Game: Left 4 Dead 2

When the zombie apocalypse comes, the good people at Valve will definitely outlive us all (assuming they didn’t cause it that is). They already have plenty of experience in the zombie killing business thanks to the 2008 release of Left 4 Dead – and here we are just one year later, with L4D2! Valve took a lot of heat for launching a sequel so soon after the original dropped, but make no mistake, this is no expansion. There are new campaigns, new infected, new weapons, and new game modes to satisfy your craving for delicious brains.

The campaign mode is bigger and better this time around. There are five campaigns, spanning a variety of locations including a swamp, and a carnival full of zombie clowns – scary! Each campaign has a crescendo moment at the end, but this time around, instead of waiting for rescue, you have to perform tasks such as filling the gas tank to your getaway vehicle. The new sense of variety in the campaign mode is a welcome change.

Versus mode is pretty much the same as it was in the first game. Two teams face off against one another, in the various locations from the campaign mode, as either the survivors or the infected.  While the concept is the same as it was in the first game, the new infected make things more interesting in the second iteration. The Spitter spews large amounts of acid at he survivor,s which drains their health significantly. The Jockey can hop on a survivor’s back and steer them in whatever direction he so pleases. This is especially effective if you’re on a team that knows how to work together. There’s nothing more satisfying than steering a survivor toward a Boomer, so that when the others come to the rescue, everyone gets sprayed with zombie-attracting bile. The Charger runs straight toward a survivor, and if aimed correctly, will grab that survivor, and pound them mercilessly into the ground. If you liked versus mode in the first game, the new infected and new environments ensure you’ll love it in the sequel.

The new special infected also make survival mode immensely more challenging in L4D2. You still have to survive the zombie onslaught for as long as you can, but now you have to worry about teammates getting taken away by a Jokey, and Spitters dousing the entire party in acid. Fortunately, you have melee weapons at your disposal for those times when the zombie horde closes in around you. A few swings of the ax, or a couple slices with the sword can punch a hole in an otherwise impenetrable wall of zombies. With new weapons and new zombies, survival mode in L4D2 feels brand new, all over again.

If you ever thought to yourself “Left 4 Dead just isn’t realistic enough for me…” then you’re a tool! This is a game about a zombie apocalypse, not a deadly infection simulator. You may be a tool, but you’re a tool who’s views are well represented in the new realism mode. Headshots to the undead count way more than body shots, and if you’re downed, a team mate will have to revive you with a defibrillator rather than just picking you up off of the ground. Those pesky outlines that make small objects like pills and pipe bombs easy to find are gone too. You have to rely on your flashlight and your wits to stay stocked up. It’s a challenging way to play the game, but completing even one level feels extremely satisfying.

Fans of objective based gameplay will enjoy scavenge mode. Survivors are tasked with gathering gas cans and using them to fill up a generator, while the infected have to stop them. Each round is broken up into two matches. The team playing as the survivors in the first match sets the bar for how many gas tanks the other team has to get in the next match. The team to win the most rounds wins the game. Strategy plays a huge part for each team. As the survivors, it’s important to stay together, and move quickly and efficiently to the gas tanks scattered all over the map. As the infected, you have to find the best way to prevent the survivors from getting the gas cans to the generator. In one match, I was able to do this effectively by hiding behind the generator as a hunter, and pouncing on any lone survivor that came along with a gas tank. Whether you’re playing as the survivors or the infected, teamwork is key, and a strong team will experience some of the most satisfying victories in the history of gaming.

There’s one hideous blemish on the otherwise attractive face of Left 4 Dead 2 – the AI director. See, after the first game, the AI director was a star. He spent all his new found money on booze, drugs and women. After a few months, he blew through his cash wad, and was evicted from his apartment for not paying the rent. Things got tough for the AI director after that. He spent months on the streets doing whatever he could for a buck. Broke, homeless, and depressed, the AI director was thinking of ending it all when a Valve staffer informed him that they were making a sequel, and his efforts would be needed once again. He quickly sprang into action telling zombies where to spawn, and queuing up the special infected. He just wasn’t the same piece of software he used to be though. His time on the streets left him bitter towards the gamers that elevated him to star status, just a year ago. He couldn’t stand to think of them in their cozy homes with their fancy computers and gaming consoles. He decided he’d show them, and show them but good. What I’m trying to say through the power of story is that the AI director seems to have a chip on it’s shoulder this time. There wasn’t one part of one campaign that I didn’t have to play through multiple times, even with a good team. It crossed the line from difficult to frustrating. Difficult is fine – I like to be challenged, but getting smacked down every single time, regardless of how well my team performed, crosses the line into frustration.  After spending a few hours with the various campaigns, I began to genuinely wonder if a piece of software could feel hate, and if so, what I had done to the AI director to piss it off so hard.

If you can get past the hateful actions of the AI director, there’s a lot here to love. The new game modes are a great addition to an already solid game, and the new weapons and special infected make the modes from the first game feel new again. If you enjoyed the first game, L4D2 is sure to fill your days with zombie killing delight for years to come until Valve announces L4D3.