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Jan 15th, 2008 at 04:47:10 - Natural Selection (PC) |
Gameplay:
However, after playing the game for a few hours and mastering the basics of the strategy of the game, it immediately started to become boring, and began to seem like simply an average FPS. Playing as an alien for a while was enjoyable as I was able to fly around and climb on walls, but also became quickly became boring. To attack a marine as an alien really doesn't require much skill as there is no precise aiming mechanism (for the marines either for that matter... The most widely used strategy when shooting as a marine was the "spray" method where the player would simply hold down the trigger and get the cross-hair somewhere near the enemy). Much of the time as an alien, to attack a marine, you would simply hold down the trigger and run up to him, hopefully surprising him, and hope your gnashing teeth would take him out before his rifle took you out.
As the games went on and on without any rest I began to feel mentally fatigued from the constant stress in the game, to the point where it eventually ceased to be fun anymore (which is the point when I quit it and played some Counter-Strike instead).
Design:
Upon starting the game, it seems to be akin to the smash-hit mods for Half-Life of Counter-Strike and of Day of Defeat, except instead of being set in the present or in the WW2 era (respectively), it is set in the future, as the player must choose to either be a marine or an alien, both with a variety of classes with various strengths and weaknesses.
However, this game has several distinct differences from the others. Both races may make use of weapon/armor upgrades attained by securing various resource points throughout the map. There are no "rounds" in Natural Selection. Each game goes on until the other race is wiped out. Thus, each game is a constant struggle to obtain resources and to kill the enemy at the same time. The RTS aspect (which Unknown Worlds highlights as a major selling point of the game) of the "commander" gives the game added depth. This hybrid/complex aspect of the game seems to give it a distinct edge over other "standard" fps games.
However, stripped down, Natural Selection is basically the same as Counter-Strike or Day of Defeat, except worse. The fact that there are no "rounds" is actually detrimental as it doesn't give the player any rest time to the point where the game just becomes tiring. The actual maps themselves are fairly poorly designed in that they are all indoors and seem very constrictive with very little hint of an outside world. One feels like they are in a controlled videogame environment.
The lack of ability to become a true master at the game because of lack of skill required by the game is also another reason why it will never be as good as Counter-Strike or Day of Defeat. All in all, the "commander" part is fun for a while, but if you're looking for a real FPS mod for Half-Life, go for the good stuff.
This entry has been edited 5 times. It was last edited on Jan 15th, 2008 at 05:01:31.
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Jan 15th, 2008 at 04:22:44 - Natural Selection (PC) |
Summary:
Natural Selection is a third-party mod using the well known Half-Life engine. It is an online multiplayer hybrid FPS/RTS computer game, produced by Unknown Worlds, which pits human marines against aliens in a battle to the death, set in futuristic backdrops. The RTS aspect comes from the ability for one of the marines (per game) to be a "commander," where this player views the battlefield from a top-down perspective, instead of being an actual character in the game. The commander may issue orders and build mechanical equipment to help aid the marines. The aliens have no such commander though they are compensated with special abilities such as flight, being able to crawl on walls, and speed boosts.
Gameplay:
Upon starting my first game, I was immediately immersed in a barrage of controls in menus in a space world map with eerie music. Players rushed left and right with mechanical equipment spawning all around me. Needless to say, for the first few minutes I was running around like a chicken with its head cut off, shooting at the first thing I saw that moved.
Although I am no noobie when it comes to first-person-shooters (I was in a competetive CAL-m Counter-Strike team), this game appeared much more complex and in depth. The game had no rests--the pace was fast and constant as there were no "rounds." Each game went continuously on until all of the players on one team had been killed. Because of this the game was very entertaining, requiring my full attention as I struggled to understand this new type of gameplay. Although there was the familiarity with the "running around and shooting things," the added RTS depth and upgrade menus, coupled with the non-stop action made this game immensely enjoyable, at first.
This entry has been edited 4 times. It was last edited on Jan 15th, 2008 at 04:57:15.
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