Left 4 Dead 2 Review

By Tom Bramwell Published 17 November, 2009

Southern fried gold.

Version tested:

"Attaching laser sights to your weapon makes it more accurate." Yeah right. Actually, I have no idea whether attaching laser sights to your weapon in Left 4 Dead 2 makes it more accurate. It's hard to verify, even after you've shot 7500 zombies during your first day playing it. But attaching laser sights to your weapon certainly makes it look cool.

The laser sights aren't the best thing in Left 4 Dead 2. When you first encounter them halfway through the opening campaign, Dead Center, they're not even the best thing in that room - the man who wants you to go across the road and get him some Cola is. But they are symbolic of a broader change to a game that looked to some like a cash-in: whereas Left 4 Dead was about getting people to co-operate, and a nervous Valve was reluctant to complicate things in case people misunderstood, Left 4 Dead 2 is about making the most of the fact people did get it, by having some fun with the concept. Because people really, really did get it.

On the off chance you didn't play the original, Left 4 Dead 2 is a first-person shooter designed for four players to play together. You pick from one of four characters, choose a campaign and then work with one another to survive the zombie apocalypse the game unloads between the starting point and the last chopper out of town.

The first game was a ballache for Valve to produce, but the results were simple for players to understand, because it had good rules and well-worked systems. On a basic level, you chose a big gun and a pistol and fought zombies until you got to the next safe-room, and then pressed a button at the end and defended against waves of enemies until help arrived. Behind the scenes though, Valve did a lot of heavy lifting. An "AI director" varied the volume and location of enemies depending on your skill, teamwork and previous experiences, and the level design kept you on the back foot with no idea where the next threat would come from, even while it simultaneously left you in no doubt where to go next.

'Left 4 Dead 2' Screenshot 1

Scavenge mode borrows locations from the main game. This is the swimming pool you fill with zombies in Dark Carnival.

It did almost everything extremely well. Along with hordes of fast-moving "common infected", there were five types of "special infected" the director could deploy to mix things up, and it did. Everyone's favourite was the Witch, a terrifying vision in granny pants, who sat on the floor crying and would incapacitate you if you got in her face, deliberately or otherwise, meaning someone would have to waste time reviving you, probably while other zombies attacked.

All wonderful. Even so, the game felt like an unlikely success. It was a pure co-op shooter where you didn't even have to unlock campaigns or play them in order, and conventional wisdom said you could only do this sort of thing in games if it wasn't the main event. Left 4 Dead proved otherwise, so Valve has kicked off the stabilisers.

Those already expecting new, high-contrast locations and graphical themes wrapped around refined gameplay may still be shocked by the bold changes to the structure of the five campaigns we get this time. Dead Center sets the tone, with an escape from a burning building, a rush to re-supply an entrenched caffeine addict, and a finale that is still built around a siege like the ones in the first game, but which requires you to gather petrol cans to fuel a car rather than simply surviving waves of attack.

The others go further. Hard Rain sees you fighting through a town one way and then fighting back through the same locations as a violent thunderstorm floods them. There are set-piece sections, like a sugar mill where Witches - who wander around in daylight rather than sitting down so you can avoid them - are gathered in numbers and the sun hangs low in the sky, often blinding you to their movements. The Parish, set in New Orleans, takes place completely during the day, and ends with the survivors fighting their way across a huge suspension bridge piled up with abandoned vehicles and disfigured by military airstrikes.

The decision to set much of Left 4 Dead 2 during the day is a big change (and a big challenge for Valve, because it's a lot easier to show people the way forward in the dark - you just strike a light), but my favourite campaign takes place in late evening. According to the developers, Dark Carnival went through numerous iterations before it made the cut, and the work has paid off, particularly in a chase up and around a wooden rollercoaster circuit, and in the pyrotechnic finale. There's more love here than almost anywhere else, especially in the Achievement-focused silliness involving the peanut man, his nemesis Moustachio and Gnome Chompski.

Were Left 4 Dead 2 merely Left 4 Dead set in these locations, it would still be worth playing, but it would also justify claims made by some of the first game's hardcore fans that the only reason there's a sequel rather than more downloadable content is the developer's bottom line. The fact that it's so much more than that almost makes you wonder how Valve got people so upset in the first place. All this stuff!

'Left 4 Dead 2' Screenshot 2

The new uncommon common infected are memorable and crafty. The clown often leads a train of commons to your location.

Like all the best things in the first game, the new stuff sounds simple but resonates across the whole. There are melee weapons, for example - swords, bats, bars, frying pans and even a chainsaw - and they're immediately crowd-pleasing, tearing up the infected like there's no tomorrow (although I suppose in an apocalypse there isn't) thanks to the improved limb loss. But they also solve a key problem with the first game, which was that you got frustrated when swamped by enemies, because you were only able to shove enemies away and attempt to shoot them once free. Now you can carve them up, and a melee weapon is often taken in preference to a pistol when the opportunity arises. Of course, this new close-quarters competency is carefully balanced so you don't gain too much of an advantage.

There are also three new special infected. Each has a specific role, and they interact with one other in maddeningly clever ways. The Spitter lays down intensely damaging green flob to burn away your health, while the Charger drags one of you away from the group at speed and then slams him or her up and down on the ground until help arrives. The new favourite though is the Jockey, a Gollum-like scamperer who clambers on a survivor's back and steers them into danger - perhaps into Spitter flob, or off a building. Hopefully Valve's merchandise department is already working on Jockey backpacks to replace our worn-out headcrab hats and Companion Cubes.

Elsewhere, specials and regular infected alike receive a boost in the new Realism mode, where people who played the original regularly will discover a distinctive new challenge. It removes various gameplay crutches, like the blue outlines showing you players' relative locations when they're outside your line of sight, and the halos around pickups. Meanwhile, zombies take a lot more ammo to go down unless you aim for the head. It's a different kind of difficulty level to the ones we're used to; rather than simply throwing more enemies at the survivors, it forces you to communicate with fellow players and pay attention to your surroundings to succeed.

Away from the co-op campaigns, Valve improves the competitive Versus mode, where four survivors play against four players alternating between special infected types. There's the long-awaited addition of four-versus-four matchmaking, and if you're playing as infected the heads-up display now shows you your team-mates' cooldown timers (both features are available for L4D1 in a patch, too). The new specials fit in perfectly, and do a better job of encouraging teamplay with their complementary attacks.

There's still no answer for people who want to be able to practice as specials before playing competitively, but there is a new mode called Scavenge, where survivors gather fuel cans to a generator to try and extend each round. A team of specials tries to stop them, and roles are then reversed. Unlike the throwaway Survival mode, where the idea is to survive as long as possible in a certain area, this one has real legs, which you'll probably still be shooting off one another in a few months' time. After its first multiplayer shooter was criticised for being too short, it's as though Valve chose to respond by, er, adding a multiplayer mode.

All good then? Not entirely. With the addition of Realism mode for people who want to be really challenged, there's an argument that the co-op campaign could be a bit more forgiving with respawn rooms and rules. It's funny when the whole team is killed off in classic Left 4 Dead style - perhaps three people are down and the last remaining guy is racing for the boat before a Charger runs him off the jetty - but the novelty of losing 10 minutes' progress is wearing off.

'Left 4 Dead 2' Screenshot 3

Did I mention I love Dark Carnival? There's a slide.

It wears particularly thin in a couple of areas - most notably the escalator-heavy mall section of Dead Center, and the planks-in-the-water bits of Swamp Fever - when Valve's famous ability to move you intuitively through the world falls a bit short and you end up getting spun around and lost. It won't be a problem when you learn your way through, but wasn't the point that you weren't supposed to have to?

Then again it feels a bit silly moaning about something that's otherwise so excellent, and you're never more than a few feet away from another joke, or gadget, or smart little gimmick that restores the smile to your face. The new characters, for example, like southerner Ellis and his comedy anecdotes, always cut short by the sweary but avuncular Coach, who also has the best situational dialogue: "S***, I need to heal my ass!" "Re-goddamn-loading!" Or the 7/11 store, Save 4 Less.

Or the new adrenaline shot, which temporarily speeds up your actions. Or the defibrillator, which can bring a dead team-mate back to life but occupies a med-pack slot for whoever carries it. Or the "uncommon common" infected - riot cops who only go down when shot in the back, or clowns whose noses you can honk. Or the Achievements, half of which must have been invented to fit the jokey labels, like "Septic Tank". Or the writing on the safe-room walls. Or the grenade launcher. Or the incendiary bullets. Or the Midnight Riders.

It's an amazing volume of new modes and features for a game that once kept things simple, but it shouldn't come as too much of a surprise to see them. Whereas once we treated Left 4 Dead as a stopgap between Half-Lifes, this is no longer a weird little side project with modest expectations, and Valve is confident enough to play around with it, safe in the knowledge that you can trust your players. Left 4 Dead proved it. And whereas that game had a personality, this one is overflowing with it.

9 / 10

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Picture of Tom.

About Tom Bramwell

Tom is Operations director of Eurogamer Network and Editor-at-Large of Eurogamer.net. He joined the company in February 2000.

Read more articles from Tom by visiting the Tom Bramwell archive page.

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Comments (150) Latest comment 2 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Super_Zee #1 2 years ago

    Instabuy.

  • giant_frying_pan #2 2 years ago

    Decrypting has started!

  • sargulesh #3 2 years ago

    Expansion pack to a Half-Life 2 mod scores 9/10? Gimmie a break.

  • bumgut #4 2 years ago

    This was obviously going to be good

  • Dynamize #5 2 years ago

    Grargh, why'd it have to be a 9? £26.99 just seems too much. Must resist, price point too much for an almost solely multiplayer title. RESIST. Must...resist. Conviction...waning.

  • thenastypasty #6 2 years ago

    Sargulesh you are sooooooo right this game is nothing but a cash in,valve sould be ashamed of themselfs



    /books Friday off work:-)

  • sargulesh #7 2 years ago

    ... not to mention that on the 360 it looks like a fkn Wii game.

  • sweetcheeks #8 2 years ago

    activsion release their call of duty games almost bi-annually now,
    so why all the hate if valve release a sequel sooner than expected.

  • DUFFMAN5 #9 2 years ago

    Like the sound of it, just as I did the first game. Unfortunately I spend so little time on-line that I would miss out. I played the first single player for about 2 hours tops.

  • Dizzy #10 2 years ago

    The best online game this gen just got better. Good review and a nice score.

    /loads shotgun (with laser sight)

  • Mashum #11 2 years ago

    Can't resist.... I only started Dragon Age on Sunday, and there's MW2, Borderlands, Op Flashpoint (which already seems so long ago) and god knows what else nestling under the telly.
    Edited by 1 at 17/11/09 @ 07:10

  • Destria #12 2 years ago

    "the Jockey, a Golem-like scamperer "

    Gollum surely? Be pretty painful to have a golem jump on my back.

  • chessboxer #13 2 years ago

    It's ready to play on Steam now.

    edit
    It says North American Retail and Steam versions are unlocked, the rest of the world later this week, yet my copy says 100% Ready. Surely it should have kept its pre-order status if it isn't unlocked...

    edit #2
    Restarted Steam and it's good to go.
    Edited by 2 at 17/11/09 @ 07:24

  • solidSnake04 #14 2 years ago

    that surely reads like a perfect score. so far MW2 and this failed to make it, and Uncharted did get the 10. Again, what are the necessary conditions to improve on a game in order to make it a perfect score ? surely it cant be from the a bit less forgiving checkpointing system

  • EmiliasHorse #15 2 years ago

    @DUFFMAN5
    Totally agree, looks great and from the few hours I played solo with L4D I could see the HUGE potential for gaming bliss. Shame no one on my friends list bought it.

  • RedPanda #16 2 years ago

    Post deleted at 14:31:59 28-01-2012

  • Lukree #17 2 years ago

    Ordered a new pc yesterday, partly because of this!

  • Emmit_Assassin #18 2 years ago

    I'm not boycotting this, but I am refusing to buy it until they've bought out the rest of the dlc they promised for L4D.
    Once they do I'll happily get this, sounds awesome. I've got MW2 to tide me over till then, anyway.

    Well, looks like no one is allowed an opinion here unless its gushing about the latest rip off. You lot make me sick. Frickin sheep.
    Edited by 1 at 17/11/09 @ 21:56

  • Ignatius_Cheese #19 2 years ago

    Can. Not. Wait!!

    Hopefully TheHut.com will ship early. Gah!!

    ^______^

  • creepylizard #20 2 years ago

    A 9. How completely and utterly expected..
    I wsh I had friends..

  • f00b_inc #21 2 years ago

    See you on (Steam) tonight guys!

    f00b_inc

  • FooAtari #22 2 years ago

    Off work ill at the moment, will be logging into Steam later this morning to finally unlock this. Bought the 4 pack with some mates, so worked out at £20, bargain!

  • woodnotes #23 2 years ago

    A 9. In 12 months.

  • OldMan #24 2 years ago

    "Gnome Chomski" lol. Reason enough to buy the thing.

  • FooAtari #25 2 years ago

    @sargulesh

    Did you buy CoD MW2?

  • Eraysor #26 2 years ago

    DECRYPT FASTER

  • Darren #27 2 years ago

    I tried the Xbox 360 demo last night and the controls were absolutely horrible and turning felt unnaturally sluggish and heavy. The graphics were also very blurry and aliased. I played the original on the PC admittedly but going from that to the console sequel was quite a culture shock. I honestly don't know how anyone can play the 360 version when the controls feel that unresponsive. :?

  • Beige_Alert #28 2 years ago

    Wasn't there supposed to be a boycott of this sequel? I expect that it will break all sales records as a result.

  • Goodfella #29 2 years ago

    I woke up this morning to 'unlock' my pre-loaded version on Steam and now it says 'this game will unlock in approximately 2 days and 16 hours'.

    /angry

  • TheJuriel #30 2 years ago

    Same graphics, incendiary bullets, daylight levels, boring-ass swamp level... Pass.

    Even though I love the way the infected tear apart more.

  • Sunyavadin #31 2 years ago

    @goodfella

    There's a reason you'll never catch me preordering anything over Steam. Got burned waiting three days to play my store-bought copy of DoW2 because of that crap...
    Edited by 2 at 17/11/09 @ 08:23

  • muscleblade #32 2 years ago

    Going to get it surely. I need to complete MW2 and AC2 first though. I know a lot of my friends is going to play it so i guess i need to buy it this side of christmas to be a part of that. I dont like having too many new unfinished games at the same time.

  • sadakos_fury #33 2 years ago

    Played the demo quite a bit but I can't help thinking I'm missing out.
    Every crew I played with devolved into a scampering mess, shooting each other and wandering off in opposite directions.
    I was all up for getting this but if it's ruined by gicknahs there's hardly any point.
    Do you people all play with people you know?

  • mingster #34 2 years ago

    Sounds good.

  • Goodfella #35 2 years ago

    Strange, all it said on the 'my games' tab for the last 20 minutes was 'scanning for Steam games updates' then suddenly a window popped up saying your game is ready to play.

    Hurrah.

  • Goodfella #36 2 years ago

    @ sadakos_fury

    Yes, that's the best way to play if you can get a group of friends together, you'll get used to the way each other plays eventually and makes for a great game.

  • George-Roper #37 2 years ago

    "Do you people all play with people you know?"

    Multiplayer game that requires coordination in random player group uncoordinated gameplay shocker!

    Sigh.

  • S.J.Rogers #38 2 years ago

    As good as MW2 then... :-)

  • TruSmiles #39 2 years ago

    @Darren maybe people play the 360 version because they don't have a good enough PC, or have more friends on Xbox Live?

    I had the 360 and Steam version of L4D but played the 360 version waaay more. I had more friends I could play it with on Xbox Live instead, and that made the game more enjoyable to me.

    That said, I got the PC version of Dragon Age simply for the dev tools, despite my 360 friends moaning ;P

    My house mate is buying this for me, which saves me some cash. Can't wait to try the carnival level ^^

  • SleepyDeathFred #40 2 years ago

    "makes you wonder how Valve got people so upset in the first place. All this stuff!"

    Problem was that in the first game there wasn't lots and lots of stuff. Extra content was promised free on XBL and then it cost money.

  • StrayBezza #41 2 years ago

    I have Left for Dead, and I really like it. Do y'all think its worth keeping as well as LFD2 or shall I trade it towards it?

    Just wanted peeps opinions!!

  • BabyJesus #42 2 years ago

    Now thats out of the way Valve, how about getting back to half-life please?

  • linea #43 2 years ago

    The only reason I won't be buying this immediately is the sense that I've still got loads more fun to have with the first game!

  • StrayBezza #44 2 years ago

    @linea

    I kind of agree - but with the sequel won't everyone migrate to that leaving LFD1 barren?

  • linea #45 2 years ago

    @straybezza well I only tend to play it with a few of my mates anyway so the lack of general players on the servers won't bother me too much.

  • FooAtari #46 2 years ago

    @sadakos_fury

    Yeah I only play with friends for the most part. For anything that requires team work, playing with randoms has always been hopeless in my experience. Take CoD for example,unless you are playing with mates 90% of game types feel like Deathmatch as everyone does their own thing.

    Although maybe if you get a few people here together you will get some decent games with proper teamwork.

  • Spydy #47 2 years ago

    Is the full game 720p on 360 or sub-hd like in the demo?

  • SleepyDeathFred #48 2 years ago

    MrMarc

    A new *half* campaign, and just having versus mode opened for all of the original campaigns doesn't seem like new content really.

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #49 2 years ago

    Do you count the increasing number of increasingly good community-created maps? Or did you foolishly buy the console version?

  • SleepyDeathFred #50 2 years ago

    Bought the console version because my PC isn't good enough.

    Also, user-generated content does not count as real content. Seriously.
    Edited by 1 at 17/11/09 @ 09:20

  • andywilkie35 #51 2 years ago

    Also nothing wrong with buying the console version.

  • SleepyDeathFred #52 2 years ago

    MrMarc

    I'm not gonna buy it - I'm not boycotting it specifically, I just feel burned from last time.

  • sargulesh #53 2 years ago

    FooAtari: sucker!

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #54 2 years ago

    user-generated content does not count as real content. Seriously

    If that is your attitude, then I pity you for losing out. My frends and I have been playing mostly campaigns from http://l4dmaps.com for months now, and there is much that is comparable to the quality of the Valve campaigns, even some (Silent Fear being a good example) that do interesting things which are entirely new.

    Also, my laptop is rubbish and 3 years old, but it still plays Left 4 Dead (and 2) adequately. Now if only Steam would let me in to unlock the thing.

  • Lionheart #55 2 years ago

    Can't wait. Asked for it for my birthday... but that's not until the 5th of December!!! HURRY UP TIME!!!

    I just hope Valve haven't gone "Dead Rising" on our a**e and it's still the intense horror feeling you got when you first booted up Left 4 Dead those many moons ago.

  • bnazir #56 2 years ago

    wish this was available for the PS3, sounds like a good game!

  • SleepyDeathFred #57 2 years ago

    Mentalist(air)

    I'm not saying good user-generated content doesn't exist, I just think that a game should be a complete package with enough official content, especially if you happen to be an X360 owner.

  • Lionheart #58 2 years ago

    @ bnazir

    I wish you'd admit the truth and sell up and buy a 360!

  • mcmonkeyplc #59 2 years ago

    PIPE BOMB!

  • muscleblade #60 2 years ago

    "The graphics were also very blurry and aliased."

    Hmmm. I think its impressive looking if you consider its 4 player coop with a huge amount of enemies on screen and AI director, special infected and everything. Im currently playing MW2 and AC and they both look great in different ways. You should learn to appreciate different things from different games. I consider MW2, AC2 and L4D (havent played it yet but im guessing here) to be all 9/10 games.

    I think the 360 version of AC2 should impress even you btw. Looks better than Uncharted 2 imo or atleast just as good considering the view distance and huge cities that looks incredibly alike the real versions. Ive been in both Firenze and Venice and looking at the pictures i took in front of bulidings it was incredible to go to the exact same place with Ezio (the assasin)
    and witness how it looks 100% the same even if this is in the late 1400s. I hope reviewers have been in these ciries for real because Ubisoft has done an incredible good job here.
    Edited by 1 at 17/11/09 @ 09:33

  • BadDevotions #61 2 years ago

    can't. wait.

    /wets pants

  • ThisWillDestroyYou #62 2 years ago

    the amount of whining and crying that goes on on these comment sections is amazing

  • skillian #63 2 years ago

    looks like Left 4 dead on the Nintendo 64

    Does it have green fog?

  • BabyJesus #64 2 years ago

    @ThisWillDestroyYou Whining about whining?

    /ponders

  • Nikanoru #65 2 years ago

    Very nice and all, but I wish there would be a more slow-paced, nonlinear, real zombie survival game with more than just a 100% focus on fast paced action. The things we could do with our current gen technology... fat chance of anything like that ever happening though.

  • Nephirion #66 2 years ago

    I bought the PC version as the DLC is free :D

  • kinky_mong #67 2 years ago

    You see, I like good graphics... but I also like having fun with my friends fighting off waves of zombies. But which is better? There's only one way to find out...






    FIGHT!!!!

  • General_Zod #68 2 years ago

    Ah I played through L4D on expert with randoms, then I got my friends to buy it (when it was on sale for £12) and going through expert with them. I have got 40 hours out of L4D so far so I will be picking this up for sure, cant really complain.

  • cnlfailure #69 2 years ago

    In my humble opinion the original was the best game ever made. Perfect co-op, just perfect. Gametime tonight cannot come fast enough.

    /was up at 5am to unlock
    //is a little obsessed

  • Benno #70 2 years ago

    brilliant!

  • muscleblade #71 2 years ago

    I have also played L4D with randoms and friends. Friends is the way to go. Especially in versus as long as the friends is on your team and party chat. Best time in a game ever.Me and three frends playing againts 4 randoms that didnt know each other. Problem was that it didnt take long before the other team quit one by one. LOL.

  • Darren #72 2 years ago

    @TruSmiles - Well OK not everyone can play the PC version (which is very undemanding hardware wise anyway by the way) but I was just so stunned at the massive difference in the feel of the game between the two formats. I mean I knew the PC version looked better, that's a given, but usually I can play FPSs just fine with a controller, hell I even play Crysis that way on the PC, but even with the horizontal sensitivity cranked right up the controls made it feel like I was controlling a tank not a person! Half-Life 2 on the Xbox 360 never felt that bad. I honestly thought there was something wrong with my controller. The last game I played with controls that bad was Far Cry: Instinct Predator!

  • penhalion #73 2 years ago

    Son of A! Went to play this today and the blasted steam client is stuck in "Looking for updates" mode. The steam client seems to be becoming more and more unreliable each time. This happened after the obligatory startup update, where it stated that the update was for L4D2.

    Had to re-install and download the whole thing again this morning! I'm really beginning to hate steam!

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #74 2 years ago

    My steam client sat in looking for updates mode for a good 10 or 20 minutes, but eventually it sorted itself out and the game has unlocked fine.

  • Yossarian #75 2 years ago

    For anyone stuck on the "Scanning for Steam game updates...", or whatever, just wait. It's decrypting, it just doesn't says so. You don't need to do anything but wait.

  • FooAtari #76 2 years ago

    @MrMarc

    Those 'boycotters' are gonna buy it anyway, just like PC-MW2 boycotters went and purchased it last week (See below!)

    A lot didn't purchase it though

    /still hasn't and wont be getting MW2

    @sargulesh

    Um, sucker? What does that mean exactly?

    @muscleblade
    "The graphics were also very blurry and aliased."

    Hmmm. I think its impressive looking if you consider its 4 player coop with a huge amount of enemies on screen and AI director, special infected and everything.

    People never seem to get that. It's a like Race Pro got a lot of criticism from gamers for not looking as good as Forza or GT. Completely ignoring the fact that Race Pro has a lot more cars on track to draw and calculate AI for.

    Edited by 1 at 17/11/09 @ 10:31

  • davisorle #77 2 years ago

    Simply great and fun game. What else to ask from a game purchase.

  • Kapo! #78 2 years ago

    If any game needs to be analyzed on Digital Foundry it is this. People are saying that the 360 version looks incredibly bad in comparison to the PC version, so I think a cross-comparison is pretty essential. I've only played it on the PC and I think the graphics are pretty good. Are they really THAT bad on the 360?

  • miiiguel #79 2 years ago

    Bought for my 360 as I don't do PC gaming (sounds silly on a laptop, really), though, I honestly don't know why I'm typing this, I (not anyone) needs to justify preferences.

    Fair play to anyone who's worried about my/our experience, anyway. It's nice to hear.

  • Widge #80 2 years ago

    I think playing with randoms on L4D is ok too. One game where there is just an unsaid understanding of what needs to be done. Which is nice. Dive in, play game, no need for comms either. They were clever with the way your in game characters provide the necessary vocal prompts for you.

  • PlugMonkey #81 2 years ago

    @ FooAtari & Sadako's Fury: I've found exactly the opposite. I play mostly with randoms, mostly without headsets, and have almost always found myself playing with people who really have their shit together. It's been one of my favourite aspects to the game, to be honest. Ripping through a scenario with a bunch of total strangers all wordlessly doing exactly the right thing at exactly the right time is an awesome feeling.

    This is on PC, and on Advanced and Expert. I don't know if format or difficulty level makes a difference? Or if I'm just the John Connor of Left 4 Dead, and my sheer presence galvanises any squad of misfits into an elite fighting force?

    "when Valve's famous ability to move you intuitively through the world falls a bit short and you end up getting spun around and lost. It won't be a problem when you learn your way through, but wasn't the point that you weren't supposed to have to?"

    I've generally liked those bits. The "Wait! Didn't we just leave here?" moment just as another hoarde hits is a nice horror staple.

  • GamerG #82 2 years ago

    People should have more faith in Valve, the gameplay is awesome and even if it did have Wii graphics it would still be a great game. PC gamers should not be so butt hurt that a game they like is also available on console, the more money Valve make the more you will see of their games, Valve will never drop PC supoort so why all the crying??? Just because thousands of people will have a great time playing this on 360 doesn't mean you wont on your PC's!

  • skillian #83 2 years ago

    @GamerG

    You have misread the reason why my butt hurts.

  • The-Bodybuilder #84 2 years ago

    WIll be trading in MW2 for this.
    Just a shame that no one (bar my cousin) will be getting it. :(

  • bodypopper #85 2 years ago

    Having dated graphics but great gameplay didn't exactly hinder Counterstrike's popularity did it?
    Based on the demo alone I will be getting this for the 360. And yes, I think there is enough new content.
    It's more of a difference than say FIFA 09 to FiFA 10 and you didn't see many people moan about paying 40 notes for both of those.
    Edited by 1 at 17/11/09 @ 11:07

  • Boomerang #86 2 years ago

    I want my money back for Left for Dead before i buy this.

  • cianchristopher #87 2 years ago

    Sounds like a great game - I drunkenly purchased it (on Steam) upon returning from the pub some weeks back - first time I've ever paid for a game before its release.....

    I knew Valve wouldn't let me down, I just knew it!

  • skillian #88 2 years ago

    It's more of a difference than say FIFA 09 to FiFA 10 and you didn't see many people moan about paying 40 notes for both of those.

    This is a really poor argument. I don't think Valve would appreciate the comparison either.

  • bodypopper #89 2 years ago

    What are you on about Skillian? Valve would not appreciate being indirectly congratulated on making a sequel that builds on the original in every way like any good sequel should and is well worth the money!?
    Edited by 1 at 17/11/09 @ 11:27

  • skillian #90 2 years ago

    I just mean Valve wouldn't be happy comparing their sequel to Left 4 Dead with EA's yearly updates for their sports games.

    I'd imagine Valve would say their sequels are much more worthwhile.

  • muscleblade #91 2 years ago

    @Miguel

    "Bought for my 360"

    Good call! Especially since you didnt play the first if i remember correctly.

  • madgerald #92 2 years ago

    Strange question perhaps: aside from the female lead's t-shirt; does anyone know if Depeche Mode appear in-game (music or characters)?

  • Talbot #93 2 years ago

    The most overrated game in history just got even more overrated (IMO). Boring and repetitive even when you're playing with mates.

    Someone hurry up with Episode 3.

  • skillian #94 2 years ago

    I still can't believe that despite releasing a package of all the HL2 episodes, Portal and TF2 for the same price it was Left 4 Dead that was the console breakthrough for Valve.

  • JJKrista1 #95 2 years ago

    @Madgerald.

    DM are in the hazmat suits... :)

  • GamerG #96 2 years ago

    I doubt this version will replicate the succsess of the first L4D on 360, my 360 friends list has not been shy of having 20 people online playing MW2 in the evening and I cant see them getting bored of it till after Christmas

  • msamik #97 2 years ago

    "Is it fair to criticise a sequel because it offers nothing new?"
    Thats the first line on the Ratchet review. Remember, that’s a game that improved the graphics and introduced new time control mechanics. Yet, somehow, it didn’t offer enough that was “new” to deserve more than a 7, while the least ambitious sequel in this generation, L4D2, gets a 9.

  • Camorrista #98 2 years ago

    Are the tank, hunter, and smoker still in the game?

  • Paulie_P #99 2 years ago

    I would love to play this game with my mates or my bro but none of them will buy it and he's too busy playing stupid wrestling games. :(

  • minusblindfold #100 2 years ago

    I think George Bush said it best about Left 4 Dead...

    'fool me once, shame on ...... shame on you. Fool me ..... you can't get fooled again'

  • PlugMonkey #101 2 years ago

    "while the least ambitious sequel in this generation, L4D2, gets a 9. "

    That is possibly the most moronic, asinine, mis-informed, one-eyed and wilfully biased thing I have ever read on this forum.

    Congratulations.

    Take a bow.

  • Xeaon #102 2 years ago

    @Camorrista: Think so, the hunter and smoker were certainly in the demo.

  • PlugMonkey #103 2 years ago

    "@Camorrista: Think so, the hunter and smoker were certainly in the demo. "

    And so was the boomer and the tank, but his appearance was far less frequent, which made it far more of an event when one did show up. Most times through the demo you wouldn't see one at all. One time, we got two.

    We died. \/_\/

  • Camorrista #104 2 years ago

    OK, thanks, I totally forgot about the boomer. I was just afraid the old specials had been replaced or something, as I never read a word about them being in the sequel.

    Good news then.

  • skillian #105 2 years ago

    @minusblindfold

    George Bush doesn't care about dead people.

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #106 2 years ago

    George Bush doesn't care about dead people.

    Especially ones in Louisiana.

  • skillian #107 2 years ago

    £22 for all this new stuff, and no doubt loads of free DLC to come.

    £22? Where from?

    And not to open that whole can of worms again, but aren't you a bit apprehensive about thinking "loads of free DLC to come"? I thought they'd been a bit more careful so far not to promise that this time around.

  • muscleblade #108 2 years ago

    "!WIll be trading in MW2 for this.
    Just a shame that no one (bar my cousin) will be getting it. :( "

    I will. Im on your list.

  • makeamazing #109 2 years ago

    I thought they'd been a bit more careful so far not to promise that this time around

    its possible there could be a L4D3 next year, but I suspect they might leave it until 2011 because of the backlash.

    Good score, will probably pick this up when it gets cheaper, I enjoyed the first, but it was very shallow for someone who just wanted to shoot zombies on their own, I did play some multiplayer but most of the times I ended up with people dropping out, or rushing off to get all the kills etc. Just hope in L4D3 they consider adding more story/SP stuff, as I really think they could turn this into something great (they probably wont though)... i know i know its a MP game ;)

  • FogHeart #110 2 years ago

    "I just hope Valve haven't gone "Dead Rising" on our a**e and it's still the intense horror feeling you got when you first booted up Left 4 Dead those many moons ago."

    Me too. The first felt very horrific. When you're on the roof of No Mercy hospital, the rain pounding down in the night, a tank trying to slap you off, zombies streaming out of every opening, it felt like the final stand of all mankind. Here we have carnivals and stuff....I worry that this is more Zombieland than 28 Days Later.

  • msamik #111 2 years ago

    Plugmonkey
    "That is possibly the most moronic, asinine, mis-informed, one-eyed and wilfully biased thing I have ever read on this forum. "
    As I said " least ambitious sequel in this generation" so you have an easy option to prove you arent the moron here - name one other sequel that offers as little improvement over the earlier title in terms of graphics, gameplay, weapons, story, etc. Maybe using facts doesnt come easy to you?
    Anyway have fun playing L4D2, I am more concerned about the lack of consistency and the "one-eyed and wilfully biased" review of certain titles like ratchet.

  • Collymilad #112 2 years ago

    sargulesh , no-one cares. Don't buy the game and shut it.

  • WJF #113 2 years ago

    'name one other sequel that offers as little improvement over the earlier title in terms of graphics, gameplay, weapons, story, etc.'

    Modern Warfare 2!

    /went there. Expects negs

  • RedPanda #114 2 years ago

    Post deleted at 14:31:59 28-01-2012

  • muscleblade #115 2 years ago

    @RedPanda

    He has become a PC fanboy.
    To me using the same equipment for games that i do for work would be wrong.
    But Fps games in general is more responsive with a mouse of course. Not as much fun as it is with a controller though imo.
    I like the challenge of having to use dualsticks for aiming. Using a mouse doesnt feel fair really.

  • skillian #116 2 years ago

    Darren has said a few times he uses a 360 pad for most FPS games, even on PC.

    So I don't think that's it.

  • GamerG #117 2 years ago

    yer I much prefer using a controller, when you play on PC there is always the doubt at the back of your mind that the other players have an advantage because of better hardware, be it the controller or the PC itself, at least on 360 you know that everyone has the same controller and machine so there is no advantage and it's more about skill.

  • General_Zod #118 2 years ago

    @musclebalde

    True, I dont use my hands when typing I use my nose instead. Typing with my hands just makes it too easy.

  • Lord_Gremlin #119 2 years ago

    Looks like this game's really good. I've never played the first one, but I've bought L4D2 today and now downloading it)

  • beastmaster #120 2 years ago

    Very good review. I shall be enlisting on the L4D2 Friday roll call.

  • geeza2020 #121 2 years ago

    Damn You WJF!!
    You beat me to it!!!! lol!

  • Scoops #122 2 years ago

    @PlugMonkey: Can back that up - I have no friends :) so always play with randoms which can be a mixed bag. Some people out there are bloody excellent and you really pull together to get through on expert (or slaughtered on advanced). Of course that isn't always the case like the time when the other 3 were keen on me joining the Taliban, but that is a different story.....

    Oh yes, if anyone has played it yet, how does it perform compared to L4D on PC? My iMac runs it just fine and hope that is still the case with the sequel...
    Edited by 1 at 17/11/09 @ 15:18

  • GamerG #123 2 years ago

    @N@

    This is the 360 review, not bad for a game with Wii graphics and crap controlls eh?

  • haruvister #124 2 years ago

    @ Scoops

    I'm a frames p/second whore and the only concession I've had to make with L4D2 is turning down the effects, as there's a lot more weather and smoke, etc. Other than that, if you can run L4D fine then you can run the sequel.

  • haruvister #125 2 years ago

    @ svd_grasshopper

    Yes, PC has Achievements. I assume they're the same as the 360's.

  • thedaveeyres #126 2 years ago

    Congrats to Sargulesh (comment #3) for dreaming the impossible dream... and making it a reality.... truly a karma score for the ages. I am insanely jealous. :p

  • kangarootoo #127 2 years ago

    "a tank trying to slap you off, zombies streaming out of every opening"

    You are still talking about L4D here right, and not some trippy post gig groupy fuelled love in?

  • FooAtari #128 2 years ago

    @muscle

    To me using the same equipment for games that i do for work would be wrong.
    But Fps games in general is more responsive with a mouse of course. Not as much fun as it is with a controller though imo.

    Yeah, I walk around on my feet at work all day. Doing so at home would be wrong, removes some of the enjoyment of moving around as it makes me think of work. So I walk on my hands instead, I also enjoy the challenge of getting around in this manner.

    I also use a joypad to use my computer at home and browse the Internet for the exact same reasons. Using the same tools as I do at work at home is wrong, and using a pad is more challenging which I find enjoyable. I love making this unnecessarily complex.

  • GamerG #129 2 years ago

    I have an idea, why dont we just agree that some people prefer using a console type controller and some people like using keyboard mouse and that no amount of internet bikering is going to persuade others to change their minds seeings as I imagine pretty much everyone has used both??

  • JBeck #130 2 years ago

    Eurogamer seem to have failed to mention the different graphics (like they fail to mention many things in their reviews). In regards to the fact that it all looks too bright, in a 'hazy' 'foggy' kind of way (even in the dark) or as someone put it on a forum, it looks like there is grease smeared all over my tv screen. I'm not sure what they've done or why, but the display is not clear and sharp like the original. I personally think they have tried to add too many extras, with the melee stuff for example (frying pan, guitar for example- which are WAY overpowered) Having played the two back to back, the first one is oh so much better to play, it looks sharp and clear, feels more precise and just feels more atmospheric in general.

    ps - before some smart arse says its my display, it isn't, so there :)

  • FooAtari #131 2 years ago

    @GamerG
    I have an idea, why dont we just agree that some people prefer using a console type controller and some people like using keyboard mouse and that no amount of internet bikering is going to persuade others to change their minds seeings as I imagine pretty much everyone has used both??

    Sure we can agree on it. I have no problems with that. It's just the stupid reasonings that annoy me.

  • HoriZon #132 2 years ago

    Sold for me!

  • kingmong #133 2 years ago

    is l4d 1 any use on 2 player local co-op? my brother likes to shoot zombies but has no internets!
    Edited by 1 at 17/11/09 @ 18:09

  • Remy #134 2 years ago

    Just to weigh in on the controller PC vs 360 thing as I find both sides of it really interesting (http://ag oners.wordpress.com/2009/04/07/... I've never really played FPS on the PC at all for years & I've played tons on consoles.. yet my first go on the PC LFD2 demo confirmed my fears that this game really does seem to be badly designed for joypad controls. :( I felt it in L4D1 but had no real direct comparison until the L4D2 demo.

    Now I have a problem as it looks far better on the PC, controls far better on the PC, yet all my mates will play it on the 360, and I'd prefer to play it on the 360, even if on my own, just for the big screen/sofa comfort etc. Such a shame they don't redesign it better for a pad IMO. The only concession for pad users are the quick-turn 180 button, which isn't nearly as useful as turning with a mouse. I did also find weapon changing easier on a pad... but everything else. Ick. :-/

    On the "consoles level the controller playing field" - I'm not so sure that's true anymore. Far from true with fighting games and joysticks of course, and I've recently seen things like this: http://ww w.play-asia.com/paOS-13-71-eq-4... too. Hmmm.
    Edited by 3 at 18/11/09 @ 15:16

  • TheGuvernor #135 2 years ago

    L4D2 was quite simply the best multi player experience in years - utterly unique. Sheer balls to the wall fun. GOTY in my opinion.

    As I refuse to support Infinite Greed/Acticunt with MASSIVE WAD 2 - it's L4D2 all the way baby!!

    TheGuvernor returns - BOOM!
    Edited by 1 at 17/11/09 @ 18:48

  • Garfy #136 2 years ago

    "Southern fried gold"

    That's some southern fried gold right there!
    Edited by 1 at 17/11/09 @ 18:33

  • PlugMonkey #137 2 years ago

    @msamik: Name a sequel that offers as little as improved graphics, an improved game engine, new weapons, new characters, new scenarios, new modes, new enemies, new gameplay mechanics and improved enemy and ally AI.

    You don't think I can think of a single one? Seriously?

    Off the top of my head: Gears of War, Marvel Ultimate Alliance, Overlord, Blazing Angels, Call of Juarez, Godfather, Lord of the Rings, Dynasty Warriors, Destroy All Humans, Mercenaries, Fight Night, Fifa, PES, Madden, NHL, DiRT, Skate, NFS: Undercover, Mortal Kombat, Forza, PGR...

    Ratchet being harshly marked =/= L4D2 being the most unambitious sequel ever attempted. And what iteration is Ratchet up to now? 8? 9?

    Such a shame they don't redesign it better for a pad IMO.

    I'm not sure that's possible, to be honest. Your talking about wanting something with about 1cm movement to give you as much precision as something with 10 or 15 cm of movement, and no dead zone. I think it's always going to be harder on the Xbox.

    Personally, I started off playing on both, but as we moved up the skill levels I abandoned the Xbox altogether, primarily down to my own ineptness at the controls. If your life depends on me aiming a dozen pixels to the side of your head, you really don't want me doing that with thumbsticks. I might as well be blindfolded. I also aim on console shooters by a blend of moving my aim and moving my character. This works great in Borderlands, but in L4D strafing around all the time generally gets you shot to bits.

    I have nothing but the upmost respect and admiration for anyone who can pull that shit off with an Xbox controller, and the last thing you need is me anywhere near your game while you try! ;)

  • FooAtari #138 2 years ago

    @Remy
    and I'd prefer to play it on the 360, even if on my own, just for the big screen/sofa comfort etc.

    Connect your PC to your TV?

  • Sideras #139 2 years ago

    It's insane to see such high scores for such a ripoff, im not even sure it counts as an expansion. A fullpriced DLC maybe.

  • FooAtari #140 2 years ago

    I dunno, it's been happening for years. Happened just very recently infact, a little game by the name of CoD MW2.

    However were L4D2 is not actually a full priced game, Acti put the price of MW2 up!

    I dunno, but that seems far more like a rip-off to me.

  • Averice #141 2 years ago

    L4D was still $39.99 in stores just a couple days ago. If a sequal comes out before the original is $20, I try to stay away. I can't believe Empire: TW is still $49.99 at the best buys around here... worst game ever made, but back to L4D2.

    It is very pricey for a namely multiplayer game, though as MW:2 has shown everyone... people will buy that way.

    I know I would be disappointed if I had bought the first one, promised DLC, and then instead of getting any DLC was asked to pay full ticket price for a bunch of potentially DLC content. I feel that this article disappoints when it comes to looking at all sides of a controversial issue such as the supposed promise of DLC content... but then I can forgive them because they're not a news site, they're a review site, and all that little score at the bottom means is that it's worth a buy as a product, not as anything else but a standalone product, and this is not a news article, it's a review article. I wouldn't mind reading, though maybe it was "printed" already and I missed it :x, a news article on the DLC issue for L4D. Surely someone at eurogamer must be ticked off.

  • FooAtari #142 2 years ago

    I know I would be disappointed if I had bought the first one, promised DLC, and then instead of getting any DLC

    Thats all well and good, except for the fact that there WAS DLC for L4D. How mum did you expect to get for free? And if all the content in L4D2 was released as an expansion or for typical DLC prices it would have probably cost the same... Which was £26, £20 if you bought the four pack.

    Anyway I don't see L4D as a multiplayer in the typical sense ala MW2 with its DM, CTF style games etc etc. It has a full campaign mode. However that campaign mode happens to be better when played in Co-op rather than on your own. But its still a campaign mode all the same like MW2's

  • OnyxLilninja #143 2 years ago

    Whilst I agree that L4D2 is more of an expansion pack, I happily spent the money I saved from cancelling my pre-order of MW2 on this. At least Valve respect PC gamers and build good games.

  • Remy #144 2 years ago

    Such a shame they don't redesign it better for a pad IMO.

    I'm not sure that's possible, to be honest. Your talking about wanting something with about 1cm movement to give you as much precision as something with 10 or 15 cm of movement, and no dead zone. I think it's always going to be harder on the Xbox.

    Cheers, yep, I get this. But you hit my nail on the head with "...this works great in Borderlands". Twin stick control also works great in Gears or Halo - mainly because these games have been designed for it in various ways. L4D2 by contrast feels flat out purely designed for mouse control - which isn't surprising from Valve, but it is a real shame for me - puts me off buying it on either system in a weird way, as I know I won't be 100% happy with either.

    As for the PC on my TV - I am indeed playing around with that, and already do it for stuff like GGPO where I use a joystick sat on my lap or a coffee table. But I'm not sure what mouse & keys would be like on a coffee table. I will experiment though. Now, just a shame everyone I know will be playing L4D2 on the 360 no matter what I do. A few of my friends might get a Steam present for Xmas though perhaps, we'll see. :)

  • PlugMonkey #145 2 years ago

    Remy: Hmm. But what you're talking about is not tweaking the controls, but completely redesigning the game into a "Spray and pray", circle-strafing shoot 'em up just to make it easier to handle on a pad.

    Sorry to any Xbox gamers who are offended, but I really hope they don't do that. It doesn't sound like half the game L4D is.

  • Remy #146 2 years ago

    PlugMonkey.. yeh pretty much. I guess I really want "Left 4 Dead 360" or something like it that is redesigned that way, and there really doesn't seem to be anything else like it with the co-op, versus etc. (I know there are similar things, like ODST Firefight, but nothing really the same).

    However L4D "PC" should definitely stay how it is, as it's ideal for PC controls.

    EDIT - decided this was worth a whole blog about. ;D http://ag oners.wordpress.com/2009/11/18/...
    Edited by 1 at 18/11/09 @ 16:25

  • Skandalle #147 2 years ago

    its going to be an infected christmas! cant wait.

  • Fellblade #148 2 years ago

    Just noticed that LeslieLu (#151) is a marketing bot / person for Gamestop. Check out the previous posts. Heh.

  • charming_fox #149 2 years ago

    Expansion pack or sequel? Who cares? The game is friggin' brilliant you whiging tossers.
    Edited by 1 at 19/11/09 @ 11:29

  • Fightclubber #150 2 years ago

    As much as it pains me to say, i think this games painfully average. I mean yeah new guns new enemies and all that bollox but jesus it looks and plays the same. Id even go as far to say it looks pretty dam shit in places really bland empty level design.
    And the fact that you need at least 3 of your mates to own the game is also a pain, as if your playing with strangers it pretty much saps any fun out of the game, as half the time the fuckers dont talk and when they do its all abit creepy.
    Games like mw2 you dont need team chat for it to work, but with this its essential and its also one of the biggest problems.

    Its an improved game over the 1st, but its not a sequel at all.