Surrounded by hordes of zombies, will you be Left 4 Dead or will you survive?

Author's Rating:

Pros: Excellent premise and brilliant execution, graphics.

Cons: Only four scenarios with 5 levels in each(20 levels)

The Bottom Line: 
A must-have for zombie-killers this holiday season!

Author's Review
I wonder what would happen if zombies did swarm all over Earth. What would we do? Run and don't look back or would we be like the four survivors in Left 4 Dead and fight? I, for one, would like to just run and get the hell out, but whats the fun in that when you can just fly bullets in zombies, ripping them into shreds. Left 4 Dead is the new game by Valve where the game throws you in one of four survivors, fighting off swarms of zombies in a zombie apocalypse. The game has received several awards and I must say, it truly deserves every one of them.

As I say again, you are one of four survivors in the middle of a zombie apocalypse. You can choose which one you would like to play or you can let the game choose for you. It really doesn't matter who you pick because their characteristics do not change the aspect of the outcome at the end. In the game, there are four "movie scenarios" with 5 levels in each. The scenarios are presented in movie form; at the beginning of them, the movie poster is shown, at the end of each level, statistics are shown such as who has the most headshots, who took out the most zombies, etc. Then, at the end of each "movie", credits roll and it shows how many zombies were killed during the making of the movie(which is awesome!) and a nice touch I think, whoever didn't make it at the end of the "movie", the film is dedicated to those who didn't. It's the little things that makes us smile.

However, my only problem with this game is the fact that each level can be done in 20-30 minutes and there are only 5 in each "movie". However, there is definitely lots of replay value to be had. Each time you play, there is going to be something different. For an example, if you remember a zombie jumping out this one spot, the next time you play, that zombie may not be there. Also, the game "watches" your performance, seeing how well you are doing. If you're dying a lot, the game will ease on you and provide more ammo and health and vice versa. Plus, the levels are enjoyable. The very first "movie" you can play through(might I mention that you can pick whichever "movie" you want to play first along which level) is called "No Mercy" where you must make your way to a nearby hospital and battle there until help arrives. The only three are "Dead Air", which has you making your way to an airport and tough it out there, "Death Toll" which has you going your way to the nearby docks, and finally one of the creepiest ones is "Blood Harvest" which has you going through the woods, through the corn fields and finally to a farmhouse.

Left 4 Dead is a straight-up first-person shooter that is in your face with screaming zombies coming your way. It is similiar to House of The Dead, but a lot smarter and tons more enjoyable. The one thing that is easily the best thing about Left 4 Dead is that it literally feels like a zombie apocalypse is happening and it is the only four of you left. Thus, the game plenty of exciting action, suffocating tension and in-your-face terror! Left 4 Dead has weapons for you to devour the zombies with bullets and they include shotguns, pistols, sniper rifles, machine guns, moltov cocktails, and more!

There are six kinds of zombies in Left 4 Dead--you have the fast zombies called "The Horde" then you have the special and deadly kind including The Hunter who can pounce on you, The Smoker who can wrap their tongue around you, The Boomer who can vomit on you and this vomit will make the Horde go crazy and jump on you, and finally the Tank which is this huge monster that is set out to pummel all the survivors. There is also another zombie called the Witch, which she is best left alone. You can hear her crying which is a warning of you not to go near her, make noises or shine a light on her. Otherwise, one hit from her, you will die. Also, the game features a neat feature that adds a nice touch. There are warnings that can set off a Horde to attack. Such as car alarms, if the car is hit by bullets or is jumped on, the alarm will go off and zombies will be attracted to it. I mean, it's the little things that we appreciate and Left 4 Dead has plenty of them such as the always-terrifying image of zombies tearing through a door to taste your flesh. Ah, good times!

Left 4 Dead is a gem of perfection. Although, it isn't exact a piece of perfection, it is damn close to it. The graphics shine with gloss and makes its' presentation slick. There is a variety of zombies to be seen and each look really good. Facial expressions on either the zombies or the survivors is top-notch. Also, you'd think the game would slow down with 100s of zombies coming at once--but Left 4 Dead doesn't slow down one bit! The game definitely shines with the graphics and the sound doesn't disappoint either. Hearing zombies scream and growl is truly terrifying while everything else including guns bursting with firepower to the simple door opening, these two things are perfect. The controls for Left 4 Dead is really simple and any fan of either Call of Duty or Doom will fit right in.

Left 4 Dead is definitely a game to be played by all gamers. It is a rare experience in a horror game...or until Resident Evil 5 comes out in March of 2009. Left 4 Dead feels like the perfect zombie movie that was never made and it is definitely the perfect zombie game to date. It exceeds so many levels, you'll question whether there is another level for the game to exceed.

Left 4 Dead information:
Genre: Action/Horror
Rated: M for Blood & Gore, Intense Violence, Language
# of players: 1-2, co-op:2, system link: 2-8
Difficulty: It'll go easy on you if you die a lot.