Zombies have always had a large presence in pop culture. Countless movies have been made about people trying to survive a zombie apocalypse.

There are plenty of zombie video games, too, but it's not often the game so resembles the movies. "Left 4 Dead" plays just like a movie, and in fact is designed in four segments that represent B movies.

Put simply, "Left 4 Dead" is a ton of fun, and it's largely because of four-player co-op.

When you start, you choose which of four characters you want to play. With three friends, your group of four must work together to make it through the zombie hordes from safe room to safe room. Eventually, at the end of the "movie," you're rescued.

Zombies are everywhere, and they're not just large, mindless groups. There are different types, and communicating with your friends and watching each others' backs is key to survival.

As you blast your way through the "regular" zombies, you'll know when the special ones are near because of the sounds they make. Boomers, for example, make a gurgling noise, while hunters shriek and witches cry.

Each of these zombies has its own attack. The boomers "vomit" on you, which blinds you and attracts the zombie horde. Hunters are super-fast and pin you to the ground. Smokers, meanwhile, have long tongues that pull teammates to their deaths.

The best part about "Left 4 Dead" is its "AI Director," which adapts to how you're doing and randomizes enemies. So if you're doing poorly, attacks will let up a little. If you die and have to restart the section, you won't come across the same enemies in the same places. This makes for a different experience each time.

You also can play online in a versus mode. This pits a team of four survivors against four zombies. The survivors try to make it to each safe room, while the zombies do their best to stop them. Each section is played twice, with the roles reversing.

When you play as the zombies, you're fairly easy to kill. When you die, you have a 20-second delay before you're allowed to respawn as a special zombie. During this delay, you can watch the others playing.

It's harder than it sounds to make it through as a survivor. Even though the zombies die easily, the survivors have just one health pack apiece, and the zombies have the advantage of numbers. Overall, it's well-balanced.

You can play "Left 4 Dead" by yourself, but it won't be nearly as fun.

Who knew surviving a zombie apocalypse would be such a social experience?

Left 4 Dead

By: Electronic Arts, for Xbox 360 (also for PC)

Rated: Mature

Cost: $59.99

Score: 8.5/10