About the game (New to NS2)
Blindga
Join Date: 2012-10-21 Member: 162931Members
Join Date: 2012-10-21 Member: 162931Members
So, on an impulse, I bought this off a friend. I know nothing about NS2. I've done some research and I understand that the main focus of the game is two commanders guide two teams of real players in an attempt to defeat the other team. During the game the commander builds buildings that benefit the team, and the team defends those structures and gets resources in return all while trying to kill the enemy.
My big concern is that the divided gameplay styles might be weak (Because of divided focus development-wise). A thing I like is variety, and I was wondering how much there is to do in this game.
(before anyone says or links me to it, I can't read the main 'game overview' page on the website because all the moving pictures choke up my internet)
So my questions are:
-Are there a good variety of maps to choose from?
How are the maps different in terms of gameplay and atmosphere? How easy will it be to integrate custom maps into the actual game? I don't want to be doing the same levels over and over again, so I think this is important to the game.
-Is there a good variety of tactical options for the teams?
Are there plenty of weapons/forms to choose from or do you use the same few attacks over and over? Are upgrades fun or repetitive? I like variety in combat, so I hope there are a lot of options and that the game rewards smart tactical choices over just choosing the 'bigger gun' all the time.
-Is there a good variety of strategic options for the commanders?
Is commanding just standing around waiting to get upgrades done, or does the commander play a part in the fight? Are there a variety of upgrades/structures to purchase or is upgrading linear and boring? I really hope commanding is fun; there's nothing worse than a linear RTS game that ignores the choices of the commander's style and relies just on how fast he does the same things over and over.
-Will there be content updates?
Has the developer team said anything about future content? Are there going to be content updates that include maps/team stuff/commanding options? I really hope so, I see a lot good potential in this game! I don't want to see it go to waste!
If anyone here who is really well informed has a few seconds to ease some of my curiosity then I'd really appreciate it.
My big concern is that the divided gameplay styles might be weak (Because of divided focus development-wise). A thing I like is variety, and I was wondering how much there is to do in this game.
(before anyone says or links me to it, I can't read the main 'game overview' page on the website because all the moving pictures choke up my internet)
So my questions are:
-Are there a good variety of maps to choose from?
How are the maps different in terms of gameplay and atmosphere? How easy will it be to integrate custom maps into the actual game? I don't want to be doing the same levels over and over again, so I think this is important to the game.
-Is there a good variety of tactical options for the teams?
Are there plenty of weapons/forms to choose from or do you use the same few attacks over and over? Are upgrades fun or repetitive? I like variety in combat, so I hope there are a lot of options and that the game rewards smart tactical choices over just choosing the 'bigger gun' all the time.
-Is there a good variety of strategic options for the commanders?
Is commanding just standing around waiting to get upgrades done, or does the commander play a part in the fight? Are there a variety of upgrades/structures to purchase or is upgrading linear and boring? I really hope commanding is fun; there's nothing worse than a linear RTS game that ignores the choices of the commander's style and relies just on how fast he does the same things over and over.
-Will there be content updates?
Has the developer team said anything about future content? Are there going to be content updates that include maps/team stuff/commanding options? I really hope so, I see a lot good potential in this game! I don't want to see it go to waste!
If anyone here who is really well informed has a few seconds to ease some of my curiosity then I'd really appreciate it.
Comments
During the weekends there are usually tournements which are Streamed on TwitchTV <a href="http://en.twitch.tv/directory/game/Natural%20Selection%202" target="_blank">http://en.twitch.tv/directory/game/Natural%20Selection%202</a>
<b>- Are there a good variety of maps to choose from?</b>
<blockquote>The Halloween V1.0 release will have a total of 6 official maps and there are some promising community maps out there as well. The official ones will be: Docking, Mineshaft, Refinery (not yet released), Summit, Tram, Veil. And there are a few more maps in progress as well. <a href="http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/index.php?showforum=105" target="_blank">The mapping forum</a> is a good place to keep an eye on the community maps. Summit and Veil were community maps, which have become official part of NS2</blockquote>
<b>-Is there a good variety of tactical options for the teams?</b>
<blockquote>In short. The marine weapons are designed to complement each other instead of simply being an upgrade. As for aliens, they work a bit differently, instead of upgrades and new weapons they get abilities and new lifeforms, which also tend to complement each other to some extent. Although I'd prefer even more emphasis on this "mixed bag team" stuff for both teams</blockquote>
<b>- Will there be content updates?</b>
<blockquote>After the Halloween Release, UWE will continue to support the game</blockquote>
Maybe, the biggest thing about this game is the emphasis on asymmetrical teams combined with RTS+FPS gameplay. I've listed the opposing things on each team in the same order in both lists for easier comparison...
<b>The marines</b>
<ol type='1'><li>Excel at ranged combat and move slower</li><li>Ammo management, weapons have ammo, so players need to keep an eye on their reloading and ammo during combat</li><li>Permanent researchable upgrades like lvl 1-3 weapons and armor (unless their armslab is destroyed)</li><li>They are more effective in well lit areas, dependent on their flashlight in darker/powered down areas</li><li>Weapons change their role:
<ul><li>Rifle, effective all round weapon and the free starting kit (all kits include Pistol and Axe or a researchable Welder)</li><li>Shotgun, short ranged burst weapon (Anti Lerk and Fade, but also effective vs other aliens)</li><li>Flamethrower, saps the energy of the alien lifeforms and is very effective at dealing with infestation</li><li>Grenadelauncher, heavy anti structure and area denial, very bad at close range making them even dependant on other marines</li><li>Jetpack, additional movement for use with all weapons above</li><li>Exosuit, heavy minigun wielding suit of armor (dual minigun upgraded). Cannot construct, use other weapons or be teleported. It is dependent on other marines with welder to keep them alive</li></ul></li><li>Dependent on powernodes and powergrid for their structures</li><li>Commander has a more active role by supporting the team with ammo, medkits, nanoshields and giving the marines waypoints/orders (and of course research)
<ul><li> Marines are more dependent on teamplay and sticking together</li><li>Marines are more reliant on the commander for support (ammo and health)</li></ul></li></ol>
<b>The aliens</b>
<ol type='1'><li>Excel at melee combat and are more agile, can use certain parts of the map marines usually can't get to (vents for instance)</li><li>Energy management, abilities and attacks cost energy, players need to manage their energy levels to be effective</li><li>They can research abilities and evolutions to enhance their alien</li><li>Can use alien vision, which works as a sort of sonar, to highlight potential targets in dark areas (marines or structures)</li><li>Evolving into other alien lifeforms change their role:
<ul><li>Skulk, free starting alien (early game: ambusher/main combat unit (anti marine/structure), mid/endgame: support attack unit and structure killer)</li><li>Gorge, combat medic/engineer</li><li>Lerk flying harasser</li><li>Fade, surgical shock-trooper</li><li>Onos, chaos demolition and crowd control, being a big target and slower it is dependent on other aliens as well</li></ul></li><li>Dependent on infestation for their structures and expansions</li><li>Commander has a more passive role by supporting the team with research, support structures and a more passive form of waypoint (pheromones?), which simply alerts aliens to what the commander is doing or tells them about certain threats
<ul><li>Aliens are more of a lone wolf type of play, but also very potent with teamplay</li><li>Aliens can support themselves better out in the field using for example evolutions like out of combat health regeneration or celerity (fast movement)</li></ul></li></ol>
Granted, I don't think variety should be so great that it gets in the way, but I can just see this getting very repetitive. Just a few more options would have been nice to see. Hopefully future updates will expand on this.
But then again, I haven't played either so I don't know. I'll find out eventually.
Granted, I don't think variety should be so great that it gets in the way, but I can just see this getting very repetitive. Just a few more options would have been nice to see. Hopefully future updates will expand on this.
But then again, I haven't played either so I don't know. I'll find out eventually.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
There is a huge variety of gameplay options, particularly because of the upgrades and weapon availabilty. Every time I watch the competitive live stream I see new and interesting tactics. There aren't dozens of guns and weapons in this game, but this is only half an FPS, the other half (RTS) has huge amounts of strategy at a different level.
some marine strategies:
rush phasegates
+quicker movement between locations
+better map control earlier
-expensive, would have to delay shotguns or armor/weapon upgrades
tech rush
+if you make it to early jetpacks then they can wreak havoc on lower tiered aliens
-risky since this would require 2 tech points, and expensive. more area that needs to be held
Infantry Portal rush
+opens possibility for tech rush, if successful
+requires a lot of comm interaction to support a heavy push early in the game
Res-grab
+gets in a lot of resource flow and opens up tech quicker
-requires marines to control large portions of the map
-really difficult to do if aliens take advantage of hit and run tactics
mine rush
+locks down portions of the map quickly for early game
-takes a lot of personal resources
Arc rush
+great for areas that have a lot of alien structures in it
-expensive, requires a lot of teamwork
Some Aliens trategies:
quick silence
+aliens can hide their structures with veils
+great for sneaking
+could hide an early hive
-no carapace hurts if marines go early shotguns
carapace
+adds a lot of beef to aliens
-relies on brute strength instead of speed or sneaking
celerity
+great for hit and run tactics, keeping their res flow down
-not great if marines are top notch shots
early hive
+opens up leap quickly
-no upgrade
-harder to defend
fast tech
+an experienced fade/onos earlier in the game can turn the game
-puts all your eggs in one basket
and these are just a few that I can come up with off the top of my head. There are lots more possibilities; this is made to be a diverse game, and any simplistic gameplay is going to get noticed. Every game should (and does!) feel different.
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v0cS53HQBAg" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v0cS53HQBAg</a>
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Quality > Quantity related to weapons in NS2 (NS as well). Weapons and classes have a huge impact on the balance of the game, so gradually introducing new weapons and equipment is the best way of handling this. Any game that is striving to be competitive like this one, will have clanners trying to find the optimal builds and tactics, quite similar to SC(2) and the CS, Quake or UT series for instance. CS/Quake/UT only have a limited number of weapons and still manage to have great variety in multiplayer. Some builds/tactics are more effective than others, but the human element that is part of a RTS+FPS game will only add to the complexity and variety of this as well.
TF2 is a prime example of just adding more and more stuff and weapons, up to the point where it is a complete mess to balance or even take seriously and it works or TF2, but that would't work for NS2 (especially where the asymmetry and RTS balancing are concerned). TF2 has great variety and can be quite fun of course, but I tend to get bored with it after a while because of this spamfest of explosions and random crits or rather chaos that is TF2.
I really like indie games like this not just to enjoy the work of brilliant minds, but also to challenge those ideas and come up with suggestions to try and help them. This game has a lot of promise, and I hope it's as good as it looks.
In short. Just like Starcraft or other RTS games, building placement plays a huge role.