A few thoughts:
- AI director is improved. Special Inf teamwork is better.
- New special infected and uncommon commons add some new strategies.
- A lot of new inventory management. You can carry pistols OR a melee weapon, but not both. You can carry pills OR adrenaline, but not both. You can carry a medkit OR defib paddles, but not both. Also, weapons now have less ammo, and there aren't ammo piles everywhere, so often you end up using what's available, not what your favorite is. I also like that pistols come in single units now, not an unending pile. Overall, I like all of this. Gives the game more of a "scavenging" feeling like you'd have in a real zombie outbreak, using what you can get your hands on.
- There also aren't really tier 1 and tier 2 weapons...it's more blended now, and though weapon spawns are still fixed, there's a lot more variation in the guns you find at each. You'll come up on an area, but it's no longer the "tier 2 table". You know you'll be getting guns, but it may be an uzi and two pistols...or a platter of auto-shotties. You find out when you get there.
- Most of the melee weapons in the demo are subpar due to the delay in attack after the click. The machete is the exception. This is easily patched.
- The new damage modeling and improved physics are extremely welcome and add a ton to the atmosphere. I could watch these zombies shed parts and fluids all day. The fact that pipe bombs now gib/fling the zombies instead of simply misting them makes for a great show. The fact that corpses no longer disappear is also nice. When you are done with a bigass encounter, you will *know* it.
- Some of the new weapons are essentially only visual changes (silenced machine pistol, chrome shotgun), other new additions feel meaty and powerful (assault shotgun, AK-47).
- The point A to point B crescendos are a great addition, which should do away with the closet camping that was so prevalent in L4D1.
Overall, I like what I see here. This shows a LOT of promise for the full version. Looking forward to Nov. 17th with a vengeance.