REVIEWS / PC

Left 4 Dead

22 Nov, 2008, 6:47 pm IST | by Nikhil Singh | PC PC



All encounters in Left 4 Dead are randomly generated. You may be surrounded by zombies in a narrow corridor during one play, while in the next there might not be a living (or dead) soul in sight. This ensures that you're always at the edge of your seat, since you never know when a seemingly endless horde of zombies may pour through a newly made hole in the wall, or when one of the special infected creatures may jump off a nearby ledge and incapacitate you. This is Left 4 Dead's biggest strength - the random encounters and well programmed randomly generated event triggers ensure that the game remains fresh every time you play it.


Another one of Left 4 Dead's strong points is the way its guns control - they're a lot like Counter Strike. As you might know, Turtle Rock Studios (the game's developers), have worked extensively on the Counter Strike series too, so a lot of the gun physics has been absorbed from there. You can only pick one weapon, and you always have a sidearm (you can dual-wield the sidearm if you find another one in the level). While gun selection is limited to one assault rifle, two shotguns (automatic and manual), a mini-SMG and a sniper rifle, each gun has a learning curve just like CS. This coupled with the fact that ammo's always limited, ensures that you take your shots wisely, else you'll end up with no ammunition and just your sidearm to slay waves of zombies.

The level design is brilliant and the levels feature a myriad of venues stretching from claustrophobia inducing tight corridors, to parking lots populated with tons of cars, making killing those flesh hungry fiends all the more challenging. Each level is broken up into chapters, with a safe room after each chapter where you can recoup, heal-up and stock up on ammunition before you proceed. These also work as save points, so if the survivors die during the game they can always start from the beginning of the chapter.


If anyone gets incapacitated during battle, a team mate can always help by reviving them. You can hold only one first aid kit at one time, and one bottle of painkillers that heals you temporarily. Using health kits isn't as straight forward as it is in corridor shooters - it takes about 5-10 seconds to patch yourself or an ally up, during which you're vulnerable and need your teammates to watch your back. Everything from healing to facing the special infected requires teamwork and coordination, which makes playing with friends or those you know a lot better than playing with random people.

Tags: Left4Dead , Turtle Rock Studios , Valve

Would you buy it?




RELATED STORIES

Game of the Year 2011 - First Person Shooter (FPS)

The best shooter this year is...

Marvel at the visual evolution of Counter-Strike

Download Portal for free

Dead Island now available on Steam

Save big on all Need for Speed games

Hitman and Kane and Lynch sale hits Steam

Buy Prototype off Steam for just Rs. 450

Left4Dead Review

18 Nov, 2008, 04:22 am IST

Left4Dead Review

Left4Dead Horde in Real Life

27 May, 2010, 08:36 am IST

Left4Dead Horde in Real Life

Left4Dead Hakka version

20 Jun, 2009, 01:53 am IST

Left4Dead Hakka version

LEFT 4 DEAD - Fan Film Trailer

28 Jun, 2011, 02:45 pm IST

LEFT 4 DEAD - Fan Film Trailer

 

How We Test

What do the ratings mean?

Ratings are simple - higher the score, the better the product. A brief listing of the features and what they mean are given below.

1 - 3

The product is bad in almost every aspect. We strongly advise against purchasing this product.

4 - 6

An average product that isn't the best you can buy, but isn't the worst either.

7 - 8

Product with this rating is highly recommended because it's priced sensibly, has a good set of features and performs well.

9 - 10

Exceptionally excellent product with features and performance unlike any we've seen in the past. A must-have for everyone!

What is the Average User Rating?

We at Tech2 take product reviewing very seriously and every product is tested with the utmost care and level of objectivity. The end user who buys a particular product and uses it over an extended period of time has his own take on a product and there might be nuances that he or she can shed light on. The Average User Rating is present to help readers get the complete picture of how good or bad a product is. The Average User Rating is calculated by averaging the ratings by the thousands of readers visiting Tech2.com every single day. To record your own rating of a product, simply click on the user rating bar. If you disagree with our ratings or our community's product rating, please don't hesitate from voicing your opinion in the comments section below the review.

Leaked Images, Availability, Pricing,
Specs, Pre-order

On video: HTC One V

On video: HTC One V

18 May, 2012, 04:44 AM

4.4

On video: Cowon Z2 (16GB)

On video: Cowon Z2 (16GB)

15 May, 2012, 04:58 PM

2.3

On video: Samsung WB150F

On video: Samsung WB150F

08 May, 2012, 04:23 AM

5.0

MORE VIDEOS

features

Hands On: Spec Ops: The Line

Hands On: Spec Ops: The Line

We go hands on with Spec Ops: The Line and come away rather unimpressed.

By Avinash Bali

Games of May 2012

Games of May 2012

As the heat destroys any inclination to leave the confines of your room,...

By Avinash Bali

Hands-on: Sniper Elite V2

Hands-on: Sniper Elite V2

Have you ever wanted to shoot someone in the crotch and then watch the...

By Avinash Bali

MORE FEATURES

Samsung confirms S III's India launch on May 31

Hardik Shah

Mon May 28, 11:47:09

What is A-GPS? How Does it Work?

Cvd Enticer

Mon May 28, 11:39:58

Samsung Galaxy Note: Tips & Tricks for better use

Sudeep Lohith

Mon May 28, 11:15:12

MORE DISCUSSIONS