A thrilling zombie shooter with a huge emphasis on teamwork.
THE GOOD
-Excellent multiplayer/versus mode
-Great atmosphere
-Enemies generated randomly ensures a unique experience every time
-Changing difficulty based on skill keeps things exciting
THE BAD
-Single player is uneventful
-Too short
OVERVIEW
Everyone loves a good old zombie apocalypse game, right? Now a days it seems like games in the genre are a dime a dozen a bunch of games out there that are just awful. Left 4 Dead is an exception with its exciting game play that is different every time. The maps may be the same but the enemies are randomly generated throughout the entire game which ensures that you have a unique experience. Left 4 Dead takes place in various locations two weeks after a huge zombie outbreak occurs. The game consists of four survivors from all different backgrounds trying to work together in order to escape. Francis is a cocky biker with most of his arms covered in tattoos. Louis is an anxious analyst working in the IT department for his company. Zoey is a free spirited college student. And lastly, Bill is an orderly soldier that served in the Vietnam War. There really isn't too much of a story in Left 4 Dead and even your objective is simple; survive.
GAMEPLAY
Now even though there isn't much of a story doesn't mean this game isn't worth playing. On the contrary, Left 4 Dead is a great game filled with fast paced action. There are two different modes to play; campaign and versus. Each game variant is slightly different but the same overall objectives apply. The campaign mode can be played by yourself or with three other friends. If you don't have enough to fill the entire team, computer aided bots will assume the empty roles. Left 4 Dead was really intended to be played with other people. Playing the single player campaign can really be quite a drag. The bots will follow you around and shoot at other infected enemies but it really ends up being a very dull experience. On the other hand, this game can seem like "night and day" with the multiplayer campaign. When you are playing with your friends you'll be able to talk and strategize together. You'll also be able to help your friends out and have a really good time playing. Left 4 Dead is a great team building game and trust me teamwork is a must here because it is almost next to impossible to play through this game with one player.
Left 4 Dead's campaign consists of four acts each with five chapters each. The first act, No Mercy, takes our ill-fated heroes through apartment buildings, a subway, and sewers en route to reaching the top of Mercy hospital for evacuation via a helicopter. The second act, Death Toll, will take you though a rural town. The third act, Dead Air, involves an escape through an airport terminal. And lastly the fourth act, Blood Harvest, takes you through a train station in search for an immediate escape at a farmhouse. Each act whether it's campaign or versus mode have environments that never change. This is sort of disappointing because the entire game feels too short. Each act, on a normal difficulty, should take you about an hour. Now the pathways are the same but enemies and weapons are generated randomly every time. This is a huge plus for the game because you'll always have a different experience every time. Also, the game's "enemy engine" is always thinking and learning from the way you play. So, if you're party is just cruising along having no problem laying waste to the infected zombies, the game might switch things up on you and try to flank you and your teammates. This adds a noteworthy challenge to Left 4 Dead and greatly increases the replay value.
The versus mode is fantastic. The reason the versus option is so great is because it combines the campaign mode with even more intelligent enemies because they are controlled by real people! Here two, four player teams will square off against each other each taking turns playing as the humans and infected. The goal for the humans remains the same; survive. But now your objective as a special infected is to hunt down and kill the survivors. Again just like in the campaign mode if you don't work together on the infected side your team won't win. Each player on the infected side will keep respawning as a special infected player which includes Boomers (bile filled blogs), Smokers (coughing infected with an abnormally long tongue), Hunters (nimble hooded zombies) and Tanks (a hulking mass). Now the regular infected zombies will still appear at random, just like the campaign, but you'll be able to control when and where you want to respawn your special infected character. At the end of each chapter, whether the humans make it to the safe room or the infected kill their prey; scores will be posted for each team. The score is based on how far the humans progress through the level, how much total damage was done to them and how many humans survived (this is a hefty multiplier).
The controls are far superior to other first person shooters. The ease of maneuverability is very much appreciated in order to keep up with the fast game play. Taking aim and shooting is also very easy to do and the rest of the actions are mapped to intuitive places on the controller. Along with the controls, the weapons are fun to use and make it gratifying when you mow down 20 or 30 zombies with one clip. There are two tiers of primary weapons and other accessories to pick up in the game. The first tier weapons includes a pistol (which doesn't run out of ammo and can be dual wielded), a pump shotgun and a sub machine gun. The second tier weapons can really dish out some massive damage and they include an auto-shotgun, hunting rifle and a standard machine gun. Other than your primary weapon there are a variety of accessories to use against your enemies like a Molotov, various gas cans, and pipe bombs. These accessories will appear along with restorative items (medical pack and pain pills) randomly though out the level so a little extra exploration will pay off.
GRAPHICS & SOUND
The visuals paint very eerie scenes that really make the game feel terrifying. The level design will put you in situations just like in the movies. I particularly enjoy the dark close corridors inside of buildings because it is just you and your flashlight. The tunnel vision created will surely make you jump because it'll seem like the zombies are appearing out of nowhere. Other then that the character details are very good too.
Whether it's a shotgun blast or a hunter tearing the flesh off a human, you'll really enjoy the audio. The sound effects, just like the graphics, will stand the hair up on the back of your neck. One of the more notable audio features is when you get into close proximity to a witch (another special infected) because the music is extremely creepy.
CONCLUSION
Left 4 Dead is a very exciting zombie shooter. The fast paced combat which is different every time you play makes this game worth playing. The only draw back is that it is a little too short and will most likely having you wanting more. Hopefully some free downloadable content will become available in the future. If you are a fan of shooters, teamwork and/or zombie type games then you really need to pick this game up. Until then when the time comes, will you be ready to work together in order to survive?