Despite being more than a decade old, Left 4 Dead 2 remains one of the best multiplayer games to date. Having a team of four people work together to take on hordes of zombies through fun and interesting levels proved to be a recipe for success. However, there hasn’t been a new game in years.
Thankfully, the developers of Left 4 Dead are making a new game that looks to revive the genre, Back 4 Blood. That said, there are still other games that try to scratch that itch left behind by Left 4 Dead that you can buy now. Here are some games to play if you like Left 4 Dead 2.
Updated by Madison Lennon on April 4, 2020: Left 4 Dead 2 is considered one of the best survival horror games of all time, especially because of its cooperative multiplayer which makes it fun to play with friends. Unfortunately, there aren’t a lot of games on the market that will give you the same experience as Left 4 Dead 2.
It won numerous awards and was praised for its incredible attention to detail and personality. But we did find a few more games that should fill the void for gamers looking for something similar and updated the following list to include our choices.
Updated by Jason Wojnar On July 17th, 2021: Few multiplayer games have had the same legs as Left 4 Dead 2. Since its 2009 release fans have been clamoring for a sequel.
While no Left 4 Dead 3 is coming, a spiritual successor from Turtle Rock Studios is coming in the form of Back 4 Blood. The game looks to recapture the same magic Left 4 Dead unleashed more than a decade ago. Until this upcoming survival horror game comes out, try your hand at any of the games below.
16 Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War
This series has been embracing zombies since Call of Duty: World at War. Black Ops Cold War features the most in-depth zombie mode yet and there’s even synergy between this and the regular competitive multiplayer modes.
In a single game, you’ll find upgrades for weapons and progressively unlock new areas of the map. It starts off simply enough but later waves throw loads of zombies at you and your friends. The mode is so popular, it has its own legion of fans who are solely interested in zombies and almost ignore the other parts of Call of Duty entirely.
15 Remnant: From The Ashes
Remnant: From the Ashes is a third-person shooter where you have to try and save the world after an ancient evil enters the dimension and releases a horde of demonic creatures and monsters. The cooperative action is the main draw for players.
The game will scale the level of difficulty when you’re playing and new people enter the game so that it becomes tougher when other people are playing alongside you. You also gain access to a variety of different weapons.
14 Dying Light
Dying Light is centered around cooperative play. The pressure of an ever-encroaching, more dangerous night puts pressure on you to get all your objectives done before the sun goes down.
The day/night system drastically changes the situations in the game since zombies become far more aggressive and difficult to get rid of. The longer you play the game and the further you get into the story, the more access you’ll have to different weapons and mechanics.
Dying Light was supported for years after release. The sequel, Dying Light 2: Stay Human, has been in development for longer than most titles, but it is set for a December 7, 2021 release. It looks to have a more comprehensive narrative and lets your decisions impact the story. Recent gameplay demonstrations and trailers look promising.
13 The Last Of Us
The Last Of Us is a timeless classic. Though it lacks co-op, it’s certainly worth playing if you’re a fan of the Left 4 Dead franchise as it’s considered one of the best video games of all time.
You play as Joel, a character entrusted with transporting Ellie to the people who can make a vaccine after it is discovered that Ellie has immunity to the virus threatening the world. It’s terrifying, full of adventure, and has exceptional writing.
The sequel, Last of Us Part 2, drastically improves over the first game’s gameplay while telling an even more oppressive and dramatic story. It was released on PS4 but received a PS5 patch that runs the game at 60 frames per second. It is a masterfully crafted game but will make you cry and shout at your tv at some brutal scenes.
12 Dead Island
Dead Island is similar to Left 4 Dead, but includes more RPG elements. As the name suggests, the game is primarily set on the island of Banoi. The main storyline begins after a hotel party where things go terribly awry in the night.
A group of survivors escapes the area after an infectious plague of zombies begins to attack. It is open-world, but the map is relatively small and digestible. Side quests also go a long way towards adding replay value.
Dead Island 2 has been in development limbo for over five years and has switched developers several times. It is said to still be in development, but there is no word on even an estimated release date.
11 Portal 2
Portal 2 is a little different in that it is a puzzle platforming game but it involves strategy which is something that Left 4 Dead 2 also requires. You control Chell through the Aperture Science Enrichment Center while it is being reconstructed by a supercomputer and you’ll need to solve puzzles to progress through the story.
There is also a new cooperative mode introduced into Portal 2. Portal 2 is considered one of the best video games of all time thanks to its stellar writing and balanced gameplay mechanics.
10 Killing Floor 2
Killing Floor 2 is unadulterated, zombie-slaying action. You can join up to five other players to mow down the undead through a few levels. There have been some complaints that there aren’t enough levels, but with gameplay so addictive and fun, that’s just small pickings at this point.
Killing Floor 2 also includes a PvP mode similar to Left 4 Dead where 12 people will alternate between being the survivors and being the zombies (or Zed as the game calls them). With the right people at your side, this could be just the thing for those who miss the heyday of Left 4 Dead 2.
9 World War Z
When a video game adaptation of World War Z was announced, some people were a bit skeptical. Now that the game is out (the most recent entry on our list), it’s actually quite good. Players will work together to take on the undead, but it’s the behaviors of the enemies that will leave you astounded.
Massive hordes can appear on screen at once, more than most zombie games. The undead will form pyramids of their own bodies to climb to higher areas and get the drop on you. The best part is that it captures the frantic feeling of living through a zombie apocalypse.
Aftermath is an enhanced version of World War Z set for release this year on PS4, Xbox One, and PC. PS5 and Xbox Series X versions will launch in 2022. It looks to have an improved frame rate and more enemies on screen. It also comes with new locations.
8 Warhammer: Vermintide 2
The setting of Warhammer: Vermintide 2 may not evoke memories of playing Left 4 Dead 2, but the gameplay certainly does. A small team of players is tasked with making their way through end-of-the-world fantasy levels. They’ll be ambushed by a host of mythical creatures and demonic forces.
The five players can expand their skills and level up to achieve certain skills and fill out each other’s weaknesses. The more you play, the better you’ll be at tackling the onslaught of horror. There are so many obstacles to overcome and enemies to fight that the game is guaranteed to keep you busy for a while.
7 Deep Rock Galactic
Deep Rock Galactic might be a space-based game, but its influences from the Left 4 Dead series are quite apparent. A team of up to four players will make their way through intergalactic caverns and locations. They’ll be challenged by all sorts of horrifying alien creatures, which they must work together to take down.
The gimmick with Deep Rock Galactic is that the environments are procedurally generated, meaning that you won’t have the same experience twice. Enhancing that aspect is the fact that the levels are fully destructible, reacting to the explosive force of player weapons and alien attacks.
6 Alien Swarm
Alien Swarm is another co-op game developed by Valve. While it’s just as old as Left 4 Dead 2, it has a lot of design elements from those games that could entice people to play. Teams will choose characters with different classes and make their way through haunting levels, taking down swarms of aliens along the way.
Those different classes ensure that players will each need to adopt a different strategy to win each level. What makes this game more fun is that it’s free-to-play, meaning that you can go on Steam and download it right now. It’ll also have no trouble running on most computers.
5 Helldivers
If you’re looking for the Left 4 Dead experience, but with a different gameplay style, then Helldivers may be just what you’re looking for. This is a cooperative twin-stick shooter where you and your friends will be making your way through levels, watching each other’s backs and mowing down aliens.
However, Helldivers has some mechanics that make things interesting. Friendly fire exists, meaning players will have to think twice before they start unloading into a monster. There are also enough worlds (and a nice campaign) to extend playtime for dozens of hours easily. You will get your money’s worth from this game.
4 Payday 2
In Payday 2 you’ll work together with friends to pull off some of the most daring heists in history. Each player picks one of the crime members, each with their own skills and abilities. You can then take on all sorts of missions and accomplish them however you want.
Payday 2 is thematically very different from Left 4 Dead, but familiar DNA is there. Cooperation is the name of the game, and multiplayer is the core feature of the experience. What might sell it for some people is that the game has VR support, giving a greater sense of realism to all those heists.
Payday 3 is also development, but it is not set to release until 2023. It aims to be significantly more ambitious than the prior entries.
3 Call Of Duty: World At War
Call of Duty Zombies began in Call of Duty: World at War. In many ways, this classic, arcade-like mode is still the best in the series. Four players will work together, defending themselves from waves of incoming zombies. They’ll collect perks, special weapons, and more as they try to desperately survive against the undead.
In the PC version of the game, players can mod it to add all sorts of new maps, including expansions of pre-existing ones or entirely new maps altogether. These possibilities alone are what make this a great experience for players. There is no end to what maps players can use.
2 Earthfall
While many games like Left 4 Dead shake up the formula in some way, Earthfall does its best to give players the same experience they loved back in the day. Earthfall is essentially Left 4 Dead, but you will be taking on hordes of powerful aliens instead of zombies.
A team of up to four has to tackle horrifying creatures as they try to save humanity from an alien invasion. With better technology, Earthfall can have some haunting moments as legions of aliens come dashing toward players. It captures the run-or-die feeling of classic Left 4 Dead, which is what fan will want.
1 Strange Brigade
Strange Brigade is every bit as bizarre as its name implies, but that’s precisely why it’s so much fun. The game has a team of four making their way through Egypt in the 1930s. The trick is that various creatures and monsters from Egyptian myth have risen up, and you are tasked with destroying them.
Not only will players have to tackle monsters, but they’ll also have to work together to solve puzzles with varying degrees of difficulty. There’s a lot of variety, and the unique gameplay distringuishes itself from ther co-op shooters.
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