Ive not played yet, but I understand, from talking others, that it does put the horror back (the last few have been more action games that just happen to have zombies) and that people are liking it.
Bought it last week and the game gave me shivers when I started playing at 2:00 am in the morning. The game is very much hard-core horror. Enjoyed it though. Waiting for other episodes to be thrown.