Game info
Featuring new Survivors, boss zombies, weapons, and items, Left 4 Dead 2 offers a much larger game than the original with more co-operative campaigns, more Versus campaigns, and maps for Survival mode available at launch.
A new Setting
Left 4 Dead 2 will move the zombie apocalypse to the southeastern states of the US. According to Valve, the game’s new campaigns will have you traveling through Savannah, Georgia and the bayou country with a climax in New Orleans’ French Quarter.
But don’t expect to see the last of the original survivors. There will be elements in the new plot that drop hints on what happened to original four: Louis, Bill, Francis and Zoey. We’ve also heard that the game’s plot will focus more on connecting the events in each of the individual campaigns this time around. –Gamesradar
While at E3 I had the pleasure of sitting down in a nice private meeting room lounge to play Left 4 Dead 2 for an hour straight. I played the PC version demo campaign with 3 other people through twice. First off, let me say that the game is definitely not different from its predecessor in main gameplay mechanics, but that doesn’t stop it from being a blast to play.
The campaign we played through was the one in the trailer, called “The Parish.” It begins on the edge of a dingy little town, and requires players to battle through a small town filled with tension creating alleys, courtyards, and even a hedge maze. The new AI director apparently will have the ability to change the available paths and weather, but I didn’t experience this in the demo.
The campaign went relatively smoothly for me both times, but the gameplay was just as challenging. If the four of us sitting next to each other on a LAN connection hadn’t been communicating, survival would have been unlikely. The new charger boss infected in particular was a nasty threat if he showed up at the wrong time. At one point he rammed one of my allies right into the horde, which didn’t end well. There is also one more new boss infected, but they did not make an appearance in the demo.
The specialty common infected did however, and I got to see them in action right after discovering the new incendiary ammo. I equipped it into my personal favorite Left 4 Dead weapon, the hunting rifle, and unloaded onto the horde. It was very satisfying. I discovered however that it wasn’t perfect: the new common infected in hazmat suits were fireproof! This was not good since all of us were using incendiary ammo at the time. I decided it was a good time to try out the melee weapons and picked up an axe lying next to me. It was pretty satisfying killing infected with melee, but in most serious play ranged weapons will always take priority.
Also new to Left 4 Dead 2 was location damage on the infected. This existed to some extent in Left 4 Dead, but now you can actually blow arms and legs off of the zombies at will. Of course, being zombies, headshots will always work best, but it was pretty entertaining when I shot the arms off a zombie that was trying to climb the fence.
Graphically the game is just as impressive as the first. The Source Engine continues to deliver great looking visuals. The daylight setting did remove a little of the fear and tension, but the improved campaign layout added a lot of that back. With weather effects and changing layouts I can see it being even more of a thrill than the original.
Our campaign culminated in what is probably the best crescendo moment I’ve seen in Left 4 Dead. We entered a giant courtyard that was a maze of chain link fences. In the center of this courtyard was a giant tower. As soon as we entered the courtyard an alarm drew the horde to us, but rather than just fight them off we had to actually fight our way to the tower to disable the alarm. This was incredibly fun and challenging, and the four of us screamed back and fourth at each other in desperation as we tried to battle through an army of infected to our salvation. Valve promises many other difficult crescendo moments like this in Left 4 Dead 2
Overall I had a blast with Left 4 Dead 2. With the promised improvements such as the changing stage layout and weather effects, it’s something I’m certainly interested in purchasing. That said, this is a game that will feel very familiar to long time Left 4 Dead players, and it’s more of a refinement of the existing ideas than an introduction of new ones. That could still change when we find out what the promised new campaign mode is, but regardless Left 4 Dead 2 is definitely a game to keep an eye on. Left 4 Dead 2 will release this year on November 17. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Meet the Survivors
.jpg)
Nick - Lured by fast money and river boat gambling, con man Nick made a stop in Georgia. There's always another con just a little further down the road, Nick never intended to make Savannah his final stop. Then again the Zombie apocalypse wasn't part of his plan either.
Rochelle - Producer for a cable news network, Rochelle was sent into Savannah to cover what would turn out to be the outbreak. Rochelle finds herself right in the middle of the chaos, not being one to let live slip away she grabs a gun and meets the infection head on.
Coach - After a knee injury ended his athletic dreams, this ex-defensive lineman turned to teaching. Coach is now pushing 40 and wishing he'd taken better care of that knee, but who knew that one day he would have to run for his life in the face of the ever growing zombie hoard? Coach has developed an extreme hatred of the Zombies, the Witch in particular.
Ellis - Brash, cocky, and indestructible. This 21 year old mechanic and Savannah native isn't scarred of some infection. Ellis enthusiastically replaces his Miller High Life with a gun and heads out into the fray. -Examiner.com
Weapons of Left 4 Dead 2
Melee Weapons
* Baseball Bat
* Cricket Bat
* Crowbar
* Electric Guitar
* Fire Axe
* Frying Pan
* Katana
* Machete
* Tonfa (police baton)
* Chainsaw
Campaigns of Left 4 Dead
