Natural Selection 2 looks pretty sweet

[Dankk]

Been playing for a few hours. This game's a ton of fun. :thumbsup:

Granted, I've only played as marines so far, so I haven't checked out the aliens yet. The game feels very well-balanced either way. Matches on the public server I went to seemed pretty fair. It also helped that we had a really cool commander who knew what he was doing.

I usually try to stick in groups with at least one other teammate, for safety. Hearing aliens crawl through the vents and through the walls around you is pretty nerve-wracking and I like to have some backup. It can get fairly intense.

Generally, I'm a huge fan of FPS games that rely on teamwork and communication, so I'll be playing this for a long time to come. I'm also impressed with how nice and level-headed most of the community is. Teammates have been helpful to newbies, and there's been no flaming, and no raging. Just a lot of good communication.

Of course: Anecdotal evidence, YMMV, etc, etc... but my experience with this game is extremely positive so far.

Graphically, the game looks pretty damn good... particularly for an indie game. It's easy to see that the developers put a lot of time and effort into NS2. They never broke down and sold out to a big publisher either, in order to preserve the quality and integrity of their game. I take my hat off to them for that alone.

I love the concept, but it seems to me that if you aren't playing with friends or in some kind of clan then you're going to get some pretty crappy team and commanders.

Fortunately this hasn't been the case for me yet.

 

[Lonyo]

I played a couple of games after not having played the beta, and playing NS1 until about 2 years ago.
It was pretty fun, felt very much like NS1, but with a few changes, which doesn't help those who never played NS1.

It would probably be quite difficult for a new person to get into it quickly, because there is a lot to learn, and it can be frustrating, but it's definitely worth it IMO.

 

[WiseUp216]

I picked this up yesterday. I never played the original, so I have nothing to compare it to. I think it is a very solid purchase for $24.99 and a great deal if it goes on sale under 20 bucks. Being a Steam Workshop title gives it a lot more value in the future but so far there doesn't seem to be any must-have mods.

I played 5 complete games yesterday, winning 2 of them. Teamwork is the most important aspect and having a decent commander is a close second. If everyone runs around solo deathmatch style, you'll lose very quickly. Taking territory is a hell of a lot easier with a coordinated rush.

I've seen some complaints about Alien/Marine balance. I won a match with both sides and never felt balance to be a serious issue in the games that I lost. Exo suits seem a little OP but nothing that a coordinated alien attack can't stop.

I don't think the learning curve is as steep as some people make it out to be, either. If you've been playing PC games for a while, there aren't any mechanics that you haven't seen before.

All in all, a lot of fun. A bit of a faster paced Dead Space influenced FPS mixed with RTS objectives. It will be my go-to game until the next Borderlands 2 DLC.

 

[moonbogg]

So this game is pretty fun is it? Got good reviews and looks pretty decent. Is the commander mode anything like the BF2 commander mode? How does the RTS element play out?

 

[WiseUp216]

So this game is pretty fun is it? Got good reviews and looks pretty decent. Is the commander mode anything like the BF2 commander mode? How does the RTS element play out?

I haven't jumped in the commander's chair yet, but I can tell you that a good commander is critical to your side being competitive. They choose the order in which your abilities (speed, armor, weapons, etc.) are researched and attained. A good commander will organize groups for critical pushes.

After playing even more after my earlier post, I still think the balance issues are exaggerated. As long as you stick in groups/packs, your side will not get beaten easily. A team full of loners is easy to win against, whether they are marines or aliens.

 

[videogames101]

This game is awesome, I just rented a server.

 

[Zenoth]

Indeed I have just noticed that it has been released... I wasn't even aware of it (granted I rarely launch Steam to start with lately). I'm pleased by the price, at $30 it's actually tempting. I've played the original for a very, very long time... my hopes might be too high, so I'm not sure yet but I am definitely tempted. I've noticed that an update for it was released and that they're still adjusting game balance and fixing various bugs around. I think I'll just wait a bit for more patches to pop and then I think I'll buy it, but for now it seems to be too early.

 

[WiseUp216]

This is a flash sale on Steam right now.... $9.99 (60% off)

It is a great price. The game has had some updates since it was released and is pretty solid. Definitely better than right after it launched. I'm only getting a few hours a week in but the community seems pretty active.

If you were on the fence about it, now is the time!

 

[DrunkenSano]

So tempted now, especially since I use to play NS1 competitively. Just no time to play right now. Agh. :|

 

[zCypher]

Was going to post a thread asking about this game, but I searched and found this thread. So is much of the hate/uncertainty unfounded, is the game decent? At $10 is it a steal? I definitely like the concept and am tempted to pick it up.

 

[nurturedhate]

Really fun game. It can be heavily one sided at times if the teams are unbalanced. Has a bit of a learning curve. Aliens take a lot of play time to get use to attacking. A good commander when marines is crucial. It is best when you are part of a server community. When it is going well (which is most of the time) it is one of the better experiences on pc.

To summarize it is very community driven. But at $10 it is worth it.

 

[KaOTiK]

Comment I made in the Steam sale thread about the game:

I gotta say, Natural Selection 2 is really good. Takes a bit to get into figuring it all out, but man it is great. I was lucky to get a guy that was commander who was willing to teach a bunch of us rookies on his team, learned a lot and had a blast.

 

[KaOTiK]

Has anyone else been playing it?

I've got about 50 hours in it now, I got it during the Holiday sale. I freaking love the game. It is very well balanced and fun, the community is pretty nice too, I've only run into a few assholes, but most people are really cool with helping and explaining stuff to people. I suck pretty bad as the aliens though, marines I'm ok and I'm actually a pretty decent commander for them as well.

Fav game I bought during the sale and one of my fav of last year so far with the amount of time I put into it.

 

[ockky]

I got in on the super cheap steam sale myself and I've got around 20hrs so far...pretty badass mixture of Savage & AvP. Good stuff:thumbsup: