Left 4 Dead 2 – Review – Xbox 360

Left 4 Dead 2 is the sequel to the highly acclaimed L4D.  Did it stack up the original or is it better by far? Is it the culmination of the zombie survival genre? We start off with our group of four survivalists staring at the last helicopter, it’s leaving without them. They are left wondering what to do. Well they can’t sit on the roof; they decide to take on the horde of zombies.

Story: There are 5 campaigns in L4D2, each very different from one another. As you play each campaign the game leads you from a Convention Center, and takes you all the way to the French Quarter in New Orleans. Sometimes you are left wondering what is going on but that doesn’t matter. You learn bits and pieces from the dialogue presented by the main characters while playing. Your main goal is to survive and take out as many zombies as you can.

Gameplay: Gameplay is pretty basic, you grab a gun shoot some zombies, and make it to the safe room at the end of the level. Sounds easy doesn’t it? The A.I. for the zombies are new and very smart, which means zombies will lure you away from the group, and pummel you when your teammates aren’t looking. Your teammates A.I. on the other hand isn’t very smart sometimes they will wander away from you or when you get taken out by a Hunter or Smoker they will not help. These occurrences don’t happen that often but when they do happen they will frustrate you.

Graphics: Left 4 Dead hasn’t looked so good.  The levels are highly detailed and some are downright scary. This game use’s the Source engine that has powered games like Half Life 2, and Portal. One level has you fighting inside a hurricane. The mood and lighting changes drastically, and was the one thing I was most impressed with the most. The graphics will not disappoint.

Multiplayer: This game is all about multiplayer online and off. While playing the campaign online your friends can jump in and out of the game without a hitch. The game doesn’t lag or stutter when they join or leave. You can play campaign with three of your friends. I did find the dedicated servers to lag a bit and forced me to locally host the games I play. Hopefully they fix that soon. There are also Versus, Scavenger and Survival mode’s. They are each different and fun to play.

Overall: If you’ve played the first game you know what you are getting into. If not this is a great opportunity to join in on the Left 4 Dead franchise. The game is very fun while playing with your friends, and even by yourself. This is a great game.

Pros: Very Solid Gameplay

Looks great.

Co-op is Fantastic

Great Zombie A.I.

Cons: Poor Dedicated Servers

Poor Teammate A.I.

Score: 8/10

You can pick up L4D2 here http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002BRZ852?ie=UTF8&tag=loumougam-20&link_code=as3&camp=211189&creative=373489&creativeASIN=B002BRZ852

Valve provided us with a review copy of L4D2.

Written by Travis Gardner

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