Left4Dead 2 is Valve's quick sequel to their smash hit from last year, Left4Dead. Not being a huge First-Person Shooter fan, I was leery about trying the first game. I am glad I did; it was and still is a blast. And with L4D2, they have only improved on a great idea - by adding chainsaws! I intentionally tried to stay as ignorant of the game as I could before release, despite an incredible amount of buzz in the fan community and Valve's very open PR policies.

L4D2 follows four survivors from Savannah, Georgia to good 'ol Nawlans' - thats "New Orleans" for you non-Southern USA folk. Its story spans across five campaigns, each about 60-90 minutes long. For contrast, L4D1 had only four campaigns, and were 45-60 minutes each. With the intergration of powerful melee weapons, there is no longer a fear to get up close and personal with the hordes. Just pick up a fraying pan, baseball bat, or my personal favorite, a fireman's axe, and start swinging. There is also a chainsaw, and there is no greater joy to life than making Tank Burgers with it.

Taking place in the “Deep South,” everyone gets the treat of seeing True Southern Charm, something the writers and actors captured in a fun way. Some of the campaigns go from day to night, or night to day. One even goes from a light rain to hurricane torrents. In an unsung stroke of genius, that hurricane often kicks up to deafening levels, cutting visibility drastically and even causing the built-in voice chat to fade out to nothing. The immersion effect in an online co-op game is incredible, particularly if your team is big on communication - which, honestly, you need to be if you want to get past the "Easy" mode.

There are new “Special Infected”, some that I feel could only exist in the South. The Spitter is the prime example; complete with a belly shirt and horrible pink thong, she embodies the “Southern White Trash” in a way that disturbs me. Of course the old favorites are there, with a new adaptation to the Witch: during daylight, she's up and wandering around. She's a bit harder to scare, but just as terrifying, even if you are armed with a chainsaw. The Smoker has an updated, uglier look, but go ahead and smack him with a frying pan; it'll be worth it, I promise.

The new cast of Survivors amuse me greatly. "Coach" reminds me of the football coach at my old high school. He seems to have the most personality. Put him in front of the mic on the rock stage and get ready to laugh. Nick is your standard jerk-ass con-artist; he complains more about getting goo on his white suit than about having to fight for his life. Ellis is a daredevil bumpkin mechanic, and his AI seems to favor sniper rifles. Rochelle, the token girl of the team, is known for her very bad puns. “Axe me a question.” I kind of wish they had brought the old team back; Francis hates everything, let him hate in the South! But these are finely-crafted and perfectly-voiced characters to enjoy hours of gameplay with.

L4D2 has the standard Campaign and VS modes, but they have also brought in a new mode, Scavenge, which you get a sample of in the first campaign. It's an interesting spin on things, and makes a lot of sense. Instead of running from A to B, you have to run out from a home point to collect gas cans while fighting the waves of hungry dead.

There are also new toys for the players to enjoy. Adrenaline shots work like pills and also make you run faster. Defib units make an appearance; why wait for a Hero Closet when you can zap your friends back to life? Boomer Bile - it's a jar of Boomer Vomit, and it causes the horde to swarm and go nuts. Pro tip - throw it at the tank. But the bullets, the bullets are the crowning glory. Incendiary rounds set things on fire. Frag rounds, shoot one of those into a zombie and then ask where that zombie went. I love the special bullets and they add this wonderful feeling of mayhem; plus it's way easier to set a Tank on fire.

They did spike up the difficulty in the sequel, so if you are use to playing on Hard, drop down a level for a bit to get a good feel for the game. Or else be ready to have some frustrating moments because you keep having to restart a level. Also beware, Common Infected will sometimes keep attacking even if they're missing a limb or two, and "Uncommon Common" infected add a twist of terror to every horde.

Overall, Left4Dead 2 is what Left4Dead should have been, and L4D was a brilliant game to start with. It's a great game to play with friends or strangers; even if you aren't that great a player. There is also enough gameplay to keep you playing for a long time and the AI director will eventually dumb things down a little for you. I'm excited to see what sort of tweaks and improvements Valve will make on L4D2 in the months to come.

Pros:

• Melee Weapons


• Longer Levels


• Chainsaws

Cons:

• PC version had/has a glitch that eats your Steam Achievements


• Slightly higher difficulty causes some frustration in the beginning


• Zombie Clowns

Overall Score: 8.0 out of 10 - Chainsaw a zombie and see!