Left 4 Dead 2

Left 4 Dead 2
XBOX 360 (version tested) / PC
EA

The Good: simple, unpretentious design and delivery – smooth controls – perfect multi-player.
The Bad: one player mode is very short

Zombies can run. You must accept the fact that Zombies can run before we get started here. None of that Resident Evil 2, Shaun of the Dead, Night of the Living Dead, heads tilted to the side, arms up stumbling about the place nonsense. When Left 4 Dead 2 puts a shotgun in your hand, you'd better start thinking about the reload time on that sucker because as soon as you chop one down, there's another on its way. Not just running Zombies either, Zombies that jump on your back and lead you into herds of other living dead monstrosities, Zombies that explode and soak whoever's close with Zombie catnip that drives the rest of the gang crazy, Zombies that charge at you like a rhinosaurus sending you fifty feet in the air. Oh and a Witch, her screams haunting your team for fifteen minutes before you get to meet her and when you do, against all better judgement, you leave her alone, turn off the torch on your weapon, do not make eye contact and hope she passes by, because if she doesn't...



Drawing reference to a series of Generation-X Zombie incarnations, you'll be asked to break into the shopping mall to bring a gun shop owner stranded on the roof a crate of Cola, a cricket bat is your best friend and the screaming girl is definitely ready to jump out of the TV. Left 4 Dead 2's strength lies in the same place its predecessor did, its simplicity, it knows what you came for, grab that pump action, take a few pain pills, grab three of your closest mates and get killing. With very little reliance on dialogue L4D2 very quickly builds a bond between yourself and three other virus survivors as they patch you up when you need it and rescue you from death's claws when you really need it. Such a synthetic camaraderie can easily fall short in the first person shooter format but the frantic and heart-pumping action waiting around every corner of the L4D2 universe give a real sense of togetherness, even if you're playing single player and you're together with the AI of an Edward Norton look-a-like in a Scarface cream suit and a crowbar.



The variety of enemies fiending for a taste of your sweet, sweet brain stops the game from becoming overly repetitive and the steady improvement in weaponry encourage development to the extent that you're quickly through the single player or co-op modes, too quickly all things considered, only taking in four traditional stages. The multi-player and online capacity is really where L4D2 comes into its own though, allowing you to take charge of not only the core rescue team of Coach, Ellis, Nick and Rochelle, but also of the Zombies, with names like The Boomer, The Jockey and The Tank. Left 4 Dead 2 has real energy and genuine charm. If you want a return to pure, first-person, run and kill action, polished and perfected, without the unnecessary over-thinking and inevitable repetition L4D2 is here to save the day...again.
8/10