If you got left 4 dead 1 then you wont be disappointed with this extreme fun over and over again and always a good riot when a tank shows up behind a door you just opened.

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Left 4 Dead 2 has to be one of the best improvements in a game that I have seen in a long time. Not only does it add a lot in the multiplayer sphere, but it also gives single players something to do in the game. This was one of the things that bothered me the most in the first game - personally I do not like having to play games with other people because I started with the Atari and sharing my kills just doesn't feel good all the time. This doesn't mean I do not online play BUT I hate it all the time. Enter this selection of the game and everything it offers and - boom - you have something that makes almost everyone happy.

One of the best things about the new game is simply the look, the number of enemies, and the selection and handling of all the weapons you use. If you thought the terrains were interesting in the first game as well, you'll love the new maps. Not only do you have to fight your way through different selections BUT you have a montage of different bosses and new zombie-types to kill your way through. Sure, there are the goodies that all came out but you also have clowns, different types of chargers, more dangerous boomers, and other stuff. You also have al types of weapons laying around to appeal to your killing pleasures. If you like long distance weapons, for example, you have a nice grenade launcher to set up with. If you like tactile weapons, you have a gun specifically suited for you, and, if you like rapid fire, you have weapons like the AK or the more Euro versions. You also have the wonders you carry, from some collected stuff that the spitters carry and that will attract zombies into fires or wherever you want them to bombs of all types.

It's a zombie-killing dream.

I also like the maps that a person has to work through because they have a lot to offer as well. They also make use of the different weapons you learn, and pay you back for putting in work when you know you need to practice range and firepower. I personally find myself trying to learn all of the weapons but do not like things like the AK, and I say that because they spit bullets but do not have any sort of accuracy. Honestly, I think you could do more damage with a grenade launcher than with this. As I said before, the maps make a lot of difference, too. When it comes to the specialized zombies, for example, they have to follow the features just like you and they suffer from it just like you. You also have pros and cons depending on the terrain, with different weapons working better or worse in these situations.

The "million zombie" thing that is advertised - who knows. I do know that I have killed at least thirty thousand as one player and they are all beautifully rendered, and I have yet to tire of it. The game does have a few glitches in it and that should be worth mentioning, like where you walk into a wall or ceiling and cannot get out. Still, this happens only a little and does not take away from the freedom to enter closed doors in hotel rooms, to take when you want or need, or to gun down armies of the infected. And this is only touching on the one-player side because I know more on it that the other. I will leave the two-player + to others that are better schooled in it than I.

All I know is, whether you like one or the other, this should settle well with you. A good buy for the zombie shooter in you.

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Personally, I thought the first game was fun, but it was hindered by low production values. The Art was simplistic. There was a serious lack of cutscenes. All of the campaigns were identical and short. The weapon selection was extremely limited... Left 4 Dead 2 improves upon Left 4 Dead in almost every way, but is it enough for this game to be considered a true sequel?

Concept: 10/10

Four new Strangers must band together to fight off thousands of crazed zombies and survive the zombie apocalypse. This time, the survivors can use melee weapons ranging from a frying pan to a chainsaw. A variety of multiplayer modes and mission objectives extend the gameplay.

Gameplay: 9/10

The gameplay is similar to the original: Shoot undead and aim for the head. The 4 survivors must fend off hordes of bloodthirsty, brain-hungry zombies and the AI Director randomly spawns power ups, weapons, and enemies. Among the hordes of undead are special infected that can incapacitate a survivor; so teamwork is necessary. All of the old creeps are back: The bile puking Boomer, the strangling Smoker, the pouncing Hunter, the Tank, and the PMS Witch. L4D2 has added three new villains. The Jockey, a short fast undead that jumps on your back and steers you into fire, acid, or other bad places. The Spitter, a trailer park princess who spits pools of acid that damage survivors over time. The Charger, a fast tackling monster with the defensive rating of Ray Lewis.

In order to combat these monstrosities, the survivors have more than twice as many guns in this game (14) including a Grenade Launcher and an AK-47. The survivors can also find laser sites to improve accuracy, explosive rounds that knock back enemies, and incendiary rounds that cause undead to burst into flame. Molotov cocktails, pipe bombs, and bile jars (which cause zombies to attack each other) can also be thrown to neutralize a zombie rush.

The Survivor AI is pretty good most of the time, especially if you make an effort to slow down just a bit and stay with the group. If you run off on your own, you're asking for trouble. Once in a long while, the AI doesn't save you when you are incapacitated, causing you to die. It feels more like a random bug, than bad design. 98% of the time, the AI is pretty good.

Campaign: 8/10

L4D had 4 campaigns that all had identical structure. L4D2 has 5 campaigns composed of 4 or 5 levels with different mission objectives. Collect objects and bring them somewhere, defend an area, or battle through an area. In some levels, the AI director also causes rainstorms (Hard Rain) or changes the level layout just a bit (The Parish) to throw you off. The variety of mission objectives really make each campaign feel unique. Also, the storyline continues through all 5 Campaigns, making this feel more like a game, than a bunch of random maps.

Multiplayer: 9/10

L4D2 offers 2 Player Split Screen Coop Action, and 4 Player XBox Live Action for all of the Campaigns. There's also a Versus mode, where 4 Survivors battle through a Campaign and 4 other players Spawn every 30 seconds and control Special Infected to try and exterminate the survivors. This is GREAT FUN! The Survival Mode is also back where Survivors hold out as long as they can against waves of undead. There's a NEW Scavenger mode where survivors must collect Gas Cans and bring them to a designated area. A NEW "Realism" difficulty mode makes the game even harder. In this mode, friendly characters and objects are not highlighted and are much harder to see... also, the only way to bring a character to life is with a defibrillator. So, good luck with that!

Graphics: 7/10

Like Nicole Kidman, the Source engine may have been super hot a while back, but it's starting to show its age just a bit. This is especially true if you're one of the millions who have played Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2, which is the Megan Fox of graphics engines right now.

Sound: 9/10

The music is eerie and fun at the same time. The growls and shrieks of the undead are unsettling, and the gunfire and explosions punctuate the action. The characters' voice overs also have much more personality and add humor to break the tension.

Maturity: Swearing, Horror, Violence, and Gore... You should probably be in High School or live in a tough neighborhood in order to play this game.

Overall: 8/10

Left 4 Dead 2 is a very fun game, with a great deal of improvements over the original. For me, the original Left 4 Dead felt like 75% of a game. It was a great idea, but the lack of production values and options really hindered the experience. Left 4 Dead 2 feels like it should have been released as the original title because there's enough enjoyment in it to last a month... or more. The new zombies, special infected, campaigns, weapons, modes make this a good standalone game, especially at a $40 price point that you can find pretty easily. So, it's a good game for the price of an expansion... what's not to like?

Buy it if you love killing zombies and you never tried the Original Left 4 Dead.

Buy it if you will play online with your friends in the Campaigns, Versus, Scavenger, or Survival Modes.

Rent it if you want to kill zombies for a week and aren't into multiplayer games.

Rent it if you had your fill of zombie killing in Left 4 Dead 1. There might not be enough here to warrant a full purchase.

Avoid it if you didn't care for the first game. It's not unique enough to stand alone.

Avoid it if you are a graphics snob.

If you enjoyed Left 4 Dead 2, don't buy Left 4 Dead 1 unless you're an obsessive collector. Left 4 Dead 1 is a pretty big step backwards from 2.

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Same ol' same ol'. Basic re-release of the original. Still fun just not much new to get excited about. The price was the best and shipping was fast and free.

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I ordered this game in time for Christmas and paid extra to have it shipped in time for Christmas Eve but the game did show up until after New Years. Very disappointing Christmas gift. The game was fun though, once it got here.

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Zombies are no stranger to the gaming universe. They seem to be a staple in many gaming genres, and for good reason. They're scary, ugly, and have a taste for human flesh which makes them one of the best baddies around. No matter how many undead we blast into oblivion, their horrific moans keep us coming back for more. Proof of this is Left 4 Dead 2. Following up on last year's hit, Left 4 Dead 2 continues to tell the tale of four more isolated survivors that need to work together if they want any hope of making it out of a zombie apocalypse alive. Player will have a choice of which character they would like to play as, and take up arms in a FPS that is by no means ground breaking...but ultimately entertaining.

Before Left 4 Dead 2's release, there was a lot of concern over how the game only took a year to be made. Fortunately, most of those concerns have been laid to rest. Left 4 Dead 2 takes all the great game elements from the original, and has refined them for an even more gore filled experience. Graphics have been slightly improved, there is more weaponry to choose from, more bosses, expanded multiplayer modes, and a smarter A.I. fondly known as the "Director." They overall length of each scenario the survivors will have to overcome to make their way to safety have also been lengthened, which was one complaint many had about the original Left 4 Dead only taking about two and a half hours to complete.

Aside from the initial upgrades to Left for Dead 2, the game play is essentially the same. You kill thousands of zombies in some intense first person action, with the emphasis on both ranged and melee weapons. With an easy to learn control scheme, players will be popping off headshots in no time. There are loads of weaponry to choose from this time around, in both ranged and melee categories, allowing each player to find a specific weapon that fits their play style. My personal favorite combo is an M16 assault rifle mixed in with dual pistols, but whacking some zombie heads with an electric guitar is also a welcome addition to any arsenal. There is also plenty of ammo drops through out each stage to ensure you'll always be able to find that special weapon you had in mind. Regardless, the blood will continue to flow effectively no matter what weapon you choose, and trust me...there will be blood. Left 4 Dead 2 is incredibly realistic when it comes to the gore level. Zombies react properly as they're being shot, and nothing is sugar coated. Disembowelments, loss of limbs, bodies being literally cut in half are all frequent sights in this game. So players with a weak stomach might want to look elsewhere...

READ THE FULL WRITTEN REVIEW AT: [...]

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I love the Left 4 Dead game concepts, but the games themselves are frustrating. If you love co-op shooters, then this game is for you. With several game types to play, new weapons including melee and new special infected, this game is definitely worth checking out, however the game is truly annoying at it's best. The main game mechanic that totally sucks is the ability to run away from a zombie that is attacking you from behind. It totally stops you in your tracks. You have to turn around and kill it or punch it away. This is the lamest feature of the game and leaves my yelling profanities like a sailor. All the other challenges I can deal with, but the constant "stopping you in your tracks" makes even normal settings overly difficult. I still think the game is worth playing with friends and if you like to be challenged by achievements, this is the best place to look.

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This Game is fun to play and I got a Great price from Amazon During the Holidays

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So far a lot of fun but TOUGH! Luckily we found that you can change difficulty while on the mission. Nice new set of weapons. Price was decent as well: $35. Overall fun game with a small group.

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The original Left 4 Dead came out the same day as Tomb Raider Underworld (never cared for the series) and the Wrath of the Lich King expansion to World of Warcraft (not an MMO player) so looking at the game it seemed like perfect timing. Unfortunately what immense amount of fun I had at first dwindled where I noticed I was spending most of my time doing the same thing over and over again. Getting kicked for no mic, re-running through the same campaigns, Versus with moronic players or rage-quitters and a general feeling that the game wasn't exciting anymore. Literally a day away from being a full year do we get Left 4 Dead 2, a sequel many wanted but few expected so soon especially in light of the complete absense of Half-Life 2: Episode 3. I mean, Blizzard is taking awhile with their games but at least we get the occasional new trailer or class reveal, Valve is taking the "we're not saying ****" approach so I guess this game is supposed to be our placeholder until that comes out so how's the game? The slightly-changed phrase "more of yet still the same" comes to mind as Valve added a lot of more features to the game yet it feels like the last game, decomposing limbs and all.

Story: Whereas the campaigns in the first game felt slightly disjointed, each campaign in this game seems to directly link to the next. The car you drive in the climax of the first campaign breaks down prompting the 2nd campaign or a rescue boat in one campaign's finale becomes your transport to the next. The new 4 survivors are Ellis, an auto-mechanic with wild stories about his buddy "Keith", Rochelle a tv news employee, football coach Coach and drifter/con-artist Nick and together they brave a freakish amusement park ("ho.lee.****...it's Kiddyland!"), a swamp, a town hit by a huge storm and a mall. The problem with the game's characters is that they kind of lack personality and whereas I didn't mind playing any of the previous 4, I would always beeline straight for Ellis for his hilariousness or Nick for his "I just walked off the set of Miami Vice and I'm a badass" vibe.

Another issue I have in that it relates to the quick turn-around between the last game and this is that many campaigns are not completely perfect and they range from generic to awesome. Dead Center for instance has the most unique finale where you have to fill up a car with gas rather than wait for rescue but from that point on, every finale is the same ol "wait for rescue" schtick. Hard Rain, the highlight of the whole game, has a pretty cool first half till it becomes awesome in its latter half while The Parish has one of the more intense finales yet it's got an absolutely boring middle section. Almost feels like Valve would've had a stellar release if they waited a year to pool all their ideas except they just brought it out as quickly as they can which is a bummer.

Graphics: Let's face it, the Source engine is in need of a replacement or a massive overhaul. While smaller things have been upgraded, on a whole this isn't a leap forward and zombie animations feel recycled, level design is still a bit too barren and devoid of any reality to it but then Valve hits us with improved gore, unbelievably impressive weather effects (Hard Rain) or atmospheric touches (Swamp Fever) but considering other companies like Naughty Dog or Ubisoft continue to make leap forwards in their graphics, the Source engine still looks like it's churning out the same graphics with a couple of tweaks. Oh and I hope you have a great internet connection beca.use. thi.s. thi.n..g wi..l..l la..g on yo...u. It literally lagged so much my entire Xbox disconnected from Live. But end of the day, a company like Bungie who goes from Halo 3 to ODST with not a whole lot of upgrades is apparently introducing a brand new engine for Reach so hopefully Valve is on their way with this too.

Sound/Music: During the opening cinematic for the first Left 4 Dead, it completely set the tone for what was to come: freaky, possibly scary and it's still one of the most intense movie clips in a game. This game opens with a tone that might as well come with grindhouse-era film scratches and movie trailers because it's filled with guitar twang and while the music in-game does carry with it some horror stuff, they seem to be going for a more chaotic fun vibe than previously. Sound effects are again more of the same with the still awesome Hunter scream abound, the gurgling and bubbling of Boomers though I noticed Witches have a new crying sound and guns are fairly similar but I wish some guns had more kick. It's a shotgun damnit not some clicky pistol thing. Voice acting as always is strong lack-of-personalities aside and apart from Ellis, everyone does functional roles but they're not exactly endearing either. Nick for instance who apparently is one of those "I don't trust anyone except me" guys never really comes across as such.

Gameplay: For the most part, it's the same. Guns don't have ADS (aiming-down sights) and you can only carry 2 guns at a time but there's been one change and that's the addition of melee weapons. Crowd control in the previous game mainly consisted of pressing LT to butt zombies away to get you a shot but now one swipe can literally down 4 zombies at a time so it becomes surprisingly invaluable to bring a machete or axe or even The Freeman's (said in a vortigaunt's voice) crowbar over dual-wielding pistols. The guns also had a bit of an upgrade so it's no longer just Uzi and Assault rifle but they also added my new fav, a silenced machine gun and even a grenade launcher. Carryable items have also added some new members included the teammate-reviving defibrillators, the boomer bile that you can use on enemies instead or ammo that can light zombies on fire or explode em. Nice. All in all it's a nice bit of additions that doesn't add a whole lot especially in light of the major additions found in Assassin's Creed II but still fundamental nonetheless.

Left 4 Dead 2 adds some more modes as well as opposed to the first game's patch so we have standard campaign in either co-op or single player (don't bother, they're dumb as wood yet excellent shots), the familiar Versus where you switch teams to either make it to the safehouse or prevent the other team and the new Scavenge mode which I'll get to because I want to nitpick Versus for a tad. The problem with being an Infected is that while they're fun, the cooldown for abilities seems strangely a bit too high and more often than not I'm simply waiting around for an attack to regenerate before I can use it. I know it's meant to balance the game and not have boomer bile every 10 seconds but the wait for it to be re-used seems oddly long and the 20 sometimes even 28 or so seconds to respawn is just aggravating and as Yahtzee said, "flow-breaking". As for Scavenge, you play as a team to refill a generator with gas cans while the other team prevents them from doing so and team with most rounds won wins. It's quicker than Versus to trade places. Oh and I'd recommend playing with friends since I think it's the ability to vote makes this game a breeding ground for people to kick you for no apparent reason. Once I was kicked for actually incapacitating the rest of the team single-handedly (I guess they wanted something to do?). Hopefully the community will smarten up and not vote to kick because of some inane reason.

Is the game worth a buy? Honestly no, the game is fun for awhile and there'll be some people that will indeed enjoy the game for awhile, the repetitive nature might just grate on you. Oh and this is an incredibly small and somewhat petty gripe but I hate the achievements are in caps. At least previously it was a nice "Red Mist" or "Burn the Witch" but here it's like "THE REAL DEAL" or "SEPTIC TANK". It just looks odd but again they're small gripes. The game isn't worth 60$ or 70$ if you're Canadian but it makes for a good Christmas present so consider asking for it instead of buying it yourselves.

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Nothing really stands out about it, it has its fun momments but very simplistic and not much depth. Avoid on 360 if you don't pay for live though.

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The following game is a definite improvement over the previous game. While I cannot say it is one of the best games on the console, I definitely feel like they are moving in the right direction.

Before I go onward, I wanted to state that I am one of the many people who disliked the first game simply because of how lazy the game developers were. They created a game that resembled a minigame and should have been worth $20, not $60. And yes, I am angry that instead of adding more maps to the first game for $10, they decided to scam us with another $60 game, knowing that anyone who wanted more from the first game bad enough would get the next game. Putting all of that aside, I will try to rate this game on it's merit alone, based on how it has improved over the first game and how it is as a game of its' own.

Graphics: Graphically the improvements in the game are slight. There are more infected shapes and colors. However, there are some problems as well. I notice certain infected, when killed, disappear, this was not a problem in the first game. The area you move in seems slightly more detailed. The best you can really say about the graphics is slighly more polished than the original.

Gameplay: Some may be happy to find that the feel of the game is the same. You can pick up one or the other and notice very little in the difference between the feel of the game or the feel of weapons that are similar between games. On the up side, you have access to melee weapons and a couple new weapons as well. Temporary upgradable ammo, chainsaws, grenade launchers, and katana's are a couple of the new weapons added to the game.

The levels are now wider (I can't think of a better word for it), giving you more space and less restriction on where you can go. This makes it easier to get lost, but also gives you a lot more to explore. There are a lot more random weapons and items in the rooms now, so you are always finding something, so you will often have to choose which melee weapon you have, weather you want a health pack or a defib(revive downed survivor), pain pills or adrenaline(increased speed), and what melee weapon you want. This tends to make levels funner and less predictable. (the previous game always gave you the same weapons and most of the weapon pops were like clockwork.

The game now consists of a couple different types of events. It is no longer an "entrench yourself until the horde is all dead"; and is now more of a "wait just long enough for the next door to open and floor it" kind of game. Some events require you to floor it to the safe room, with infected continuing to pop up the entire way. Some require you to shut off the alarm by making it to the shut off switch with infected constantly appearing until the alarms are off. One finale requires you to fill a tank of a car with constant zombie attacks. Any way you look at it, you have a lot more variety in the events, although once you finish an event the first time, obviously it doesn't change. But it does help each campaign feel truly unique.

Story: Possibly the #1 reason that this game made a higher score is the story. While it does not follow any intense story complete with backgrounds of characters, it is actually a story, as opposed to the last game. You follow these 4 characters from campaign to campaign. The campaigns actually move in chronological order, as you travel through there journey trying to survive the zombie apocalypse. It starts when all 4 of the characters meet on the rooftop of the mall, hoping for a rescue from the helicopters they were promised. When this does not occur, they continue to travel. They meet and greet in the first campaign, and each campaign after explains how their previous escape attempt eventually goes bad. You can follow the story from campaign to campaign, which I find to be the best part. The only thing I don't like is I haven't heard them come up with an idea of how to escape until the finale. They travel from safe room to safe room for no reason, and then in the finale, one of them just says, oh, let's do this! The previous game usually had them state an objective, like, "Maybe we can catch a boat at the docks", this one doesn't seem to give that direction.

Overall: So to sum it up, I think the game is an improvement over the first one. If it was worth $60 for you, you would buy it or would already be making plans to buy it. If you never have played it, want to know what the fuss is about, and don't rent games ever, then buy the first one, you won't be seeing too much difference here. If you own the first one, and are looking at getting the second, I would say that it depends on whether new maps, new objectives, and new weapons is worth the money. If I had to buy it again, I probably would, to appease my wife if nothing else. However, I felt it was an improvement, although a small one. The game designers were less lazy when making this one, but only just.

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Despite being sparse on maps and options, the original Left4Dead was a fantastic game. The follow-up, Left4Dead 2 improves on the original in almost every way. Most importantly the game is more difficult, the original was tough but once you became acclimated even the dreaded expert mode was too easy and the multiplayer lost it's fun quickly because it was simply too easy for an experienced survivor team. The sequel is almost perfectly balanced between survivor and infected. There are still no options for removing or restricting certain weapons or med packs but we did gain team matching... which brings me to the game's biggest fault: the net code is absolute garbage. It's all but impossible to play on the official dedicated servers as the lag creates a slideshow and on team games you're more likely to get dumped back to the lobby or main menu than ever finish a round. Valve thankfully included the back up option of playing on local servers but unless you live in or near a major city or happen to have a very solid internet connection, you will still experience significant lag. The survivor AI has been so dumbed down that it's completely pointless to play offline as the computer controlled survivors will not pick up heath kits and often stand and watch as you are slowly destroyed by special infected. Overall it's hard to recommend L4D2 because it was obviously rushed out for the Christmas season. Hopefully Valve is working to correct the net code and terribly overworked servers and I would wait until they do before buying.

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This game doesn't do a whole lot more for me than the first left for dead. You hope that a sequel will use the fact that the basis of the game is already done to spend more time coming up with some great new ideas, but unfortunately there is no giant step forward. Good game but to much like its predecessor to be great.

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This game is much better than I expected, luckily i bought it for black friday. (29$) The game has a few bugs/issues that you will notice once you start playing, hopefully the developers will patch them soon.

If you can catch this game on sale buy it, at reg price I would hold off.

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