Back to School

After that last smashing review in Left 4 Dead 2, I figure that's it time that we, together went back... Back to School, that is.

Authors: 100_o/o_f@ke and romasm

Back to School (Make sure to download all parts!)

Back to School is another large campaign for Left 4 Dead 2, once again starring the original cast of survivors as they fight their way through Borden City to the evacuation point at the local High School. Unlike Redemption II, this campaign isn't related to the main story of the series at all, instead doing what most campaigns do and just being created to play. Which is far from a bad thing, mind you, since Left 4 Dead has always prioritized gameplay over narrative which is just fine.

And also over cheerful interior design, apparently.

Fun fact though, a list in one of the original campaigns DID list "Borden City High School" as a main evacuation point and I refuse to believe that is entirely a coincidence (As much as I refuse to do something better with my time than learning random facts about Left 4 Dead).

This campaign is long. Very long. With six levels to its name it's practically an endurance test and the AI Director will not go easy on you. Because he never does. The randomness of this campaign is fantastic though. On some playthroughs you'll see a car whiz down the street and crash, summoning the horde. Other times it won't happen, sparing you the ammo and the stress. And, on the subject of randomness, this campaign actually has two, yes two different endings. I don't really know if there is anything the player can do to influence the outcome, and I suspect not, but the addition of multiple endings is much appreciated.

But there is a downside I need to mention. This campaign includes its own custom skins for the Tank. This skins are really well done, being of a police officer and soldier respectively, but if you're using any different skins for the Tank in your game then the Tanks in Back to School will become invisible.

Believe it or not, this picture is actually me getting punched by a Tank. Seriously.

Now, deactivating your current skin mod for the Tank and enabling Back to School's skin for it should resolve the problem, but I'm a gamer. I sit in front of a screen and press buttons to live vicariously through fictional characters. I don't want to take those extra steps. If I had that kind of energy I'd probably be doing something outside. On higher difficulties this issue will obviously be a problem, so plan accordingly.

Some of the objectives here are interesting twists on old ones from different campaigns. For instance, a guy offers to give you a lift to the evacuation center in his truck in exchange for helping him scavenge some supplies. He drives you to the stores (There are three different ones with their own type of supplies that he wants) and you have to go get them all before he'll take you any further. The stores, however, are alarmed, so the minute somebody makes a move for the objective you'll have the horde breathing down your neck.

The sign below me says "Shoplifters."

It creates an interesting situation where you have to decide between speed or safety. Split up and get everything at once? Everyone is vulnerable to attacks from special infected. Stay together and go one at a time? The horde can bog you down and keep you from reaching the other objectives. There are more unique crescendo events like this, including the military bombing a car lot and a supermarket shootout, which is always a good thing to see.

As in the last review, I noted survivor dialogue and custom graffiti as positive points to that campaign. While Back to School lacks a large amount of meaningful dialogue between the survivors all of the saferooms have custom accounts from other survivors detailing the fall of Borden City and how they met their grisly ends. And on the subject of safehouses, there are some interesting ones later on, including a bank vault with somebody still in it. Yeah, enjoy that one.

And much like Redemption, the props placed around this campaign help to make it a memorable experience. You'll see the place where two crazy rednecks made a last stand, military checkpoints overrun by vast swarms of the infected, and later on you'll even hear frantic radio chatter from soldiers being torn apart before your very ears, all while the Air Force is attempting to level the city one bomb at a time.

This campaign is altogether more intense than Redemption, making it a good choice to subject your friends to if you're feeling like being cruel to them with style. It's as fun as it can at times be merciless and anyone looking for a quality campaign should look no farther.