Natural Selection 2: Combat Windows, Linux game

Natural Selection 2: Combat is a first-person team-oriented multiplayer shooter developed by Faultline Games and published by Unknown Worlds Entertainment. Players fight for either the Trans-System Federations (TSF) Space Marines or the Alien species known as the “Kharaa”, with both sides having a completely different set of lifeforms and abilities. The marines rely heavily on an array of high-tech ranged weaponry and mechanised armor, while the aliens rely on stealth, speed and strength. Additionally, aliens can evolve from a small but nimble and dangerous creature into one of five life-forms with unique abilities. NS2: Combat features intense two asymmetric teams in a fast-paced fight for survival, implemented using the beautiful Spark engine.

So what’s unique about it?

NS2: Combat plays like a half twitch-shooter, half stealth-crawler as the Space Marines and Aliens vie for control in a variety of otherworldly locations. The two sides being so different leads to a wide range of diverse experiences and affords us plenty of scope for unique weapons and gameplay depth. NS2: Combat offers fast-paced, skill-oriented gameplay with an easy-to-grasp but difficult to master set of play styles and abilities.

The gameplay is complex enough to retain a sense of achievement at mastering the learning curve, but at the same time retaining an appeal for more casual FPS players by designing skill-based matchmaking and catch-up game mechanics into the game from the from the very outset.

One of our design aims is that the game is particularly suited to public play, such that you can get a full gaming experience from a round of NS2: Combat in a spare 15 minutes. But because of the wide range of gameplay choices you can keep coming back to it as your skills grow, with a persistent stats system keeping you on your toes with players of a similar skill level.