A bright future of NS2 or Death?

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  • NordicNordic Long term camping in Kodiak Join Date: 2012-05-13 Member: 151995Members, NS2 Playtester, NS2 Map Tester, Reinforced - Supporter, Reinforced - Silver, Reinforced - Shadow
    Tincan, f2p is a a big move that can only be made once. Would it not be better to wait for the game to be in the best state possible before going f2p? Uwe has some cool things on the road map that look great.


    Evolve spent lots of money making the game ready for f2p. Even then f2p was not enough to save evolve. F2p is not always the answer.

  • alsteralster Join Date: 2003-08-06 Member: 19124Members
    Nordic wrote: »
    Tincan, f2p is a a big move that can only be made once. Would it not be better to wait for the game to be in the best state possible before going f2p? Uwe has some cool things on the roadw map that look great.
    If NS2 is good enough for free to play weekend then it's good enough for f2p.
    Nordic wrote: »
    Evolve spent lots of money making the game ready for f2p. Even then f2p was not enough to save evolve. F2p is not always the answer.
    The publisher cancelled the game. They decided a new project would make more money. If the developers owned the IP they would still be working on it. Even with no more support people still play it.
  • Legend_BossLegend_Boss UK Join Date: 2014-02-27 Member: 194394Members
    dePARA wrote: »
    I dont understand why people only looking at playercounts.
    NS2 had always a low playercount.
    How about answering this question to yourself before even try to promote a F2P idea:
    "Why wasnt the playerammount increasing in the 1st 2 years if the game is so great?"
    Performance? Missing tutorials?
    This might be part of the problem.

    The real reason is, i know i repeat myself:
    NS2 is to complex and need to much skill for most casuals.

    People with zero aim have to shoot on small fast moving targets, they need to understand the meta of an RTS and ontop there is a commander that might not research what they thinking is the best (turrets and exos).
    People dont understand why they cant kill a skulk and when they going skulk they die within 1 sec.

    NS2 is also a perfect game for trolling.

    So stop looking only on playercounts.
    A F2P NS2 might have some players more, but for what price:
    One horrible round after another.

    I hadn't heard of the game until it was featured on FrankieOnPC. It was a different game style that I haven't seen before and gave it ago as it was on sale. This is a few years after the games release. So I just hadn't heard about it before or if I had noticed it, just didn't think of checking it out.

    Once the game is up to par, according to UWE. I would say do promotions via such youtube gamers. That would definitely raise awareness of the game and I suspect player count.

    Regarding complexity, marine side is straightforward, and while there is a slight learning curve, there is in all games. It's not difficult to learn. To address you comments tegarding issues with the commander, a simple message saying that every commander has a different/unique commanding style; Sometimes they may require guidance and the best way to provide this is via a mic. That encourages team work/chat thus improving the community.
  • dePARAdePARA Join Date: 2011-04-29 Member: 96321Members, Squad Five Blue
    edited January 2017
    The game where promoted by well known Youtubers like Totalbiscuit, AngryJoe and others already. Also had only positive reviews on well known Gaming reviews Sites at release.
    http://www.metacritic.com/game/pc/natural-selection-2

    Last try of an promotion was the CivilWar series:

    It was part of a humble bundle ages ago already so NS2 was basically already free.
    That would definitely raise awareness of the game and I suspect player count.
    Not anymore, game is 4 years old.
    It's not difficult to learn
    If you are a fast learner, congrats.
    But this is not the case for most players.
    Many of them still struggle on basics after hundreds hrs gametime.
  • pagulhanpagulhan Join Date: 2013-08-03 Member: 186529Members
    edited January 2017
    Do you know Tremulous? It was a great game back then, when games were more about fun than graphics. It died a few years ago, after about 7? 8? years after release. Even now there are some people playing it and a few active servers but they pale in comparison what Tremulous used to be (literally thousands of players). What made it such a good and popular game - except of being free, of course - was...

    Actually, were...

    ... weapons and alien upgrades that were affordable after a successful kill or two. You didn't have to wait for ages to gather resources to buy a gun or evolve into something else than basic bug. You could die and you felt you lost money/evolution points and thus you knew to had to be careful but it didn't make wait for 15 minutes to get res for a shotgun. If you had enough money stored, and you usually did, you could buy another weapon+armor set right off the bat. It obviously depended on how expensive was what you wanted to buy but I believe you get the idea - in Tremulous no one was runnig with basic rifle for 95% of the match.

    What was also important, you actually felt like buying a new gun and a new armor really ment something. You were harder to kill and dealing with you required more skill but you weren't unstoppable. After Tremulous, I feel in NS2 you can lose so much res after just several hits you start to wonder why even bother buying something that costs a small fortune if you're going to die after a couple of bites.

    How to make NS2 great again? Make it far less expensive (so people can play with the weapon they enjoy most even if it's not the best one) and make it faster - and this way make it MORE skill-dependent, so players can escape and trick each other easier now everyone has a stronger weapon/alien form. For now I reckon NS2's too time-dependent (it's hard to master your favorite weapon if you can try it 2 times per 40minutes match you know) to be fun.
  • antouantou France Join Date: 2016-07-24 Member: 220615Members
    pagulhan wrote: »
    How to make NS2 great again? Make it far less expensive (so people can play with the weapon they enjoy most even if it's not the best one) and make it faster - and this way make it MORE skill-dependent, so players can escape and trick each other easier now everyone has a stronger weapon/alien form. For now I reckon NS2's too time-dependent (it's hard to master your favorite weapon if you can try it 2 times per 40minutes match you know) to be fun.
    inb4 "but it will mostly benefit veterans who are already OP with good guns/lifeforms and will further increase the skill gap"

  • twilitebluetwiliteblue bug stalker Join Date: 2003-02-04 Member: 13116Members, NS2 Playtester, Squad Five Blue
    edited January 2017
    antou wrote: »
    pagulhan wrote: »
    How to make NS2 great again? Make it far less expensive (so people can play with the weapon they enjoy most even if it's not the best one) and make it faster - and this way make it MORE skill-dependent, so players can escape and trick each other easier now everyone has a stronger weapon/alien form. For now I reckon NS2's too time-dependent (it's hard to master your favorite weapon if you can try it 2 times per 40minutes match you know) to be fun.
    inb4 "but it will mostly benefit veterans who are already OP with good guns/lifeforms and will further increase the skill gap"

    I don't believe that argument holds. If a good player can now afford a good weapon 100% of the time instead of 90% of the time, the change won't have as much effect as, newbies getting a better weapon 20% of the time instead of 10% of the time. New players will have much more time to learn to use the tools, as well as more opportunity to not fight at a disadvantage (which can be huge).

    A better argument might be that faster res flow leads to easier replacement of lost weapon/lifeform, which competitive players disliked because it would make engagements less impactful. But judging from the amount of viewers of competitive NS2 and how one sided the games often are, that would be the least of the game's problems.
  • NordicNordic Long term camping in Kodiak Join Date: 2012-05-13 Member: 151995Members, NS2 Playtester, NS2 Map Tester, Reinforced - Supporter, Reinforced - Silver, Reinforced - Shadow
    alster wrote: »
    Nordic wrote: »
    Tincan, f2p is a a big move that can only be made once. Would it not be better to wait for the game to be in the best state possible before going f2p? Uwe has some cool things on the roadw map that look great.
    If NS2 is good enough for free to play weekend then it's good enough for f2p.

    That is the thing though, NS2 is not good enough for a free weekend right now. The last few did not succeed in obtaining or retaining players in my opinion. A steam sale seems to attract more players than a free weekend, but was equally meager in retention.
  • SquishpokePOOPFACESquishpokePOOPFACE -21,248 posts (ignore below) Join Date: 2012-10-31 Member: 165262Members, Reinforced - Shadow
    I really like the cost-risk balance as is. I'm not just blindly buying anything I can, since every purchase has just the right amount of weight to it. Some like it this way, some don't.

    I think this is probably the only game besides counterstrike where I'm constantly thinking "that's 15 res lost right there," "killing that life form set them back 20 res," "better refresh that shotgun on the ground before it disappears," and "who the hell wasted all their money on all these mines?"

    If you make res less meaningful, well, I won't like that. Even if the game is still fun.
  • pagulhanpagulhan Join Date: 2013-08-03 Member: 186529Members
    edited January 2017
    antou wrote: »
    inb4 "but it will mostly benefit veterans who are already OP with good guns/lifeforms and will further increase the skill gap"
    You're totally, and I mean so totally I'd need to visit a dictionary to find a proper word, wrong. Vets are so powerful as they already know how to use their weapon of choice and because of that, stay alive. Newbies CANNOT learn how to use anything but rifle - as they cannot afford to buy anything else, and if they do, it won't take long before they get slaughter.

    Let's look at Tremulous once again. Since everyone could buy anything and test it for long time, everyone had an opportunity to become good at using their favorite weapon. That is why even if you were a Vet, you had to be aware of those newbies with shotguns/lasers.

    I've been thinking of all those years I keep coming back to NS2 that everything it needs is to make it less time- and rule-dependent: you meet an onos with rifle - you die. In tremulous if you were fast enough, you could kill the strongest alien form with a rifle. Here onos can simply stomp and bum, you're on the ground, defenseless. You have an exo? Enjoy using it for 2 second - before it overheats. You buy a jet? Enjoy 2 second of flight. It's like you buy your equipment but devs are so afraid of it being op they made it almost useless if don't master it. Why bother? In Tremulous jets had UNLIMITED fuel! And there were open spaces where one could fly to the map limit and shoot aliens! And you know what? Those jets were not op. They were situational and useful, as being high ment you couldn't aim well, at least not with a high-damage weapon.

    Allow marines to run in all directions (no more walking backwards!) Make them reload faster, as marines would do! And please, stop thinking that considering spending every res is fun! It's not! It prevents players from accessing content and it makes games unattractive. Sorry, Poopface, but it's about to be or not to be - and we already can see that today's state of NS2 is 'not to be'.
  • dePARAdePARA Join Date: 2011-04-29 Member: 96321Members, Squad Five Blue
    So you want transform NS2 into combat where kills matter and not res.
    Thats an innovating idea noone had before. congrats.
  • jonvalljonvall Join Date: 2003-03-19 Member: 14691Members, Reinforced - Gold
  • SquishpokePOOPFACESquishpokePOOPFACE -21,248 posts (ignore below) Join Date: 2012-10-31 Member: 165262Members, Reinforced - Shadow
    Yeah, but not in so many unkind words
  • antouantou France Join Date: 2016-07-24 Member: 220615Members
    pagulhan wrote: »
    antou wrote: »
    inb4 "but it will mostly benefit veterans who are already OP with good guns/lifeforms and will further increase the skill gap"
    You're totally, and I mean so totally I'd need to visit a dictionary to find a proper word, wrong. Vets are so powerful as they already know how to use their weapon of choice and because of that, stay alive. Newbies CANNOT learn how to use anything but rifle - as they cannot afford to buy anything else, and if they do, it won't take long before they get slaughter.
    Ever heard of rookie servers mate ?
  • dePARAdePARA Join Date: 2011-04-29 Member: 96321Members, Squad Five Blue
    pagulhan wrote: »
    Newbies CANNOT learn how to use anything but rifle

    We have a shotgun where you have to aim on a target and shoot.
    And a HMG, where you have to aim a target and, well, shoot.
    A exo is basically the same. Ok, you have to watch for your armor and overheating but im sure even a ape be aware of this little extra after the 2nd try.

    So wth are you talking about?
    If Newbies cant hit with an rifle, they wont hit with an HMG or exo.
    NS2 didnt have 30 weapons, each with an different spray pattern.
    After 3 rounds you saw all the weapons available and then you have around 20 hrs on rookie server to figure out how a shotgun works.
    Its hard to master for sure: Did i mention Aim and shoot?
  • pagulhanpagulhan Join Date: 2013-08-03 Member: 186529Members
    dePARA wrote: »
    So you want transform NS2 into combat where kills matter and not res.
    Thats an innovating idea noone had before. congrats.
    Nah, you just understood it the way you wanted so you could write your 'you made the game terrible' comment as I didn't mention anything about balance and so on. The same about other people commenting here.

    Kasharic, is being so unique so great that you'd rather leave ns2 the way it is now than try to change it?

    Would you like to see ns2 active for 8 years only (like tremulous) with thousands - or even hundreds - of players or rather you'd see it with a small community it has right now? I mean, I know you'd choose the first option, that's why you write in this topic. You guys have to understande what keeps pushing people back from this game is every game looks the same for them: wait 15 minutes, buy something, die, wait 15 minutes, match over. You either change it or deal with that (sorry, Kasharic) it won't see its 8. birthday.

    and btw, trem's community died years ago, not recently.

    and btw 2 I heard about rookie servers mate. Still not fun to have an opportunity to play with the weapon you want for just several minutes in the entire game. I mean it's lovely you like the ns2 it is now, but you know... that way ns2 lacks fun.
  • AeglosAeglos Join Date: 2010-04-06 Member: 71189Members
    Lets not go down the my fun is superior to your fun road. I can just as easily say that if Tremulous was fun, it would still be active. I mean, NS1 still had servers up for 10 years or whatever it was and might still have for all I know.

    Also, please do not presume that just because you do not enjoy it means its the same for everyone else. Its the height of arrogance.
  • The_Welsh_WizardThe_Welsh_Wizard Join Date: 2013-09-10 Member: 188101Members, Reinforced - Supporter
    pagulhan wrote: »
    dePARA wrote: »
    So you want transform NS2 into combat where kills matter and not res.
    Thats an innovating idea noone had before. congrats.
    Nah, you just understood it the way you wanted so you could write your 'you made the game terrible' comment as I didn't mention anything about balance and so on. The same about other people commenting here.

    Kasharic, is being so unique so great that you'd rather leave ns2 the way it is now than try to change it?

    Would you like to see ns2 active for 8 years only (like tremulous) with thousands - or even hundreds - of players or rather you'd see it with a small community it has right now? I mean, I know you'd choose the first option, that's why you write in this topic. You guys have to understande what keeps pushing people back from this game is every game looks the same for them: wait 15 minutes, buy something, die, wait 15 minutes, match over. You either change it or deal with that (sorry, Kasharic) it won't see its 8. birthday.

    and btw, trem's community died years ago, not recently.

    and btw 2 I heard about rookie servers mate. Still not fun to have an opportunity to play with the weapon you want for just several minutes in the entire game. I mean it's lovely you like the ns2 it is now, but you know... that way ns2 lacks fun.

    I rather play NS2 only one more year than playing a Call of Duty with aliens for 10 more years.

    There are plenty of games already for people who want to pew pew pew without the RTS aspect, but there is no other game like NS2.
  • IronmanIronman Join Date: 2012-03-22 Member: 149184Members, Reinforced - Shadow
    NovoRei wrote: »
    NS2 needs Combat with capture points before going f2p.

    I thought thats what RT's and Hive spots were lol. And combat is everything inbetween : P
  • dePARAdePARA Join Date: 2011-04-29 Member: 96321Members, Squad Five Blue
    edited January 2017
    Whats the point of transforming NS2 into Tremulous while there is already THIS in the pipeline?:
    http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=800465209

    So dont waste time here with your "Lets remove all the tactical element" posts and just wait a bit.
    Im sure thousands of people will join and you will have much fun for another 8 years.
  • .trixX..trixX. Budapest Join Date: 2007-10-11 Member: 62605Members
    pagulhan wrote: »
    and btw, trem's community died years ago, not recently.
    and btw 2 I heard about rookie servers mate. Still not fun to have an opportunity to play with the weapon you want for just several minutes in the entire game. I mean it's lovely you like the ns2 it is now, but you know... that way ns2 lacks fun.

    The way I see your problem, is that you're a hardcore trem fan (never heard of it before the mod), and you're looking for a similar experience. Well, NS2 is not that game.
    Having to toil for 7-8 minutes only to buy your fav weapon/lifeform and die is... pretty fun to me, because I like being punished when I engage 3 marines as a lerk.
    Surely it's a matter of taste, which is why we have tons of genres and titles, pick your favourite ;]
  • IronmanIronman Join Date: 2012-03-22 Member: 149184Members, Reinforced - Shadow
    http://essentialfacts.theesa.com/Essential-Facts-2016.pdf

    50% of gamers are 24years or younger. Most of them are not mature enough or skilled enough for a game like NS2.

    I got a 12 year old, all he wants to do is play minecraft.

    At the end of the day certain games just appeal more than others to whom is playing.

    I love NS, its the only game i play really.

    What makes BF1 or Overwatch more attractive?

    1) You can choose your class at spawn
    Meaning, you dont have to wait to have "fun" or are not limited to "fun"
    When you die you dont "lose your fun"

    Thats probably what frustrates players the most, loosing equipment or evolved units.

    Maybe re-enginner how rts work and what they are for.
  • twilitebluetwiliteblue bug stalker Join Date: 2003-02-04 Member: 13116Members, NS2 Playtester, Squad Five Blue
    edited January 2017
    I think the lack of consistent practice of advanced weapons/lifeforms in a real game that really hurts NS2. Aliens usually suffer more from this problem. Died as Lerk/Fade/Onos? Go back to practicing Skulk/Gorge for the next 10 minutes.

    At least Marines can pick up weapons. Want to practice Exo? Oh look two Skulks! You died. Be a good boy and play with your Rifle. No wonder Exos are so popular and loved!

    Without proper matchmaking, new players are faced with veterans that can kill them 10 times over. It's far too late to redesign this game. The majority of this fractured community has already moved on. Better luck next time.
  • SantaClawsSantaClaws Denmark Join Date: 2012-07-31 Member: 154491Members, Reinforced - Shadow
    Actually, it is a problem for marines as well that there isn't a proper practise mode. Because new players don't have a good way to learn how to deal with higher lifeforms either. It often manifests in new players complaining that fades in particular are unkillable.
  • NordicNordic Long term camping in Kodiak Join Date: 2012-05-13 Member: 151995Members, NS2 Playtester, NS2 Map Tester, Reinforced - Supporter, Reinforced - Silver, Reinforced - Shadow
    SantaClaws wrote: »
    Actually, it is a problem for marines as well that there isn't a proper practise mode. Because new players don't have a good way to learn how to deal with higher lifeforms either. It often manifests in new players complaining that fades in particular are unkillable.

    That goes both ways. Most players who can fade are also of a significantly higher skill level, which furthers that perception.
  • pagulhanpagulhan Join Date: 2013-08-03 Member: 186529Members
    edited January 2017
    Aeglos wrote: »
    Lets not go down the my fun is superior to your fun road. I can just as easily say that if Tremulous was fun, it would still be active. I mean, NS1 still had servers up for 10 years or whatever it was and might still have for all I know.

    Also, please do not presume that just because you do not enjoy it means its the same for everyone else. Its the height of arrogance.
    When I say it lacks fun I don't say you don't enjoy it. I say it lacks fun for so many people there aren't many left to play the game. If I wasn't right, there wouldn't a thread to discuss if game is going to die or not. And please, don't consider me your enemy as some of 'you love trem' guys here do.

    All those 'pew pew' and 'you love tremulous' people. I get your problem and that is you refuse to admit changes are needed so much you try to marginalize what I say simply because I gave you an example. Let's make it clear: I gave you an example not to convince you to resurrect tremulous but to show you that what I propose can actually work. I said it once but you either didn't understande or you act like that: it doesn't have to be a pew pew game. What it can become is a game that doesn't cut players off the content. If something requires too much effort to even try to learn it, it puts vets so much ahead it's hard to compete if you don't spend a lot of time on practise. It doesn't have to be a call-of-duty-like game, but instead it can make you come back because it's more player-friendly. Just think what an average player from free weekend would think:
    1. Losing alien form/weapon hurts - badly.
    2. It takes forever to buy it once again
    3. You're afraid of losing it - badly.
    4. You're either very good and you use your weapon/alien form all the time because you don't die or you run with rifle/skulk all the time because you're new to the game or you're not interested in mastering it and you die.
    I think you focus so much on not letting ns2 become cod-game that you cannot see why this kind of games are so popular. Rather than make a clone, start to think how this knowledge can give ns2 advantage.

    btw tremulous died because it was old. NS2's not. Don't let it go because you don't believe in evidence-based medicine and you stick to good old herbs.
  • The_Welsh_WizardThe_Welsh_Wizard Join Date: 2013-09-10 Member: 188101Members, Reinforced - Supporter
    pagulhan wrote: »
    Aeglos wrote: »
    Lets not go down the my fun is superior to your fun road. I can just as easily say that if Tremulous was fun, it would still be active. I mean, NS1 still had servers up for 10 years or whatever it was and might still have for all I know.

    Also, please do not presume that just because you do not enjoy it means its the same for everyone else. Its the height of arrogance.
    When I say it lacks fun I don't say you don't enjoy it. I say it lacks fun for so many people there aren't many left to play the game. If I wasn't right, there wouldn't a thread to discuss if game is going to die or not. And please, don't consider me your enemy as some of 'you love trem' guys here do.

    All those 'pew pew' and 'you love tremulous' people. I get your problem and that is you refuse to admit changes are needed so much you try to marginalize what I say simply because I gave you an example. Let's make it clear: I gave you an example not to convince you to resurrect tremulous but to show you that what I propose can actually work. I said it once but you either didn't understande or you act like that: it doesn't have to be a pew pew game. What it can become is a game that doesn't cut players off the content. If something requires too much effort to even try to learn it, it puts vets so much ahead it's hard to compete if you don't spend a lot of time on practise. It doesn't have to be a call-of-duty-like game, but instead it can make you come back because it's more player-friendly. Just think what an average player from free weekend would think:
    1. Losing alien form/weapon hurts - badly.
    2. It takes forever to buy it once again
    3. You're afraid of losing it - badly.
    4. You're either very good and you use your weapon/alien form all the time because you don't die or you run with rifle/skulk all the time because you're new to the game or you're not interested in mastering it and you die.
    I think you focus so much on not letting ns2 become cod-game that you cannot see why this kind of games are so popular. Rather than make a clone, start to think how this knowledge can give ns2 advantage.

    btw tremulous died because it was old. NS2's not. Don't let it go because you don't believe in evidence-based medicine and you stick to good old herbs.

    Sorry but lol.
  • KasharicKasharic Hull, England Join Date: 2013-03-27 Member: 184473Members, Forum Admins, NS2 Playtester, NS2 Map Tester, NS2 Community Developer
    edited January 2017
    pagulhan wrote: »
    another long post

    I don't think you understand... NS1 survived for 10 years... NS2 is currently at the half way mark and its playerbase isn't going anywhere... and it still has active development.

    I know its "scary" buying weapons/lifeforms... but the weapons can be recycled by your teammates, and your lifeforms HAVE A TRAINING GAME!!!

    I'm currently making a very basic tips/tutorials mod that will have screenshots and hints during the loading screens to try to help with the learning curve of the game, which WILL help people.

    Your issue isn't with the system... believe us when we say the system works... your problem is with LEARNING the system. This is something people have been asking for, for a long time... tutorials, kill cam etc... a way of seeing where you went wrong so you can improve.

    is this game hard to learn? yes. but here is the difference between every other game and NS2... NS2 is WORTH learning.

    I know you're still pretty new to NS2, its clear by some of the things you're suggesting... welcome to the community (no that isn't sarcasm, I genuinely mean it) if you want help, ask for it, you can add me on steam and i'll happily load up a server, activate cheats for you and who-ever else so you can practice these weapons and lifeforms... i'll even give tips and pointers on how to improve and help you in any way I can.

    But please, stop blaming a good system for a big learning curve, and for the love of god, stop saying the best thing to do is to make it easier... easier to learn yes... easier to play no.

    Also, as a side note... there have been posts saying "this game is dead" or "this game is dying" for the past 3 years... if it is dying, its doing it VERY slowly, and its not going down without a fight.
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