Is the game balanced?

ASS-asn

<div class="IPBDescription">If i read stories, aliens are better</div>Whenever I read any story, it's always about a lvl5 nobody can do anything against, and marines have to shoot aliens with 3 at the same time?? wtf
don't the marines have some superweapon like the aliens have lvl5??

JediYoshi

Well, what they have to balance the lvl5 with the Marines is Power Armour. Umm, yeah <!--emo&:p--><img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':p'><!--endemo-->

Edit:

<img src="http://www.planethalflife.com/images/screens/ns_aug3.jpg" border="0">

Xerxes

WARNING! WARNING! INTENSE SARCASM FOLLOWS!

No. The NS development team is making the game as inbalanced as possible so that one Level 1 can completely own an entire team of 12 fully-upgraded marines. And I hear the Level 5 has a super-secret attack that consists of pressing the use key, and then everything on the Human side explodes in a gooey mess.

(End Sarcasm)

The aliens are indeed stronger than the marines 1 on 1. That is because the marines aren't supposed to fight 1 on 1. They're supposed to team up and act as a squad, just as a team of Marines would do in real life. 1 on 1, a Marine will get beaten down by your average alien, but add a couple nifty weapons and a few partners, and that alien is gonna have so many bullets in his rear, it boggles the mind. Sure, he might take one or two jumpy Hudson-wannabes with'im, but, to paraphrase the commercial, why not take a sharpened Level 1 claw to the chest for the team? <!--emo&;)--><img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=';)'><!--endemo-->

PS: Anyone who posts any statement remotely believing my sarcastic message above will be brutally flogged with a mace covered in rabid ferrets. That is all.

Squeal_Like_A_Pig

<!--QuoteBegin--JediYoshi+Aug. 13 2002,06:01--></span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td><b>Quote</b> (JediYoshi @ Aug. 13 2002,06:01)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE"><!--QuoteEBegin-->Well, what they have to balance the lvl5 with the Marines is Power Armour. Umm, yeah <!--emo&:p--><img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':p'><!--endemo--><!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><span id='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Actually, we have something else brewing on the marine side which is their answer to the L5.  But it's still probably pretty hush hush so I can't say anything.   <!--emo&;)--><img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=';)'><!--endemo-->

KungFuSquirrel

Heh, I figured Chad wasn't supposed to mention that to me... <!--emo&;)--><img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=';)'><!--endemo-->

/me keeps uber-quiet

Evil_Sonic_Death_Monkey

c'mon ppl... cough it up... cough it up nice and quick... u know we all want to hear new cool stuff bout ns, but we do ALSO want to hear an ETA for when ns is coming out. *HINT FLAYRA HINT* (or someone can tell him *wink wink*)


TELL US IT OR DIE!!!
<!--emo&:asrifle:--><img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/asrifle.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':asrifle:'><!--endemo-->  <!--emo&:0--><img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wow.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':0'><!--endemo-->

Towers

Thats mostly why we are waiting for NS to be released... so they can balance it all and iron out bugs. The forums are now less talkative cause we can't even mention the release date without getting that thread shut down. Speculating a release date is soooo fun though!  <!--emo&:D--><img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':D'><!--endemo-->

Sgt_X

This has been mentioned before but I'll say it again. The PTs are posting the dramatic stories for the coolness factor, it's just so happens that those lean a bit more towards the aliens side. If you read THE WHOLE "Tales From the Front Lines" thread you'll see so marine wins too. Also the thread was started long ago, one of the reasons their are so many level 5 stories near the top is the fact that the level 5 had just been finished and put in game recently. Read the whole thread and you'll see some ### kicking marine tactics too.

coil

Generally, a marine victory is the result of efficiency - that's why there's often not much to talk about.  If everything goes like clockwork, the "coolness" factor is still there, but there isn't much of a story.  More like you finish the game, sit back, and you go "whoa... we just kicked @$$!"

dragonsblade

marins can easily take uot a lvl 5 when they get the jumpjet. jet to the sealing and blow the holy hell of the floor below you probly best done with 2 or three marines


Remeber this is my speculation i havnt played the game yet

TiCK

A marine fighting a lvl3 in mid air would be hilarious.

Gwahir

the effectiveness of that strategy depends entirely on the energy available for the jets

humbaba

I have seen it. Monse vs. Somebody. He was the lvl 3. It was sweet. WIth the dodging and weaving, and the flyer making passes and tryign to chomp his head off. The flyer won. I am not sure, but I think there is somethign about it in the front lines thread . .not sure though.
Regarding the Marine Victory and Alien Victory. You guys nailed it. A lot of it is less exciting told as it is experienced. The aliens and mariens are equally exciting to play as, but the aliens pull off lone wolf spiffy tactics. Much of the coolness factor of playing marines is the feeling that your squad is a well oiled machine. Each squad memeber fulfills his designated role and you move on effeciently and together, and anything caught in your hail of fire is reduced to liquid goo spattered on the walls. You cant write a story about "We worked really well together and effeciently kicked alien ###". There has to be some sort of heroic almost win or loss, where the other team brigns it back from the brink. But the game is balanced (and anything that isn't is being balanced", so dont worry. This game will be completely balanced by release.  <!--emo&:D--><img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':D'><!--endemo--> .

GobyWan

Squeal makes us anticipate yet again... Grargh. I wanna know if this answer to the Lvl 5 will make a 1.x version, because now he's got me wondering.

Do we have free rein to speculate? I'm not doing that till the devs or moderators ok it.