A World on Fire - A Zombie Blog

Last April, Valve released the remaining two versus maps for Left 4 Dead one, thereby finishing a game that it had launched in November 2008. People expected new campaigns, new weapons, and new special infected, but what they got was an entirely new game with the announcement of Left 4 Dead 2. I’ll admit that I wasn’t thrilled with the news, but I wasn’t irked enough to add my name to boycott.

What is truly shocking is the turn-around time for a game company that is not known for its development speed. It took around five years for Valve to produce a sequel to its flagship title, Half Life. Then the company averaged two years between each of its Half Life “episodes” which were designed for rapid development. If you’re keeping score, we’re still waiting on the third one. And then there was Team Fortress Two which took over seven years of development time. So when Valve announced that it was providing a sequel in just under a year, people were open mouth in disbelief.

Outside the ridiculous lag issues, I’m happy to say Valve has managed the impossible. They have produced an amazing game in the same time that other game companies write their development documents. Valve has created a wonderfully rich world where infected men and women roam the streets, looking to kill anyone who is even slightly healthy. We never quite know how an infected person is able to distinguish a non-infected person, but when they do, it’s pure carnage.

Unlike the miserable Crash Course campaign (I still say it was either fan or intern made), these new campaigns tell a different story of the apocalypse as four strangers travel across the dilapidated South to make their way to safety of the military in New Orleans. From the burning halls of a hotel to the wind ravaged streets of a mill town, each map evokes a somber mood of a world flipped on its head.

And it’s not all just running to the end of the map to win. Some maps require you to do special tasks. For example, in order to pass by a gun shop, you need to retrieve a pack of soda for the owner only you can’t fire your weapons when you are holding onto the goods. It makes for great teamwork when you have two people blocking the zombies in front of you as you make your mad dash back to the store.

All in all, the campaigns are pretty astounding. The Dark Carnival has an amazing finale sequence, and the Hard Rain campaign is probably the best campaign to date with its dynamic weather system. The entire campaign culminates in a dramatic run across a damaged drawbridge where the zombies never stop coming. Swamp Fever is probably the weakest addition. There’s just not much happening in the campaign. Granted, the mud men make for worthy opponents, but the entire sequence of the campaign outlasts its welcome by the second map. The only neat thing is fighting the infected in the belly of a crashed airliner.

The weapons are also well done. The upgraded sniper rifle is now a formidable weapon. The melee weapons can do some major damage. And the assault rifle still sings a beautiful song as the infected line up in droves to hear it. There’s also plenty of new items such as boomer bile, adrenaline shots, and different ammo types. It all comes down to choice and sometimes the choices are really hard, but its awesome when you make the right call. It might be a sacrifice to forgo your health pack, but its simply awesome to be the hero of your team when you have a defibrillator at the right moment. Especially on versus.

As for versus mode, it is a a blast. It’s nice to have the new infected so you’re not always respawning as a hunter. The charger can decimate the most well organized team, and the jockey can turn the slight irritation of teammate wandering too far ahead into a wholesale massacre of the entire team. My least favorite infected is the spitter, but she is absolutely lethal in the hands of an experienced player. If you are incapped near a spitter, she’ll give you a nice acid bath which will probably take out the poor chump who is trying to save you. I don’t know if the tank has been toned down or the weapons powered up, but the tank doesn’t feel as overpowered as he used to. He used to be a game ender in my matches. Now they end fifty percent of the time (which is how it should be).

Scavenge mode is a white knuckled tension fest and realism mode can be overwhelming from the lack of onscreen instruction. My favorite addition to the game is one that no one mentions. If you are in a team of four friends, you can do versus mode with another four strangers. The game does all the matchmaking for you so no more sitting in a lobby waiting for worthy competitors. Our first game of this type was a total slug fest. We were evenly matched by the opposing team which made for a massive tension filled battle.

Is Left 4 Dead 2 worth your money? Absolutely. My only recommendation is that you buy it for the PC instead of the XBox one. You free get player mods, free updates, and best of all, no lag. This game is worth any penny.

Verdict: Buy It!