There’s nothing more satisfying than killing zombies with like-minded, shotgun toting people. When you’ve mastered the normal campaign difficulty setting in Left 4 Dead 2 and the various competitive modes, perhaps you’re curious what it’s like to play on expert difficulty.

I’m here again to drop some pointers for the newbies out there, so when the apocalypse comes you'll be ready to kick some zombie ass.

Left 4 Dead 2 on expert will feel like a completely different campaign mode to the uninitiated. This is why:

• Common infected hit you for 20 points of damage in the front, 10 in the back – meaning one zombie can potentially take you down in five hits.
• Friendly fire is serious. You fire one bad shot with a decent gun and your teammate is down.
• Witches can instantly kill you. I’m sure you want to shotgun her in the face and be the hero, but be advised that even the pros screw up and die.
• Fire inflicts 40 damage per second.

The rest gets a whole lot tougher: spitters, chargers, smokers and jockeys have more hit points, a tank spawn is a wipe if you’re caught with your pants down, and all of them hit harder.

So before you jump in guns blazing, let’s talk about a few basic tips that will get you through it and make your life and the lives of your teammates’ easier.

When all else fails, be patient.

Crouch and move slow

This is first up because it’s the most important. I’ve seen countless saps step into expert running around like Mike Tyson on acid thinking it’s the same as playing versus or a normal campaign. It’s not.

If you crouch your accuracy goes way up, but that’s not the real benefit. People move around crouched and shooting on expert because it reduces the chance of friendly fire and being swarmed from behind. Zombies don’t crouch and your crouched teammates don’t move fast. So your kill-twitch brain will focus on the real baddies and not the guy sprinting around like a weirdo. Crouch is your friend. Do it.

Corner up: horde’s coming

The music starts. Oh snap! The horde is coming. One thing often missed by new players is how easy it is to survive an incoming wave of infected. On expert, understand that walls and especially tight spaces are your friends. When the horde comes, get your ass against the wall and preferably a corner. If there’s an open truck or room with one doorway, those work too.

By doing this you funnel the zombies into your field of fire. With your ass safe and your sides covered, you can light them up. If your teammates scramble to another position and you realize you can’t safely get to them, don’t panic! Just look for the nearest safe spot and park yourself there. Remember, it only takes five hits at max health to bring you down (and on expert you’re rarely at max health). To have a fighting chance you need to fort up.

I didn't sign up for this shit.

Sharing is caring

Expert is not the mode to hog the pills. Your allies being up and mobile is as integral to your survival as are your mad sniping skills. Not only that, but it’s the nice thing to do. If you scratch your teammate’s back, chances are they’ll return the favor. Share and make everyone feel better.

Stay together

I know you think this goes without saying, but you’d be surprised by the amount of people I see running off by themselves only to get pounced by a hunter and die within seconds. Chances are very high that if you’re off by yourself, your teammates will not make it to you in time for the save. Pairing up is crucial. If someone needs to go back to a locale for a medpack or pipe bomb, send one guy with him. The other two can continue to progress until you meet up again.

Glitching

Unfortunately, no game is a match for the ingenuity of its player base. Once in a while, somebody is going to want to glitch. If you’re down with it just ask them to explain what you need to do. If you don’t feel like glitching, speak up. Most players I’ve encountered have little issue with doing it the honest way, but if you’re all dying a lot and just want to get past a choke point or get that achievement, this is a viable alternative and a more common option done in the expert arena.

Don’t get a guy up until it’s safe

I know this goes against the whole “work as a team” idea, but survival is still your main goal. Downed players can stay grounded for a while as long as they’re not being attacked. If your buddy is down and screaming for help, do your best to keep the zombies suppressed and off his incapacitated body but don’t move to pick him up until you’re confident there’s little risk. Why? Smokers and other special infected just love it when you run out to save a downed friend. Stay sharp and go in for the save when you know it’s clear.

That should get you started. Nobody’s a pro on the first few goes, and even expert veterans do silly stuff. Don’t call it quits if you’re having a tough time. Left 4 Dead on expert is the way the campaigns were meant to be played. When you step onto the escape vehicle for the first time, you'll know you earned it and nothing will take that feeling of accomplishment away from you.