Left 4 Dead 2

You may have noticed that the release date for Left 4 Dead 2 is only days away. Valve’s original co-operative shooter was a big hit last November for Xbox 360 and PC platforms and thousands of people are still logging on to play every day. So why should you care about the sequel?

Well, based on what we’ve seen at preview events and the demo on Xbox Live and Steam, it’s obvious that parts of the game have been expanded and improved upon. Read on for five reasons why Left 4 Dead 2 leaves the original shambling in the dark.

5. Versus Playable on All Campaigns

It’s no secret that Left 4 Dead was missing game modes when it first came out. Of its four campaigns, only two could be played in Versus mode. This was later addressed through downloadable content, but still…

With the sequel, Valve made it so you can play Versus mode on all the campaigns in the game, not just a few. These are also all new campaigns, set in the southeastern United States, and there are five instead of four. So you get more content with the sequel, and you also don’t have to wait around for Valve to patch into it the ability to try any of them with four Survivors competing against four Infected.

4. More Modes

Do you like Survival Mode? Remember how with the original you had to wait for the Survival Pack to get it? Again, the original release of Left 4 Dead was missing this now-standard mode.

Not only are there the five new campaigns playable solo, co-operatively, or in versus mode, but you also get more Survival mode maps, in addition to Scavenge and Realism mode. While Realism is more for the super hardcore crowd who want an even more challenging experience, the Scavenge mode should appeal to all as it allows eight players to have a Versus-style experience without having to dedicate hours and hours of play time.

3. More Weapons

It’s pretty well established at this point that people like to kill zombies in videogames. Pistols, machine guns, shotguns…Left 4 Dead had quite a lot, but something was missing.

In Left 4 Dead 2 Valve added in melee weapons. While that may seem like a simple thing, the effects are pretty dramatic. From what we’ve played at preview events, you’re no longer limited to doing the melee push back to get a group of zombies off you. You can instead switch over to a machete or fire axe or whatever you have equipped, which can swiftly shred packs of zombies. If you’re played the demo, then you know they’re great for clearing away a mob from around a teammate or keeping a wave of the undead at bay while parked in a doorframe.

2. More Zombies

The original had four main special zombie types — the Hunter, Boomer, Smoker, and Tank — and then a fifth, the Witch, who was the only one not playable in Versus mode.

You get a choice of a Spitter, who vomits out globs of noxious acid that spreads across the ground and can do big damage for any that get caught up in it. A Charger can run at high speeds across maps and slam into Survivors, knocking them over and carrying the one he hits directly into a wall for big damage. There’s also the Jockey, who can hop on a Survivor’s head and move them around, which can include into fires, into Spitter goo, or off ledges. Mix in all the original special zombie types and campaign-specific uncommon common zombies, such as clowns on Dark Carnival, and you can rest assured the challenge is going to be more interesting.

1. More Gore

Did you play the Left 4 Dead 2 demo? If you did, then you probably noticed this game is a lot more violent than the first. Not only do the zombies animate more realistically, but they come apart in chunks as you rip into them with shotguns and machetes.

Specifically, their limbs fly off as their stomachs open up and guts spill out. Yes, you’ll actually see entrails draped over bits of the environment after you clean up an area. If you go and inspect the corpses, you’ll also see they’re often missing big pieces of flesh from their bodies, revealing shards of rib cage and the ghoulish goulash of their internal organs. It’s messy and gross, but it should be a delight for hardcore zombie film and game fans and those who appreciate over-the-top gore.

source