Getting to the point where I wasn't facing a mutiny, however, is one of the biggest problems I faced: Natural Selection 2's wonderful little complexities aren't explained particularly well. You can watch a series of tutorial videos and then play around in the enemy-free Explore Mode, but commanding especially could really benefit from a bot-based alternative mode -- if only to let would-be hiveminds toy around with basic strategies in a pressure-free environment. That said, those videos were enough to at least give me water wings when I was tossed into the deep end. A few matches later I felt like I had life-raft-like understanding of match progression and a few of the more basic roles I could assume on the battlefield, and began to project an illusion of competence.
Many first-person shooters require teamwork, but this forces players to stick together in ways that are actually fun.
Learning is made somewhat easier by the same factor that can end up making things start to feel same-y after a few matches in a row: as of now, Natural Selection 2's all about that asymmetrical base building and destroying the enemy's core. Sure, the strategic possibilities are vast enough to turn even the mightiest brains into the twistiest of pretzels, but don't go in expecting more than six official maps and a single game type. Developer Unknown Worlds clearly opted for focus on this single mode of play over breadth. However, there are options to vary server rules -- from limiting player counts to rookie-friendly setups to a burgeoning server-side mod scene -- so everything's not entirely the same all the time.Groking It
Soon, I began to really appreciate how meticulously many of these genre-straddling systems intertwine. Many first-person shooters require teamwork, but this is that rare breed that basically forces players to stick together in ways that are actually fun. Marines who attempt to build base structures alone, for instance, are basically doomed, so a solid squad's far more efficient at both base expansion and getting to the shooty bits. Aliens, meanwhile, are fairly thin-skinned (especially in the early game), but they become terrifying whirs of speeding chaos in packs. And, of course, a good commander holds the whole operation together, calling out enemy locations, restoring health, researching new abilities, and -- if they really know what they're doing -- putting together on-the-fly battle strategies and quickly communicating them to the team in spite of an RTS-style interface that could use some serious work in the awareness department. (What upgrade structures have been knocked out? Wait, you mean our key abilities have been out of order for how long?)
Looks like this alien has some serious plaque buildup.
Natural Selection 2 progresses like an RTS as a match goes on.
A good commander is also key because, unlike pretty much every other multiplayer shooter, Natural Selection 2 progresses like an RTS as a match goes on. That's totally brilliant. Early-game skirmishes between ceiling-crawling Skulk packs and frightened, barely upgraded Marines who stick together in a urine-slick group hug formation are completely different from later stages' mech-and-Onos-driven, all-out assaults. Amidst all that, both teams also have to deal with expanding their bases (aliens via Zerg-esque creep and Marines by way of manually activated power nodes), upgrading tech to unlock new abilities, deciding when and how to harass enemy bases, and tons more. Learning From the Masters
I am not a good commander. I'm too reactive, I think -- I get caught up in the heat of the moment and opt to take tech requests from my team and turtle in fear when the other side starts steamrolling my marvelous works of base-craftsmanship. But I'm learning. I've watched other commanders execute some positively insane strategies -- especially where aliens are concerned. The alien commanders I've admired most (read: the ones who completely obliterated me) were incredibly good at making it seem like they had this overwhelming tidal wave of lurching, crashing, all-devouring monstrosities that positively dwarfed my team.
No, this is not Aliens vs Predator.
I am not a good commander. I'm too reactive, I think.
They didn't, of course, as aliens get the same number of players as humans, but watching blindingly fast, scythe-armed Fades blinking in and out of multiple bases while Onos focused in one area and Skulks hounded another made me feel helplessly overrun. Then, before I knew it, creep had set in right outside my front door, meaning that my troops had to deal with all manner of hideously gyrating alien defensive structures before they could even mount anything resembling an offensive push. That's just one story from a game whose elements mix to form a gooey, waist-deep gestation pit for wild tales. Death and Glory
Being on the ground level as an FPS player, meanwhile, produces just as many memorable moments -- just in very different ways. Once, my Marine squad rounded a corner and came face to face with two charging Onos. Our commander (who wasn't any better than I am, or else he would've spotted them far sooner) told us to run for our lives. But we were right there. We could see the writing on the wall. "For glory!" one of my squadmates suddenly shouted. We all charged -- and got trampled like a China shop on Bring Your Bull to Work day, of course. But it was pretty amazing while it lasted.
I wonder how painful it is to have your body rebuilt again, and again, and again...
We all charged and got trampled like a China shop on Bring Your Bull to Work day.
It was during this time that I picked up on the ins-and-outs of both sides, which are certainly not clones of one another. In short, Marines (somewhat unfortunately) move like molasses while aliens scream around the map like characters from Quake and view the world from behind jutting rows of jagged teeth. And while Marines move through a fairly typical progression of weapons (assault rifle, shotgun, flame thrower, grenade launcher, and, er, mech), aliens evolve into wildly different forms that occupy unique roles on the battlefield. James Cameron Would Be Proud
In that sense, a basic Marine is far more versatile than, say, an alien Gorge, which is largely useful for healing and can't mount the same speedy offense of a skittering Skulk or a craftily teleporting Fade. Marines are, in the grand scheme of things, fairly straightforward, but a good alien team absolutely has to be creative. That's the big trade-off of Natural Selection 2's asymmetrical conceit: believe it or not, the two sides are quite well-balanced, but you have to be prepared to actually, you know, think. Both sides end up being fairly interesting to play, thanks to all manner of upgrades and unlocks, though I personally found creeping across ceilings and knocking out power systems to turn skirmishes into scenes right out of Aliens a bit more interesting than aiming guns and pulling the trigger.
That doesn't look like the kind of creature you want to jump up on you.
There are times when Natural Selection 2's typically excellent matches end with a whimper, not a bang.
That said, there are times when Natural Selection 2's typically excellent matches end with a whimper, not a bang. For one, moment-to-moment pacing can be fairly boom-and-bust, considering that it's entirely possible to blow most of your personal resources on a single big weapon or (in the case of aliens) species evolution and end up back to square one if you die before you can earn back your investment. For aliens especially, accruing necessary resources to build back up to viability late in a game can be a slow and tedious process. Similarly, stalemates and final pushes that are blocked by relentless turtling can turn matches into syrupy slogs of repetition, and these games aren't generally very rapid-fire to begin with. Sometimes, though, you've got to chew through fat to reach savory, grease-spurting meat, and a great Natural Selection 2 match is, well, delicious. It's a game that asks a lot up front, but offers some incredibly rewarding moments for those who are willing to stick around. Be patient and just take it all in -- you won't be disappointed.
I don't mind learning the intricacies of how a game plays. In fact, that kind of reminds me of the first time I had to defuse a bomb on the fly. But I digress, do you prefer complex games to hold your hand and show you how to play, or do you prefer to just dive right in and learn from your mistakes?