Valve’s co-operative zombie shooter moves to a brand new city spanning five original campaigns.

Best known for its first-person shooter Half-Life, Valve took a change in direction with the original Left 4 Dead – dropping their usually plot-driven action in favour of more bite-sized shooting across the deserted landscape of a zombie-infested city. Left 4 Dead’s four player dynamic meant that survivors had to work together to stay alive, healing one another and covering allies during each zombie wave. Left 4 Dead 2 keeps these principles in place and moves to America’s Deep South, this time without the cover of darkness for protection.

Four new survivors are on offer to work through the five expansive new campaigns, each armed with a bevy of new over-the-top weaponry, including the addition of melee weapons, such chainsaws, axes and frying pans. Three new special infected also join the zombie hordes, each with their own violent new talents. Valve’s AI Director ensures that the pace of each level remains tense and challenging, and can now change the payout of a map to suit the player’s performance.

Left 4 Dead 2 once more focuses on the teamwork needed to survive the zombie apocalypse, this time providing far more creative ways to destroy the attacking hordes.