So realistic, your jaw will drop.
STORY
Left 4 Dead' s story is best described as intense, from beginning to end. You take the role of 4 survivors who have survived 2 weeks in a zombie infested town. There's one objective - to get out alive. The characters, depending on which you play, is unique in the way they interact with their surroundings. While each handles a gun with equal efficacy, their personalities are truly unique. For example, as one character nears death, she says "Oh my god...I'm gonna die" and you can hear the fear in her voice. Another character says, "Looks like I'm goin home in a box", almost shrugging this impending doom off as he continues to fight. When a character dies, you get a sense of how other characters felt about him/her as they say a short line. Also, how they die (in a fire, getting smashed by a Tank, overwhelmed by the horde) also determines whether other characters scream their names, or starts bawling in hopelessness. You feel like you are right there.
There are 4 campaigns, and if you were to play the game on easy, you'd be done in a short time. However, to truly get that sense of being "left 4 dead", play the game on expert. You will feel hopeless, struggling to survive, and overwhelmed, which is exactly what this game's premise is.
GAMEPLAY
The controls are so simple. What makes this game so challenging and great is the NEED for teamwork. Playing this game in single player mode is one thing, but multiplayer coop is where it's at. You need to have a good formation, watch each others backs, stay close, and work as a team. Otherwise, you will get picked off. If someone wants to go back for ammo or a weapon, and the rest of the team isn't with you, consider yourself dead. You will get ambushed. If a special infected attacks you, or if a horde comes at you, you will get knocked down. Unable to move, you can only shoot from the floor with your pistols, and it is extremely inaccurate and slow. You will be dead before your team can get to you. Then you have to be saved by your teammates in the nearest closet as a lost survivor.
Multiplayer versus is another addition to an already great game. You can play as the special infected, and challenge the survivors. You can go on top of buildings, plan attacks from afar (you can always see survivors as the infected), and have a ball tasting what it's like from the evil side.
GRAPHICS
The environments are dark and beautifully rendered. There are lights only from your flashlight or from the abandoned cars with their headlights still on. Most streetlamps are powerless, along with the buildings, giving the sense that the area has been ravished before you got there. When you reload, the flashlight attached to your gun moves, leaving you temporarily in the dark and adds a layer of fear. The zombies are all done uniquely, from their faces to their actions. Some sit down, some are fighting with each other, others are puking or staggering against a wall. They live and breathe. As they come at you in waves, all you see are the whites of their eyes. If you get a head shot with a shotgun or rifle, their heads explode in bloody glory, their brains and skull caps flying in every direction. It's just plain fun to watch everything going on around you.
SOUND
Impressive. The music is eerie. The intense piano keys and sudden pounding of drums adds a great effect to the game. When you die, an angelic tune plays with the voices of the dead ringing in your ears in your last moments. Most impressive are the "special infected" sound effects. Each makes their own specific noises, whether it is a cough from the smoker, the roar and vibrations of the tank, the deep gurgling grunt from the boomer, or the painful cry of the witch, you will know they are coming before you see them. On expert, it is absolutely pertinent that you hear before you see so you can prepare for an incoming attack.
SUMMARY
Get this game if you have online access and want a truly immersible experience.
Each time you play it's different because the zombies are always laid out uniquely.
4 campaigns may be short to some, but on expert it'll keep you busy for a long time, not to mention that even when you do beat it the experience will change next time you play.
Multiplayer coop and versus adds a great experience and challenge to the mix.