Stage 1: Hotel

Setting: It's a whole new game, which means a brand new beginner campaign! In this case, the beginner campaign status falls squarely on the shoulders of Dead Center, a campaign that takes a good amount of inspiration from the Dawn of the Dead movies. The first stage takes place inside of an apartment complex doubling as an evacuation center. It is catching on fire, though, which leads to the survivors rapidly fleeing down the stairs as fast as they can in an attempt to make it out alive. The safehouse is in a room at the very bottom of the complex.

Crescendo Event: This is the first Crescendo Event that Left 4 Dead 2 will throw at you, and it expemplifies the change in general gameplay design from its predecessor. You must pry open elevator doors and run through a gauntlet of fire and smoke on your way out of the burning building. This alerts the horde, which charges at you from every direction. The pathways change if you end up restarting the level, although they do not change too much. There is always a general path through this event. Infected (except CEDA agents) will burn in the environmental fire, so take advantage of this.

General Tips

• You do not start out with any primary weapons, and will not get them until the crescendo event. This makes this stage great for trying out the new melee weapons. The start point is overloaded with them, so take advantage of it.
  
• It is rare, but CEDA agents sometimes drop bile bombs, which are best used in this stage thanks to the fire. Lure a zombie to fire and watch them burn!
  
• It is highly unlikely that you will run into a shotgun while in the first stage, but if you are inclined, there are usually several Magnums. They have the best stopping power out of any weapon you might find in this stage.
  
• Take a minute or two to enjoy the outside scenery, as you have to go outside a few times to make it past fires.

Stage 2: Streets

Setting: A relatively boring stage before and after the Crescendo Event, the Streets plays much like original Left 4 Dead, only in the daylight. This makes enemies much easier to see, which the AI Director compensates with extra Infected compared to the last stage. Ouch. The mall is your destination, with a small detour to a gun store on the way there. The entrance is located in the mall entrance and is surrounded by CEDA tents. This is also the first stage in which you will encounter a Witch or Tank.

Crescendo Event: A new kind of Crescendo Event, this one is fueled by the gun shop owner's craving for that nectar known as cola. A tanker is blocking your way, but he has graciously offered to blow it apart if you provide him with what he wants. This involves breaking into a grocery store, which sets off the alarm, and bringing the cola back to the gun shop. This is different from the event in the first stage because it does not end. If you do not dump off the cola, you will eventually be overwhelmed by Infected. You also can not use anything while you are carrying the cola, although you can bash. It's also interesting because this is a foreshadowing of the finale of Dead Center. More on that later.

General Tips

• You will have basic weapons up until the Crescendo Event at the gun shop. Here, you can choose from any firearm you want as well as get a laser sight. This is a great place to see the differences in the weapons, as every weapon except for the grenade launcher is represented.
  
• The AI Director does not punish you for loitering around before the Crescendo Event, so test out the new weapons.
  
• As before, there are CEDA agents all over the place, and they have a chance to drop bile bombs.
  
• There are air tanks, pipe bombs, pills, and bile bombs in the CEDA tents, so scavenge there if you need some new supplies.