather than the 7 offered in L4D, 3 of which were an improved version of the other 3) there are also melee weapons. These allow for close-range damage without needing to reload. There are also more tools and items to be found, like adrenaline that increases your action speed, “boomer bile” which causes the infected to fight amongst themselves, and ammo boxes that make your guns shoot burning or explosive ammunition.

In addition, there are occasional “special infected” with unique abilities who will show up to attack. In L4D, these were the “hunter”, who pounced on his prey, the “smoker”, who strangled them with his long tongue, and the “boomer”, who covered survivors with zombie-attracting bile. In addition, the “tank” (a physical powerhouse) and the “witch” (a super-powerful zombie who could be avoided if the survivors were careful) also made less-frequent appearances. In L4D2, these special infected are joined by the “spitter”, who launches gobs of area-covering acid, the “charger”, who rams into survivors and pummels them, and the “jockey”, who jumps on a survivor and attempts to steer them into nearby hazards. The new special infected affect the balance of the game overall – the spitter forces survivors to keep moving instead of holing up in one spot and the jockey uses environmental hazards to his advantage. The charger is a little annoying, because even if you spot it early, unlike the other special infected it can take so many bullets that you usually end up getting hit anyways.

There are five campaigns, all with much more unique layouts than the campaigns in L4D. “Dead Center” is a fight through a shopping mall, “Dark Carnival” takes place in an amusement park, “Swamp Fever” sees the survivors attempting to get through the bayou, “Hard Rain” involves a two-way trip to get gas during a major thunderstorm, and finally “The Parish” puts you on the streets of New Orleans attempting to reach the last helicopter out. The maps are all much more fleshed out than they are in L4D, and due to the expanded list of items and bonuses in the game there’s much more potential benefit to exploring out-of-the-way locations like abandoned houses. There’s also more choice in route, though the paths are always ultimately linear. The campaigns on the whole feel much more unique and thematic than their L4D counterparts, and there’s a distinct flavor to each of them.

There are more game modes than in L4D. In addition to the regular campaign (human players versus ai-controlled infected), survival (players hold out for as long as they can in one area), and the versus mode (player-controlled survivors versus player-controlled special infected), there’s also realism mode (a campaign wherein many elements like glowing silhouettes are disabled, making it harder for players to find each other without good teamwork) and scavenge mode (where players try to collect gas cans and bring them back to a central location). The versus mode is much more fun than in L4D because of the new special infected, but the new game modes are sort of iffy.

Overall, L4D2 is a great game – much improved over its predecessor – but it still feels like it’s lacking a lot. The new melee weapons are all basically identical, so there’s no real sense of scavenging or anything like that. Everything from a fire axe to a cricket bat is completely capable of tearing apart a zombie with one swing. The new guns are a little better – I liked the idea of adding a grenade launcher that has non-replenishable ammo – but they’re so easy to find that there’s still really no tension. Basically, though, the game is an action game, not a survival game. If you want to have fun playing cooperatively with your friends, L4D2 is probably the best game to do it with.

Rating: 9/10.

5 Stars runs much faster than the 360 version
Valve did a good job on the pc version of this game, still I wish there were higher settings for effects like explosions which look particularly weak, especially when compared to the cool new fire effects on molotovs.

5 Stars Its More of What I Loved!
First of all, you should know that I absolutely loved the first game, having played well over 500 hours worth, mostly all in Online Campaign mode. I loved the atmosphere, the characters, the smooth game-play, and the long-awaited return of awesome co-op shooter greatness!

In a way, it reminds me of that classic arcade game from the 80’s, Gauntlet. A lot of the simple fun from that game hits the same chord with me here- Different but similar characters with a bit of humor. Grab all the nifty loot you can, run around, and shoot almost everything with wild abandon! That type of frantic, team game-play has always been just right up my alley!

That said, L4D2 is simply more of the same thrills, with some major improvements, and a few things that could be a bit better. But I’ve already logged in tons of hours, again, all in co-op mode. I keep finding myself trying to squeeze in a couple levels of zombie slaughter all the time whenever I get even just a few minutes. In particular, it is great for de-stressing from a tough day at work!

How can I play the same levels so often? I love the randomization. Every time you play, the zombies come at you from somewhere different, and the guns and goodies are random too, which forces you to PLAY differently every time too. And in my opinion, the best part is your three teammates. Every time, THEY are different too. Sometimes skilled, and sometimes noobs, but when you land on a good team all working together and using microphones? It is a great experience, plain and simple.

Now, as I said, some things are better then LFD1, and some are not quite as good. Here are some impressions:

My biggest problem right now, is a known bug that causes me to minimize to desktop. No error msg- It is almost as if I’ve hit my windows key, but I always get rid of that key. Then I just hit the button on the task bar, and it gets me back into my game. It usually takes about 15 seconds, and it usually happens at the worst possible point in the game. There seems to be a few crashes like this that they are working on, but I haven’t really run into anyone that has had the exact same problem, so maybe its me… :/ However, I am sure they will patch it up soon.

Difficulty: In L4D1, I usually stuck with advanced, but that was usually too easy for me, but Expert was MUCH harder, and I didn’t usually survive. In L4D2, normal seems as tough as advanced was in 1, with advanced being a much tougher too, but it is still easier then Expert used to be. Expert in L4D2 is just way beyond me.

Guns: LOVE THEM. PERIOD. Grenade launcher, both sniper rifles, shot guns, machine guns, pistols, CHAINSAW, the katana, and the machete! A lot of people tend to run around like morons with the melee weapons from time to time, and that can be annoying, but if you clip them a few times, they stop jumping in front of your line of fire so often. But bottom line, the new weapons and melee options are a brilliant improvement. The only way they could step it up even further might be a flamethrower!

New characters: Ehhh… not too impressed. Ellis and the Coach can be funny at times, but Nick comes across as a shady back-stabbing type of guy that could get interesting, and you want to see where they go with him, but nothing comes of it. Rochelle simply has no personality at all. If you are like me, you’d like to see Valve put Frances in every L4D game from now on, and I think I miss Zoey a bit too!

New special infected: My favorite is the Charger- he fits in great, and the Spitter is OK. Both add nice dimensions to the game-play by causing the group to scatter when they are bunched up. The Jockey, however, drives me up a wall. He comes out of nowhere, and then he is riding on your head and steering you away from your team. If your team is decent, it usually isn’t a problem, but it is SO frustrating, when there is no chance for you to prevent him from getting you, and your team is a bunch of ding-dongs. There is no way to bump him back like you can do with the Hunter just as he is about to pounce on you. While all the other special infected are fun to fight, and just offer challenge, when HE comes at you around a corner, all you can do is just throw your hands in the air and wait.

The new campaigns: Great additions! I enjoyed them all pretty thoroughly. They add great new environments and atmosphere, and introduce some situations that really make you play differently then you had to in LFD1. The ones I go back to the most are Dark Carnival, which takes place at a cheesy little amusement park, and Dead Centre, which involves a Shopping Mall and my favorite finale.

Game-play modes: As I said, I am hopelessly addicted to Co-op mode. I’d like to enjoy another one, but nothing has jumped out at me yet. Survival and Realism mode seem good, but it seems way too tough to get a good team together there, and as far as Verses mode goes- I like playing against live enemies, but I just don’t enjoy playing AS the infected, no matter how many times I’ve tried. Plenty of people do, however, so you should certainly give it a go!

In short, this game is more Left 4 Dead heaven. And after I brief period where certain things had to grow on me a bit, I learned how to handle the new challenges, and I finally don’t need L4D1 anymore. The new guns and graphics are THAT much better. I know some people have been upset that Valve put out a sequel rather then giving us way more free content for the first game, but MY main lament (or hope), is that maybe they will update L4D1 to the NEW guns, special infected and difficulty settings as a treat. I’m starting to miss the old levels and characters, but I don’t want to go back to the old, boring guns and special infected- Ya know? I promise you I will buy L4D 3 right away too- Valve is still on fire!

4 Stars Still Good, Just Not as Great
I have to admit, I was disappointed with this game. Everything should be right: the gameplay’s still the same, the missions have some great concepts and great event triggers, the new weapons and accessories are amazingly fun. And yet… somehow, it just doesn’t come together in the unforgettable way the original did. I’d chalk it up to level design, which is sometimes pointlessly confusing, and to level length. Some of the levels just stop being fun before they’re done, and just become a slog to the end. The swamp levels in particular suffer from this.

Still, the game has some epic moments. Mowing down infected the first few times you get the chainsaw is sure to make you giggle with glee, and it’s so easy to feel like a hero when you’re barricading a door, ninja sword in hand, holding back the horde while your team heals.

If you’ve got a group of friends who work as a tight team, this game will test your abilities. If you have friends who tend to play a bit looser, a bit more lone-wolf, expect to be occasionally frustrated.

4 Stars Left 4 Dead Too?

Black Friday came and went , and so was a opportunity to snag this title for $20 less than retail mfg price.

If you liked the first game and wanted an upgrade , and a change of scenery look no further , your game has arrived.

If your looking for a deep experience in gaming

sorry this isnt it , the single player camnpaign can be completed in less than 90 minutes , and that was on medium.

The graphics textures have been boosted , and the scenario is now set in the South with a new cast of survivors, Coach (large black male with baseball cap) ,

Rochelle (gangsta type black female lead),

Nick (Don Johnson type white male), and Ellis (redneck type resembles Team Fortress 2’s scout).

The graphics of the game improved and the game is set in a southern town that is under goverment quarrantine, mistaking the new form of rabies

that causes infected condition for a FLU ,

the national guard is busy bombing the city and

every now and then while playing you’ll hear jets bomb the areas as ambient noise. Most of the maps occur in daylight , which is my biggest issue with the sequel,

DAYLIGHT is not scary ,

and just because the zombie models look uglier

and grotesque does not make them scary. Valve sacrificed a claustrophobic fear of the unknown in this sequel, shooting zombies feels like a chore at times,

and it feels routine.

Also I feel at present , in versus the hordes just dont seem to amount to much in the game , as a special infected player the balance of the game is favoring the 4 humans ,

this is a big issue for both sides because it makes the game feel “rushed”, hopefully others are seeing this and Valve will fix it in a patch.

New weapons and items: Not just a few new guns , but also melee weapons , Katana swords, machetes, baseball bats, and frying pans (and even a garden gnome statue) ,

the new weapons do not disappoint they are a vast improvement over old l4D’s stock , incendiary bullets , explosive rounds can be added, as well as ‘uber cool

laser site add-on . Death is no longer a handicapp , as shock paddles can bring back dead players provided they are not dropped from a height and un reachable, the

drawback is you sacrifice a health kit slot to equip it. Valve listened to the fans and included the zombie movie favorite weapon of choice , the CHAINSAW as melee

weapons go it’s the ultimate but limited to a fuel gauge that runs out , but is the survivor equivalent to becoming a Tank special infected when you use it.

New special infected added :

Jockeys ; little troll infecteds that jump on your face and ride you into the hordes until removed , very nasty.

Spitters: The Boomer has a girlfriend , she looks like Britney Spears on a bad day silver bra and hot pants long neck,

they spit acid pools at long distance and when shot leave a acid pool behind.

Chargers : a mini tank , like a Rhyno these hulks come crashing in a straight path and if they connect , start pummeling

a survivor with it’s one massive fist.

HAZMAT: not a special but a infected Hazardous Material agent that is wearing a protective fire proof suit , along with

the Riot Cops in the game killing one of these guys is not as easy as most infecteds.

WITCH: Shes back and now she doesnt just cry in a corner waiting to be headshotted, she moves and roams her area , she’s still best

left alone .

So, in a nutshell a worthy sequel with the same exact gameplay , and new characters and weapons, still kind of fun , but lacking

in some departments , unless Valve comes up with a fantastic way to innovate the game , I cant see them doing number 3 any time

soon , the old player created problems still persist , rage quitting by players too immature to accept defeat, friendly fire on purpose to grief

your team , finding servers with players with half decent pings , and technical issues like sound card crashing unique to this game.

The best word I can describe this game is GRATUITOUS , violent to a extreme , not a game for kids under 16 please , but for mature adults a nice stress release after a hard day at work with friends , for potential buyers familiar with the old game , you should buy this game when it’s on sale , it’s

not a bad sequel and certainly ups the ante from the previous game .

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