Difficulty:

Just Right

Time Spent:

10 to 20 Hours

The Bottom Line:

"Highly addictive"

Positive
- Hordes of infected to blast your way through
- Outstanding gameplay with a lot of guns and melee weapons
- Superb voice acting really bring the survivors to life
- 5 campaigns and 4 survivor, and an online plays which never lets down

Negative
- Easy to lose orientation

There is no need to be a big fan of FPS to enjoy this awesome shooter. Left 4 Dead 2 is by far the best FPS I ever played, packed with a lot of fun. There is no need to play the original because it seems more of an improved version than a sequel. Left 4 Dead 2 is a zombie apocalypse for anyone looking for something fun, extremely well done, and includes dozens of our of replay value.

Left 4 Dead 2 is made up of 5 campaign and 4 new survivors. No particular story of amazing cutscenes to write at home about, but the survivors look very realistic, and the fantastic voice acting really brings them to life. Hordes of infected zombies will come at you and you of course have to blast your way through them. Unlike Resident Evil, zombies come at you at full speed so you must have good reflexes to keep up. Common zombies shouldn't be a big problem to deal with, and special infected like chargers, boomer, jockey can cause you damage and sometimes you will need help from your companions. Friendly AI isn't flawless, but they heal and revive you and also help when you get assaulted by infected. There is no saving data in the game, but there are check points so progress can't be saved. It is easy to use orientation since the level design is a bit confusing and no map either. You can start from any checkpoint you want from the map, and select your difficulty and survivor.

Weapons in the game are plenty. Melee weapons like baseball bats, chainsaw can be found, and equipped together. Numerous guns such as pistol, machine gun are easily found. At the beginning of each stage you can choose weapons, and your comrades can take, so sometimes they might take what you might have wanted. You can also carry one healing item and throw able item. Comrades can heal and you can do the same. Even if you die they revive you.

The game's shooting mechanisms are neatly done. The gameplay is easy to get used to. Armies of countless infected will come at you and depending on the difficulty the length of easy campaign. Difficulty varies from easy to expert so there is something for everyone. Special infected have more health than ordinary infected, some of which you might don't want to encounter, such as the Witch which doesn't attack you, but does some screaming and if you can avoid hitting her it would be best because she can easily kill a survivor. Chargers, as their name suggest come charging in and blow you away. Boomers are big and fat infected which vomit on you and the vomit attracts a ton of infected. Splitters spit goo and do a lot of damage to the survivor that step on the goo. Jockey is the most common and it is the fastest of all. They are difficult to hit and if they hitch a ride on you, your comrades need to help. When you are giving him a ride, your player will move and sometimes move so far that you will die. Other 3 survivors will follow you through this survival game so think yourself as the leader. After the end of each checkpoint, the game displayed score of how much infected you have killed, who did most damage with melee weapons and others.

Online is yet another thing which is appealing in Left 4 Dead 2. Playing a campaign with a friend could be more fun, but that depends on who you are. Offline gameplay is a bit limited though for solo players. Some slowdowns are a bit of a hindrance online, but lowering resolution could help. There are different types of matches online. You can play as a survivor and fight against human controlled infected or play as an infected and kill the survivors. There is a lot to enjoy online.

Left 4 Dead 2 is quite a looker. Everything looks great to the bone. Environments look awesome but tend to repeat themselves and you can easily move around in circles because there is no map to guide you. Though the level design changes after completing an area. The models are fantastic as well. They follow and can their AI is quite good as well. Although you can pass through them. The infected are awesome. They come at you at full speed and their variety is excellent. The voice acting is impressive and terrific and really brings the character's personalities to life. No particularly engaging story and almost no cutscenes but the voice acting is absolutely some of the best around. Low on music, but the sound effects are incredible.

It should take quite some time to fully complete the whole game. There is a survival mode and versus mode to home your skill, and the campaign takes a good amount of time to fully complete. Adding multiple difficulties and online play, Left 4 Dead 2 is a superb package. This shooter offers something for everyone and is a lot of fun. If you consider killing zombie a part of your daily duties, you mustn't miss this game.

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Graphics = 9.2
Impressive. Aside from some confusing level design, everything is awesome. Infected are awesome.

Sound = 8.8
Low on music, but the voice acting is some of the best around. Sound effects are a bomb.

Presentation = 8.4
No particular cutscenes unfortunately and can't save your game. The menu design could have been better as well. Online is made for everyone and packs some good time.

Gameplay = 9.5
Even those who don't like shooters, many are bound to enjoy this game. 4 playable characters, a lot of guns and melee weapons, and hordes of infected to blast your way through.

Modes = 8.7
Limited offline options, opposed but great online support. 5 campaigns take time to complete and multiple difficulties offer something for everyone.


OVERALL = 89 / 100
This outstanding shooter offers a lot of ways to enjoy a zombie apocalypse.