Much to my surprise I absolutely love this game! The Co-op mode is awesome, cool, exciting, creepy and wonderfully fun!
I have been absolutely astounded by the wonderful co-op game play mechanics, Valve really deserves the biggest pat on the back of all times. Last night I started a co-op game, my friends were not ready to play, they had real life things to deal with. I started the game without them and each one joined in as they could which then replaces a computer player without any gaming interruption. If someone needs to take a break or leave, no big deal, tell the game you are taking a break or exit and you are replaced by a computer player. I mean wow, how cool is that?
I'm very huge fan of destructible gaming environments but I also know that comes at a cost to game play and PC hardware requirements. Left 4 Dead seems to strike a good balance here, not everything is destructible but all the right areas are, like doors, windows, TV's, alarm clocks or even fire extinguishers. I really want Valve to know how much I appreciate that, for whatever reason it seems very pleasing when I see something in the environment react to me shooting it.
Valve has produced another excellent game!