Here are some going pointers, strategies, tips, what ever for left 4 dead. I am writing this because I am sick of people that don’t know how to play. Some of these tips are for the PC version but most will apply to the other platforms as well.
As The Survivors
Listen
Always listen to the music. It a constant queue to what is happening. Every event (horde coming, tank attack, another player in trouble) has a different music accompaniment. There are some occasions where music will overlap, like if you get vomited on, but you almost always can hear what is going on. After you have played through a few levels you should have it down. You should always know when a tank is coming, when the horde is coming, when someone is in trouble, etc. Just LISTEN!
Listen for the other audio queues of trouble. A smoker, hunter, or boomer all make noise and you can usually hear them long before you can see them. It will help keep your eyes open for them and out of their clutches.
You will also usually hear a tank long before you see it. So unless one of you stupidly sets it off you can plan on how to kill it. There are a number of good strategies you can employ and I will cover a few a bit farther down.
Team work
This game is not Counter Strike. You have to work together even on easy. This means helping free your teammates from special infected, pulling them up, healing them, etc. If you do not play well with others then play a different game.
You will also need to stay together. Even more so depending on the level of difficulty. So don’t go running off because the game director (the AI) will punish you and when they do you will be S.O.L because no one can get there in time to help you.
Help Me!
When another player is caught by a special infected you need to free them fast and before you do anything else. You should know they are in trouble by LISTENING. Don’t go heal, don’t shoot the other infected, go free them right now. If you are close enough us melee, if you are to far away use a weapon, preferably the pistols. If there are some zombies on top of the player and they are down kill them first, then help them up. Or if another player is helping them up you should be helping defend both of them.
If a smoker is dragging someone close to you use melee immediately to free them. You can free them the second they start to get dragged so why not help them before they get to the point of taking damage? So act quickly.
Melee
Pushing the infected away is a valuable defense, so use it! A good time to use it is when the horde is coming at you and you need to reload. Hit the reload key then start melee’ing away until you have finished reloading. You can also use it to push the horde back so you can unload on them without getting hurt by them.
Melee can also free other players from a special infected grasp. For example when a hunter is on another player. Use the melee to get them off. When you do it will stun them for a few seconds allowing you to ether blow their brains out or you can keep melee’ing them until they die. It’s much quicker than trying to shoot them off the other player. It is also safer because there is less chance of friendly fire. You have to use it on the boomer to push them back a safe distance so you can blow them away without getting any on you.
Communication
This game requires communication. You will need to be talking to each other as much as need to convey things like where special infected are, or plans of attack. This doesn’t mean you need to constantly run off at the mouth. You also don’t need to have your mic set to be open at all times. Push to talk works just fine. We don’t need to hear your mom in the background asking you to take out the trash and your dog constantly barking.
Test 123
Also test your mic before you play. You can do this under options->audio. It will tell you if you are to quit or to loud. So TEST it out. If you are still to quit after you turn up all the setting you can under audio then go into your Windows control panel and under audio you will find the Windows settings for your mic. You will probably find the setting is down to low, so turn it up. Remember to test it again!
Don’t Steal
This game is about team work remember. On the start/end of every level there are 4 health packs. Which means you get one pack. That’s all! Unless someone says to you that you can have it, don’t take theirs without asking.
If someone accidentally swaps a higher weapon for a lower one then don’t pick it up. If it’s not yours then leave it alone.
Close Combat
When you are close to each other and need to fire a weapon always aim down or away from other players. Generally speaking it won’t result in friendly fire.
If you are in front of the rest of your team, duck! That way they can shoot over you safely.
Wasteful
Don’t waste supplies. Tossing a pipe bomb at a tank is a good example of wasting something. Save them until you need them, because believe me you will. Learn how things work and what to do with them.
Close the door
You should always try to close the doors behind you when possible. This is more true on vs games. It will slow the horde and special infected down.
Weapons
At least one member of your team should have a shotgun and a rifle. If you notice that everyone has a rifle, then pick up a shotgun, or vice versa. Don’t load up on just one weapon type.
Be careful not to use a weapon in a way to injure another player. For example tossing a molotov or a pipe bomb on a player.
Reloading
Always try to reload as often as you can and before you run out. Reloading before you are out is much quicker. This is more true with the shotgun. I always try to fire a couple and as soon as the last shot is off I am hitting the reload. I am hitting the reload key as often as I am hitting the fire key.
Don’t forget you can melee while reloading. So use that to your advantage.
Bursts
Try to fire in bursts so you don’t waste ammo. You don’t always need to Rambo in every situation.
Aim High
A head shot will bring them down quickly. So try to aim for their head. When there is a horde coming I always point the gun I have at about head level and start bursting. It will save ammo and be much quicker.
Tank
If you have the shotgun, especially the auto shotgun, your main job when the tank is attacking, is to kill it. You have the best weapon to do so.
If the tank is chasing someone else, you need to run up and get as close to it as you can and unload on it. Depending on the difficulty doing this with the auto shotgun can take most of it’s health by doing do. You can usually do this a number of times without the tank turning on you. So don’t be a chicken and help your teammates out!
If the tank is chasing you then you can outrun it when you have a green amount of health. So run backwards and fire as much as you can. If you are not in a vs game remember that the tank is a computer player. So if can only follow you through areas it thinks it can pass through. So put something between you and it like a bus or a wall, and keep using that as a buffer. Remember that it can knock small objects over or on top of you like cars. So be careful.
Also remember that the tank can only climb up things so fast. So climb up a ladder or jump on top of something then unload on it while its trying to get up. It can also get stuck in small places like a vent or a window opening. They can also get stuck under or between things like a ramp or a vertical pole. So try to get it to follow into one. Then open up.
This trick is one I use a lot and is VERY effective. But it should only be done by people with experience and the heart to do it. The tank is unable to pass through you when climbing up something if you were there first and are completely blocking the area for it to finish the climb. A ladder is a perfect example of this. If you know a tank is going to climb a ladder to get you, walk over to top of it like you might climb down it and crouch down. If you did it right the tank will become stuck in middle of his climb. Now unload on him! Trust me it works, it take practice and the balls to try it. If you didn’t do it right it will pass through you and you will have plenty of time to move before it can strike you.
Here is a good tip for fighting a tank on No Mercy. It works if you do it right:
Witch
Again if you have the auto shotgun and you need to kill her, guess who has the job of killing her! She is really pretty easy if you do it right. Assuming she is clam (ie still crying and shitting on the ground). Turn your flashlight off, and walk up to her so you are touching here. You have plenty of time to do this before she attacks you. Then unload to the top of her head or face. The hardest part is having the nerve to get close. But you do it right she is no problem at all.
If you don’t have the auto then your job is to cover them in case they fail.
