EPTI finally had time to get into Natural Selection 2. It's a bloody amazing game! The only multiplayer RTS-FPS hybrid that actually kicks ass (or the only one?
). It's incredibly competitive and is so multifaceted that for a competitive guy like me it provides endless avenues for improvement and learning. The commanders actually need sick map awareness and multitasking to do everything they should + direct the team around the map. But even as a noobie it's a lot of fun working as a team to take over the map and basically have Zerg vs Terran battles.For anyone who's never played basically it's just always an indoor sorts of map like a mining facility, inside a big space station etc etc. It's only played multiplayer and there is no single player aspect.
You play as either Marines or Kharaa. The similarities to Terran and Zerg are super strong so its quite familiar learning the game. Both sides have 1 player as a commander who views the game from an RTS-style map. They command the team where to go and place down structures and drop ammo/medpacks and other unique abilities for players. Both sides fight for resource nodes that are spread across the map which give income and Tech-points where a Hive or Command Station can be built to start a new base.
The Kharaa start with a Hive and spread infestation through cysts (creep tumors
). The Marines start with a command station and start trying to get the power up in rooms they conquer and start building structures there to cement their position.The basic Kharaa is a skulk. It's a fast, high damage, low hit-point ambush-style unit. Pretty much a zergling that can walk on walls and ceilings and leap onto people to bite their shit up. It also can shoot a low damage pheromone dart that will make Marines visible through walls from quite a distance.
The skulk can evolve to get celerity (ling speed), regeneration, carapace and all sorts of other upgrades including leap. Also you can use your own resources to evolve into a gorge (support/worker class) Lerk (flying harassment unit), Fade (like bounty-hunter from dota, super high damage and can basically blink/windwalk everywhere) and Onus (ultralisk).
The basic Marine is just a bro with an assault rifle, handgun and an axe. You can build structures like an scv and fight like a basic marine. As your upgrades come out you get upgraded damage and armour but also can use your own personal resources to purchase mines (spider mines), welder (for repair), shotgun, flamethrower, grenade-launcher, jetpacks and an exo-skeleton (with either railgun + melee claw or dual miniguns).
Because of the huge variance in how fast you get these various upgrades depending on the build your commander chooses you get a lot of different strategies. A common strategy is for a few Kharaa to evolve into Gorges at the start and push far forward to a choke point where they will drop a series of blocking growths and defensive structures called 'Hydras' that are basically like turrets, and then to use their healing spray to make them impenetrable except by an organised charge of marines. Likewise marines strength grows in big groups as they all cover each other with their rifles. However this sacrifices mobility and organised Kharaa can avoid the group and counterattack to deal more damage, faster and in more places than the single organised marine attack will be able to deal. What results is a fast-paced multiplayer game with dozens of different builds and strategies that all rely on a good commander, good communication, teamwork as well as people just being good at their fps basics of aiming and fighting!
Natural Selection 2 costs about $25 on steam I believe, and is one game which gets me super excited for the future of gaming!
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