Happy Summer Marines! We are ushering in the sunshine with update 303. This is a lighter patch focused on some bug fixes and a couple tweaks and additions to the game. With this update we are introducing a new post-round feedback system, this will help provide us with more details about your games and comparing round data to support future changes. The last six months has seen a lot of changes and experimentation to the game and we aren’t done yet. We are working on developing plans over the next week to continue to build on the new foundation that we’ve created over these last few months. Be on the lookout for some exciting new opportunities and changes to come. As always, thank you for being part of our community and your continued support of our team. UPDATE 303 DETAILS Tweaks / Improvements

• Added a round feedback UI – Help us to improve the game based on your feedback
  • Rate the last round you played
  • Select multiple reasons on feedback based on rating
• Added new Achievement “Arcade Champion”
  • Explore for at least one hour the various community made custom game mode which wait for you in the Arcade section of the server browser:
    • Faded
    • Gun Games
    • Siege
    • Last Stand
    • Defense
    • NS2 Large

• Removed all outdated tip videos in the training menu
• Updates the “VS. Bots” tab of the training menu
• Commander bots can now generally be replaced by entering the command station
• Restored the spawn animation of eggs (broke a long time ago)
• The spawn animation of alien structures is less obscuring now by lowering the size of the initial infestation blob

Fixes

• Fixed that parasite never timed out if an entity was outside the relevancy distance
• Fixed a bug that stopped the scoreboard from showing up after connecting to a server
• Fixed an script error which occurred when you used escape at the tundra unpack menu
• Fixed that the cancel button of the tundra unpack menu wasn’t functional
• Fixed Gorge structures not being destroyed in warmup mode
• Fixed various in-game tooltip descriptions (e.g. power surge, contamination and mines)
• Fixed a bug that would sometimes cause a research button for a commander to permanently disappear — forcing the commander to either let someone else start the research, or return to ready room to reset it.
• Fixed that marine upgrades stayed available after an arms lab has been power surged
• Power nodes no longer play the flinch animation and buzzing sound when they are infested but their armor is gone. However, the lighting in the room will continue to flicker to indicate the power node is infested.
• Power nodes will now be properly infested if they are rebuilt from death in an infested area.
• Cysts will no longer “flash” infestation right before it begins to spread.
• Fade stab will now work even after switching to a different weapon mid-stab.
• Marines can now immediately shoot upon spawning from infantry portal — they no longer play the rifle deploy animation. IP-biting skulks beware!
• Marines will now always look in the proper direction after using a phase gate. Before, having previously used a gorge tunnel would cause the view angles to be different.
• Command station will no longer leave behind the login screen after being killed.
• Fixed Gorge tunnels and Phase Gates are deactivated during the concede sequence.
• Fixed exiting a hive or command station, the commander will now face the direction they were facing when they entered.
• Fixed that bots were counted as human players by the concede and commander eject vote
• Fixed various script errors caused by the Marine commander bot
• Fixed that Commander bots placed structures in warmup mode

Maps

• Caged (Thanks Flat!)
  • Made ceiling geometry around the fans in Ventilation commander invisible
  • Fixed misaligned trim textures on the curved corners of the doorways in Main Hold
  • Added collision geometry behind pipe in east corridor of Central next to Access entrance so Fades cannot get behind it
  • Made various props and sections of geometry commander Invisible in Life Support and the east corridor of Central
• Tram (Thanks Zavaro!)
  • Fixed the Occlusion Geometry in Shipping around the door towards South Tunnels

Editor

• Fixed a bug that would cause the displacement tool to crash the editor.

[ 2016-06-22 13:07:11 CET ] [ Original post ]

Natural Selection 2 pits alien against human in an action-packed struggle for survival. Wield devastating weaponry as a Frontiesman marine, or become the xenomorph as a deadly. Kharaa life-form.

Strategy Meets Shooter

Natural Selection 2 is a First Person Shooter and Real Time Stategy game rolled into one! Each team, alien and human, has a Commander. The Commander looks down on the battlefield and issues orders, places structures, collects resources, researches technology, and deploys abilities.



Here are some gameplay examples: A human Commander could drop health packs and ammunition to a trapped marine squad, and deploy sentry guns to help them defend their position. Or an alien Commander could grow a new Hive to spread infestation throughout newly captured territory, allowing more alien eggs to spawn...

Two Unique Sides

Aliens players choose to evolve into one of five lifeforms: The fast, fearsome Skulk can run on walls and deliver massive damage with is jaws. Lerks fly and deploy gasses to support their teammates in battle. Gorges heal other lifeforms and build tunnels, hydra turrets, walls, and other tactical structures. Fades blink in and out of battle, picking off marines with giant scythes. Finally, the giant Onos is so massive and so tough, that even entire marine squads can't take it down.



Marines wield rifles, shotguns, grenade launchers, pistols, and other weapons. Cluster grenades can clear ventilation shafts of sneaky Skulks, flamethrowers make short work of alien structures and infestation, and boosts dropped by the Commander increase combat effectiveness.

When attacking on foot doesn't cut it, marines can construct hulking Exosuits wielding miniguns and railguns, and equip jetpacks for high speed assaults on alien Hives.

Long Term Development

Natural Selection 2 receives constant updates. This year, 2016, Unknown Worlds continues to develop new features, content, and improvements.

Mod Tools Come Standard

Natural Selection 2 comes with all the tools we used to make the game. All game code is open source. That means you can create, and play, an endless variety of mods. Publish, share, and download mods from the Steam Workshop, and automatically download mods when you join modded games.

Digital Deluxe Edition

Digital Deluxe Edition includes:

• Official Soundtrack - 1 hour of tribal, industrial music composed by David John and Simon Chylinski
  
• Digital Art Book - 40+ pages of art by Cory Strader, including environments, creatures, weapons and more
  
• Exclusive in-game marine model - Exclusive in-game marine model - A new marine model with custom visor and armor plating
  
• Exclusive Wallpapers and Avatars - Unique views of the NS2 universe by Amanda Diaz