Left 4 Dead 2
October 27, 2009 - I never picked a side in the boycott; if I’m honest I saw both sides of the argument. On one hand Left 4 Dead hasn’t been out all that long and is superb in its own right, on the other hand Left 4 Dead 2 is bringing a whole heap of new content, dripping with blood and gore.
I was one of those people and today, I got to experience Left 4 Dead 2 first hand. And it is good, in fact, it’s great.
We all know what has changed. New special infected includes the charger, jockey and spitter, these join the original boomer, smoker, hunter and tank. There’s new weapons, new grenade types, more health items, the addition of melee weapons and of course new campaigns.
The demo takes place in the first two parts of the parish campaign. Leaving a boat, arriving on the dock, everything is similar to the original. This is no bad thing. Jumping straight in with a silenced MP5 and a Machete I’m ready to slay some zombies. The first thing you notice is how different it is to fight in the daylight, this means that you can really see what’s going on, sounds better? Yes it is, but it also heightens the panic as you can see what’s trying to eat you.
Playing through this campaign several times, I got to try out each weapon. I have to say that each gun is wonderful to use, the AK47 and Magnum Handgun being my favourites. Each has a satisfying kick and percussive volume. Most are accurate and improvements have been made to older guns, such as the sniper rifle, which now feels more weighted and enjoyable to use.
The melee weapons have to be the best addition to the new game. All of them are one hit kills on common zombies and they are oh so fun to use, the guitar being one of the best. Each hit with the guitar lets of a hilarious twang of strings as it hits home. As blood spatters across your vision and drips off of your chosen weapon, you know things are different here.
The addition of adrenaline needles that boost your movements is a hint of genius, defibrillators are on hand to review your teammates and fend of zombies and the new grenade, the bile bomb is amazing. Using this grenade will set zombies onto your target as if a boomer had vomited on them. This was great to use on a tank as it stands still while you crowd it and pump it full of lead.
Making my way through the level it seems there are more choke points than ever and the AI director is just as evil around these points. The level is designed very well, plenty of high points for versus mode and lots of tight areas to fight in.
A highlight was the new feature of having to /get/ to a button through waves of undead rather than hold them off /after/ pressing one. The one featured here sees you setting off a perimeter alarm and having to weave through walls of fences, fending off zombies to get to the button and turn the alarm off. This moment was riotous, hectic and maddening, simply outstanding.
Add all of this to the addition of new special infected and uncommon and we have an all new game on our hands. The Jockey is great, jumping on your back and riding you around splitting you from the group. The Charger is mean and nasty, running into your group, picking you up and slamming you into the floor. The Spitter isn’t as worrying as the others, but is still pretty mean, by spitting a wad of acidic bile into your group causing panic and opportunity for other specials to get to you.
The most interesting addition has to be the uncommon zombies, in this particular campaign you have to watch out for the armoured SWAT zombies, which you can’t kill unless you overwhelm them or shoot them in the back. When they’re tucked away in a group of zeds, you can get into some real trouble.
All in all this is a new game; there I said it, a new game and an amazing one at that. Judging from this albeit short demo, Left 4 Dead 2 is a force to be reckoned with. Playing with good friends is still as great as ever and if scavenge mode is anywhere near as good as the campaign here, we’re onto a winner.
It’s the little things that Valve are known for and this is noticeable in Left 4 Dead 2, I’ll leave you with my favourite – Walking through a small courtyard, having fought off a smoker and a jockey I see a boomer and not just any boomer, a female boomer! This had me so shocked that I was then covered in bil; my teammates laughing in the background.
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