How to Play Left 4 Dead 2

Playing for the First Time

Remember that Left 4 Dead is all about survival, no matter what mode you're playing. The L4D games are about staying alive -- not killing a big boss, saving the world, or racking up a high score. No matter what the mode, you objective is to stay alive for as long as possible. With that in mind, there is some general advice that will help you through any situation: Always keep moving. A standing target is an easy one to hit. Work together with all 3 teammates -- never go off alone. Conserve ammo and supplies, only using when necessary.

Choose one of the Campaigns from the main menu. From the start screen, choose "Campaign" and start with "Dead Center." If you've never played shooting games before, set the difficulty to easy and hit start. Campaigns are single-player games that give you three computer-controlled teammates (AI) to help you fight through the zombies. It does not matter which character you choose. In the game they all work identically. If you're with a friend you can choose "Split-Screen" as well. This is a normal campaign, but two of you can play together on the same mission with 2 AI teammates.

Test out the controls on the opening screen. The first location you arrive at, in every level, is always free of zombies. This gives you the chance to learn the controls if you're not used to them yet. While they are different on every console, you can easily check the controls in the start menu. To do so, hit "Start" and navigate to "Controls." This screen will show you what each button or computer key does. The very basic controls that you must know include: Move and shoot. Switch weapon. Reload weapon. How to shove. How to use items (on yourself and others).

Pick up the Medkit and nearby weapons in the opening location. At the beginning of every level there are several Medkits, which are thick, rectangular red packs, and several weapons. Head over and pick them up. On the first level, they sit on a table right next to the door. Pistol: Your automatic first weapon. Pistols are weak but accurate and, most importantly, have unlimited ammunition. If you find another one on the ground, you can pick it up to dual wield them, effectively giving you double power, shots, and firing rate. Medkits: Medkits heal your character completely. You can also use them to heal teammates. You can only hold one at any time. You should always try and have 2-3 Medkits, at a minimum, in your party. Melee Weapons: Katanas, baseball bats, chainsaws, crowbars, and other melee weapons attack in a wide swath in front of you, often killing Infected instantly. They are good options in the early difficulties, and, with the exception of chainsaws, can be used infinitely. They replace your pistol.

Stay together at all times. This is the number one piece of advice you need to follow, in any game mode, to survive L4D2. The game is cooperative, and while it may be fun to run off and act like a hero, more often than not this will get you killed. One mistake can leave you stranded and turn your team of four into a team of three. The best way to survive is as a unit. So stick together, watching each other's backs at all times. The importance of teamwork cannot be overstated. The game will punish players who head off on their own, and so will your teammates.

Move through the levels as quickly as possible. Zombies will spawn even if you are standing still. They are not set in place and waiting there, in the same place, like most other games. Therefore, the longer you sit around, the harder the game is going to get. You need to be constantly moving forward, sticking together and clearing rooms before moving on. If you see side rooms, set two people at the door, then quickly send the other two in to look for supplies or guns. Whenever you need to open a door, push a button, or otherwise trigger an event (usually noted on the screen), tell your teammates and give them a chance to heal, use an item, or reload. Then move forward as a team.

Prepare yourself in advance for hair-raising Crescendo Events. At the end of some acts is the "Crescendo Event," an enormous, incredibly difficult finale that requires you to complete some task or survive for a certain period of time. In the first level, Dead Center, this occurs when you need to fill the car up with gas. There will be a long, eerie silence. But once you start filling up the windows will shatter and an enormous Horde will descend upon you. Before starting a crescendo event, heal up, find all your supplies, and make a game plan with your teammates. All crescendo events will be noted to you by a "!" icon on the screen. Some of these events, like the car in Dead Center, only end once you've completed your objective (ie. fill up the car). You can't just sit there and wait it out because it will not end. Pay attention to the dialogue and objectives to end the rush as soon as possible.

Understand the layout of a typical L4D2 level. When playing L4D2, you can choose a variety of different modes. All of them, however, are built on the same foundation: You have a setting, such as a mall, rainy town, or carnival, and there are 5 Chapters in each setting to survive. Each chapter is it's own level, which is often begins with ease before getting progressively more difficult. At the end of most chapters is a big event you must survive, and at the end of each setting is usually the most difficult challenge seen so far. As you play through each game mode, note where the major events and challenges fall, helping you stay better prepared next time you play. The basic objective of the game is always "move forward." Levels are more or less linear, and your challenge is to make it to the end. When in doubt, save your items. The levels will only get harder. At the end of each chapter is a safe house with supplies, medkits, and ammunition. No zombies can enter it until you open the door, so this is a perfect place to catch your breath.

Know that the items, enemies, and timing will change every game. Left 4 Dead 2 has a hidden AI Director that adjusts the game based on how you're doing. This means that you can't assume you'll get the same items or challenges each time you play. You need to be constantly adapting. If you decided to use a Medkit early on, assuming you'll get another one a few rooms down based on your last play-through, you'll be sorely disappointed when it doesn't appear. Even the number and intensity of enemies will change from game to game. You need to focus on the present moment if you want to succeed. The Director can even change the route you must take to succeed. You must play to your current situation, instead of trying to figure out one perfect strategy for each level.

Defeating Any Enemy

Mow down the common infected while trying to save ammunition. Your basic zombie, Infected, are fast-moving, easily killed generic zombies. Their power, however, comes from the fact that they attack in swarms. There are two types -- "Mobs," which spawn behind you and hunt you down, and "Wanderers," who stand around until you run into them. When in a group, they are called "the horde."

Kill Boomers from a distance. Big, fat behemoths, Boomers call attention to the horde. If they puke on you, you lose vision and all the Infected immediately attack you. To defeat them, shoot from a distance, or shove them away and then shoot if they get too close. When they die, they explode, puking on everything around them, so only kill from afar. They burp and gurgle, revealing them from a distance if you're listening.

Stay away from high damage Spitter acid. Lanky female zombies, Spitters shoot acid on the ground that hurts everything it touches. They also create a puddle of acid when they die. Dodge their acid and shoot from a distance. They make wet, spitting sounds.

Strafe and kill Chargers from the side. They run in a straight line, pinning anyone in their path and knocking over objects in their way. If they get you against a wall, they deal massive damage. Put as many bullets in them as you can, and if they charge, move to the sides to dodge them. They make loud grunting sounds like The Hulk might sound.

Keep a teammate handy to deal with Smokers. Long range killers, they grab people with their tongue, drag them in, and beat them to death. If you get caught, a teammate can shoot the tongue, freeing you, or the smoker, killing them. You need to have teammates around to fight them. You can also use shove to free a teammate. When you get caught, you have 2 seconds to find the smoker and shoot them before you lose control of your character. They cough and wheeze, but usually strike from a distance to hide. They are usually up high.

Listen for growling to avoid dangerous Hunters. Massive damage dealers, they pounce on you and start slashing. Your other teammates must shoot them off you before you can get up. They are fast, dark, and hard to hit. If you hear one, bunch up back to back and get ready to shoot. Hunters make a menacing growl right before they get ready to attack.

Kill fast-moving Jockeys quickly to get them off your back. Little and fast, they jump on a character and control them, making you walk over ledges or behind walls, dealing damage the whole time. They are generally easy to kill, but if they get on your teammate, you need to be sure you shoot them, not the teammate. Their signature cackling laugh makes them easy to hear in advance.

Handle the bosses with fire and teamwork. There are two boss characters in L4D2 -- Witches and Tanks. They come at specific locations, and they can kill an entire team if you're not careful. When handling them, concentrated fire is always the answer. You need to focus on them before anything else, as they deal far more damage than any other Infected. Witches: If you're lucky, you can avoid most of them. They sit, crying until you wake them with gunfire or a flashlight. If you see one, turn off the light and try and creep around them. If you can't, use your first few shots to kill them as they wake up, aiming for the head as a team. Rifles to the head are your best bet. Tanks: You'll need fire to kill a tank. If you have a Molotov, hit them immediately - tanks on fire die in 30 seconds without any bullets. As you do, move around a lot to dodge them, surrounding the tank as a team and shooting continually.

Using Weapons and Items Effectively

Use items effectively in tense situations. Aside from weapons, there are other items available for pick-up, most of which should be reserved for tense or serious situations. Pain Pills: Gives you a temporary boost of health, though it will disappear after some time. This is incredibly helpful, however, for final events, where the extra boost saves a Medkit and gets you through the challenging events, allowing you to heal later fully. Adrenaline Shots: Provides a small health boost, and boosts your running speed. Most importantly, it keeps you from "flinching," which is when you are temporarily unable to shoot after being hit. Use them right before huge moments, or if you need to get to a teammate to save them quickly. Bile Bombs: A grenade that causes all regular zombies to flock to the spot where it fell, ignoring you. If you throw it on another Zombie, the other Infected will attack them instead of you. Pipe Bombs: Like bile bombs, these cause Inflected to leave you and flock to the spot where you threw it. After a few seconds, as the infected crowd the spot, the bomb explodes, killing them all. Molotov Cocktails: Explode on impact, and leave a temporary lake of fire that hurts all Infected and humans that walk through it. Great at creating walls against the hordes of dead, and essential against the monstrous "Tanks."

Understand the advanced weapons. There is a variety of items and weapons available in Left 4 Dead, each with their own pros and cons. When you start out, you will only have access to a small variety of them, but more powerful weapons and items will appear as you progress. Shotguns: Coming in chrome, pump, and automatic options, shotguns are great options in close quarters. They deal a lot of damage and have a wide spread of fire, but they are inaccurate at long distances. Use them in hallways and other tight locations. Rifles: Powerful and accurate at long ranges, they are almost useless in tense, swarming situations because they take a while to aim and shoot. But they are great in a group and can clean up long-range, incoming enemies while the rest of the team waits patiently for them to reach shotgun range. Automatic Weapons: Submachine guns, M16s, and their ilk are your bread and butter. They have good power and a high rate of fire, allowing you to mow down medium and close range enemies. When in doubt, choose automatic weapons.

Excelling in Any Game Mode

Keep your distance whenever possible. Especially on the harder difficulties, melee weapons will only get you killed. Instead, stay back and pick off enemies from afar. Use your shoves to keep some distance, and, whenever you're in the open, use a pistol or rifle to thin the herd before they get too close.

Predict the "flow" of the hordes by learning how they spawn. Left 4 Dead is a constantly shifting game, and Infected will appear in unexpected places. Zombies spawn at various points, and they are on a timer. Special Infected like Hunters and Smokers can appear anywhere but usually, come with a horde of Infected to cause maximum damage. There are, however, ways to predict when enemies are coming: Pay attention to the music -- it will start to swell and get tense as enemies build up out of sight. Turn on subtitles. You can often read things like, "coughing sounds" or "noises of the horde" in advance, making it easier to predict incoming groups or specials. Know the three stages of an attack. Build-up, as the music swells. Peak, when the big group descends on you, and Rest, after you've defeated them and have 1-2 minutes to relax.

Use choke-points and high ground to your advantage. When in crescendo events, or if you just need to catch your breath, choose spots with limited entryways (like rooms with only 1-2 doors or windows) or high areas where you force the enemy to bottleneck. Bullets pierce enemies and hit the Infected behind them, meaning you can mow down large groups quickly and conserve ammunition. Shooting down stairs, ladders, and in doorways can make big crowds much, much easier to handle. Still, keep moving when possible. Holing up for too long drains supplies and can leave you open to attacks by Boomers and Spitters.

Conserve ammunition whenever possible. Ammo is your lifeblood, so don't go draining it. When enemies are at a distance or are easy to deal with, switch to a pistol or melee weapon. Running out of shotgun shells during an intense moment can cost you your life.

Don't use medkits until necessary, usually after incapacitation. Medkits are valuable and should be used as such. After your first knockdown, your vision becomes monochromatic (loses color), and you move slower. This is the time to use a Medkit. Otherwise, stick to pain pills and adrenaline whenever possible. If you're approaching a crescendo event and have less than 40 health, now is the time to use your Medkit.

Crouch whenever possible. Crouching increases aim and is essential if firing at incoming enemies. Whenever you can, crouch and fire, then get up and move as you go. In muddy areas, like "The Parish," you actually move just as fast crouching as standing, so the benefit in accuracy has no trade-off. In the mud and swamps, crouch the entire time.

Know the strengths of each Infected on Versus mode. In Versus mode, four players get the chance to play as Smokers, Boomers, Hunters, and more while fighting against four other human players. Playing as Infected is practically its own game, but the best advice is to think about all the ways you've died as a human. What sorts of attacks stranded you from teammates, caught you off-guard, or otherwise dealt more damage than you could handle? For the best results, use your teammates to coordinate attacks together. A Boomer can vomit, bringing in zombies that allow a good Spitter to trap pressured players in a corner, for example. Use surprise to your advantage. Let them run to you and hit them when they're distracted.