The Zombie Apocalypse You've Been Craving
There's no storyline or levels, in the conventional video game sense. Instead, L4D2 offers up Campaigns, basically areas of a land that make up a city, amusement park, or swamp. The Campaigns levels are broken up with safe houses, stocked with guns/ammo/health. What there IS of a story is told through the survivors, as they speak of what they saw before they met up, as well as writings on the walls from other survivors (a genius way to plot a story).
The game's main focus is "teamwork", so having a group of close friends with you is suggested to get the best L4D experience you can get. Let's look at the things that make this apocalypse worth living through! (Based on a 5 asterisk standard)
-Graphics:*****. I really appreciate the graphics in this game. There are some areas that are so dark, you can't help but be frightened for the survivors- sure something is going to pluck you from the group at any moment. The survivors themselves, Rochelle, Coach, Ellis and Nick are very real- very relatable. And the facial animations are well done, as well. The zombies (or Common Infected, more correctly) are creepy looking- and their cranial areas pop just right with a head shot. And let's talk about the Special Infected- their detail, when you get a chance to awe over it, is perfect! The Spitter is grotesque, the Boomer is bulging and oozing with puss- it really is top notch. Even for an older game, the graphics are just as visually stunning as some of the other blockbusters available.
-Sound-*****. The sound in this game is just right. The music is somber and twangy, and seems quite unsettling at times. I, personally, would recommend turning the music off, and letting the environment be the only sounds you hear. You'll hear the common infected scream and screech, you'll hear Boomers gag and Smokers in the distance cough. You'll hear the sound of doors from somewhere you can't see being destroyed, meaning you'd better be ready: whatever came through it is coming for you. I also enjoy the conversations between the Survivors- at times trying to lighten the moment, others speaking of how badly they feel. This game isn't playing when it comes to the sound department.
-Mechanics-*****. I love L4D2's game play mechanics, as I feel it consistently has the sense of "urgency", and "Will I get through this?" You have to help (and be helped) if you or a teammate falls over an edge, or goes do. You can choose to heal your buddies, or keep the medkits for yourself. And the gimmicks on Campaigns will change- one time you might be filling up a race car to get the fu¢k outta the mall, the next you're running down a roller coaster in a creepy amusement park- trying to turn off the alarm that is calling the CI to dinner. The people that made this game knew what they were doing, and it shows in how seamless and addicting the game play is.
-Controls- *****. (I play with a 360 Controller) It's pretty basic and definitely intuitive. You have a button to fire and reload, one to shove enemies that are too close. The D-pad acts as your utility belt- pushing a certain direction will change a weapon or give you something to heal with. I highly recommend a 3rd person Mod- that's just me personally.
-Overall-*****. As a lifelong RE fan, I was a little skeptical when I was first introduced to L4D. I like the original, but didn't really think the survivors were all that likeable. When L4D2 came out, and it held a brand new cast of characters I actually cared about (seriously- I love all of them), I was ready to give it another shot.
I can't compare L4D2 to any RE, as that would be unfair to both titles. What I CAN say is that L4D2 is amazing on it's own merits- and I've played it more than I have RE at this point (and i've been with them since RE1). And on the PC, there are tons of custom Campaigns, weapons, zombies and characters available to the player, via the community. This game is a zombie enthusiast's "sure-thing".
++NOTE: A lot of people compare this to CoD. I wouldn't. I have never played CoD, but have been in the same room with it on the TV many of times. From what I've seen, I find this comparison incorrect because, to me, CoD is a hack of a military shooter, and it's "Zombie" counterpart is SO by the numbers and elementary that I had no interest when I was offered to try it out. I also feel that CoD is in no way creative, nor is it supporting creation. L4D is very creative- and it's developers support their modders. Only angry CoD fanboys, and fanboys angry at CoD will make this comparison. Tread lightly when this ensues- as with anything else.++