Today we will be reviewing the smash hit PC game Left 4 Dead. Left 4 Dead was produced by Valve and has been released since November 2008. The game is a First Person Shooter with single-player and cooperative game-play. The game is set in a zombie infested world where 4 survivors, the main characters, must survive different campaign maps and get to the extraction point. There has been a rabies-like virus, that causes a form of psychosis, spreading through the world and the 4 survivors are immune to it. The location of Left 4 Dead is strongly believed to be in Pennsylvania, USA.The game has 3 different game play modes, which are: campaign, versus and survival. Campaign is to play the storyline, versus is to play against other players and survival is one set map with constant zombie waves and rushes and is meant to test how long a group can really survive. Like any other games, players can increase the difficulty on the game all the way to "Expert".
There are different weapons in the game to defeat the incoming horde, such as assault rifles and shotguns. Environmental weapons are also available such as propane tanks and gas cans. Players can reach checkpoints in a certain map by entering a safe-house and locking the door behind them.
The horde zombies are compiled of regular zombies as well as "special infected." The special infected are mini boss-like zombies that are more challenging to kill than a regular zombie. There are Boomers, Smokers, Hunters and Witches (Don't forget to turn your flashlight off). These special infected spawn randomly throughout the map and frequently to harass and attempt to incapacitate or kill the survivors. Spawning less often are Tanks, which look like infected body builders with a thirst for blood. They are the biggest bosses in the game and they are tougher to defeat.
The graphics in the game are great, gory, realistic and have plenty of details that make the player wonder, "What really happened here?" Left 4 Dead will be challenging and scary to some of the newest players. The game also uses environmental graphics like rain or fog in order to enhance the game-play. The sounds are comprehensively done as each survivor has their own set of lines that they say when they interact with other survivors. The AI is smart, but it is highly recommended to play Left 4 Dead with all 4 human players to get the full experience and team cooperation in order to defeat any campaign and any flesh-hungry psychotic zombie rush.
The only thing that could have been done differently, is the fact that the maps should have been longer, or there should have been more maps overall. Playing the same few maps over and over does get a bit tedious but there are achievements you can unlock to keep you busy.
Left 4 Dead has been one of 2008's top games and is a very popular first person shooter among players of all ages. Left 4 Dead will surely not disappoint any player looking for a mix of fun, and zombie killing action! After all, what's not fun about shooting zombies with your friends?
UberScore: 91/100
