New Year's Resolution: Shoot more zombies

New Year's Eve usually forces lame friends, who would otherwise leave a party at 10pm, to stay at least until 12:15am. This past New Year's Day, a group of us, four to be exact, stayed up until 8:30am because we were full of adrenaline and fearful of zombie attacks thanks to Valve's Left 4 Dead.

Left 4 Dead is a co-operative first-person shooter that takes place in a post-apocalyptic environment over-run by aggressive zombies à la 28 Days Later. Players operate as a team of four and co-operation is key as some zombie attacks require assistance from team member to ensure survival.

Left 4 Dead was perfect for New Year's Eve for a number of reasons. In a sleep deprived state, the game's simple controls are easy to master; friends can jump in and out of the game without an extensive tutorial. Plus, the forgiving health meter means that constant vigilence is not necessary, though death is only a temporary penalty. In contrast, a game of Rainbox Six would not have lasted past 3am due in equal parts to frustation and frayed nerves.

In keeping with the New Year's theme of self-improvement, Left 4 Dead also schools players on the merits of co-operation. That friend who insists on going rogue without notice will soon receive a tongue lashing from a Smoker or get a strip torn off of him by a Hunter so you won't have to; laugh as the maverick begs to be saved. And friends who insist on hogging targets will feel the burn of friendly fire if they step between your gun and a zombie.

For all of the reasons listed above, Left 4 Dead should prove to be a better game to play online with friends and strangers than, say, Team Fortress 2. Too often, PC games encourage an 'every man for himself' scenario, much to the detriment of all players involved. Finally, here is a game that will act like Mary Poppins towards unruly children, but with a stick instead of a teaspoon of sugar.