Is flying really worth it?

Miles_Teg · September 2002

I haven't played the beta, but from the screenshots it seems that most of the levels are really tight. In that respect wouldn't it make flying a little restrictive and more of a liability. I mean a marine isn't hampered that much because he still has a big gun, but an alien must give up more melee oriented evolutions for flying.

Just wondering if the flying alien is really worth it.

Surge · September 2002

Well you can probably swoop in on marines, give one or two a close haircut, then swoop back up and hide (while the Marines shout "WTF?") ala Starship Troopers movie, but if you've played Gloom, you'd know that flying can come in handy on some levels, especially when trying to escape.

Especially on that one city map... the Exterminator owned that map...

PseudoKnight · September 2002

The same question can be applied to jetpacks, and yet Marines still research it.

I think flying gives you an advantage of speed and maneuverability. You can pretty much go anywhere you want to and make distance attacks. Or you can come in fast for a deadly bite.

Lord_Frodo · September 2002

I was reading one story in the "Tales from the Front Lines" thread about how a marine got a jetpack upgrade and then after an alien tried to snipe him from a vent above his head, he was able to jet up there, get into the tunnel, and kill it.

So yes, jetpacks have uses, and IMO it'll make some battles get REALLY crazy what with the marines flying around and the aliens doing the same and skittering all across the floor and... *whew*

Inexorable · September 2002

Also, it would allow marines to stay in a group while moving, but when combat starts half of them can start flying to start an inpromptu pincer attack.

coil · September 2002

The level3 is small, fast, maneuverable, and can fly. He also has a decent bite attack, a respectable spike attack, a *nasty* spore cloud attack and a nearly impenetrable Umbra cloud that shields him from enemy gunfire.

This is balanced by the least health of anything in the game, and the 2nd-lowest armor. However, it is my favorite combat class for its extremely effective ranged attacks.

GobyWan · September 2002

I thought the lvl4 had umbra... ?

coil · September 2002

Switched! As always, it was STC. (: Level3 now has Umbra, and level4 has Bile Bomb.

loofbote · September 2002

(ewwwwwwwwww bile bomb) Yea I think flying would be useful even in small corridors cause then you can hit your enemy in the head fast.

RhoadsToNowhere · September 2002

Just keep in mind -- if you're flying, you can dodge in three dimensions, not just two. Makes it that much harder to hit the little buggers. And although most of the maps don't have a whole lot of wiggle room, there are usually some areas where you can hit those pesky meatsacks from above before they even see you coming. <img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':)'>

Sebly · September 2002

Can you post a picture of a level 3 please? Or at least a link.

Gwahir · September 2002

<a href="http://old.fileplanet.com/dl/dl.asp?/planethalflife/lev3.zip" target="_blank">http://old.fileplanet.com/dl/dl.asp?/planethalflife/lev3.zip</a>
this is an animation of the lev 3 in motion

Necro · September 2002

its already hard enough to hit something thats moving vertically...and horizontal to the picture and your in for a world of hurt <img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/asrifle.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt='::asrifle::'> <img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/asrifle.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt='::asrifle::'>

Battousaix · September 2002

The most cooler thing that can happen to you is, being a lerk and have to fight jetpack marines <img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':D'>.
That must be cool......

Surge · September 2002

I still think bile bomb should be renamed to bowel bomb. <img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':D'>

Sono · September 2002

Well I played one time, during the so called Newbie PT..
And yes, flying is definetly a nice thingy.

You may not think of flying as going up hundreds of meters to strike down vertically and pick off the heads of those meat-things...
You have to think of flying as swooping through the tight corridors or vent, right under the ceiling and striking down on marines.
My first experience was the intense speed.
Once you picked up how to fly you can go at lightning speed through the levels, giving the marines no chance to hit you...
At least it felt this way.

DOOManiac · September 2002

Flying is really really fun. And more than that: its easy! And even more than that: its useful! While it takes a little bit of your energy away, its only a little bit. You can flap flap flap acorss the entire level before you run low on energy and have to stop, and that's if you don't have the adrenaline upgrade ;)

doctopepa · September 2002

Can't wait to fly around. Here, for example: <img src="http://planethalflife.com/awmaps/eclipse_final/eclipse_final_1.jpg" border="0">

Surge · September 2002

It looks a little painful to fly around in that place... *eyes those blue beams*

Sebly · September 2002

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td><b>Quote</b> (Sono @ Sep. 29 2002,15:08)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Well I played one time, during the so called Newbie PT..</td></tr></table><span id='postcolor'>
When was that? Also I saw that video of a Level 1 wal climbing and defeneding a hive, but the strange thing was that when he was that when he climbend onto the roof or wall his screen would not flip over or change or anything not like it does in AvP. Is it always going to be like this? Does he have little gripper things all over him?

Elowind · September 2002

no they decided a while ago that it became too confusing if the camera view twisted and turned, everyone else sees him as upsidedown, except to the player himself

btw what is the umbra attack?

also whats this newbie playtest? i was excluded? darn :-p

Maveric · September 2002

there's only one hitbox (thus no head shots) for whoever said that it would be cool to take off someone's head...

and what of these "Newbie PTs"?! when were they!?!

*starts losing it*

Sebly · September 2002

It's not confusing in AvP...So I don't see how it could be confusing in this.

Snake13 · September 2002

WEll I kinda agree its not too confusing in AvP, I also have to think of it this way. IRL your brain flips the image around when your head tilts so that it is always easy to see. Now while upsidedown this doesn't always work that well a creature that normally crawls upsidedown all over the place would naturally be able to keep its sence of direction quite easily

HBNayr · September 2002

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td><b>Quote</b> (Elowind @ Sep. 29 2002,19:15)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">no they decided a while ago that it became too confusing if the camera view twisted and turned, everyone else sees him as upsidedown, except to the player himself</td></tr></table><span id='postcolor'>
As of the latest update, when I inquired about this, the model did NOT flip itself over, not did your weapon model. I was disappointed, but is it really that big of a deal? Version 2.0, then, I hope.

-Ryan!

Always the dullness of the fool is the whetstone of the wits.
-- William Shakespeare, "As You Like It"

Comprox · September 2002

"newbie PT" means his friend or someone he know can playtest NS and he came over for the day to try it out.

As for the model not flipping from anyone else's view, it's not a hit in gameplay, and thus, not a huge priority. It won't delay the release at all.

Radiocage · September 2002

So basically, when a <img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/bob.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt='::skulk::'> climbs a wall, it looks like:

|
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<img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/bob.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt='::skulk::'>
|
|

and when it goes upside down it looks like:

-------------------------------------------
<img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/bob.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt='::skulk::'>

? <img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/confused.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt='???'>

edit: wrong pics for aliens :o

Sgt_X · September 2002

I thought rotating world models where in. Oh well. Oh and gorge ( <img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/pudgy.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt='::gorge::'> ) can not wall climb, he is the builder class. The slulk ( <img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/bob.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt='::skulk::'> ) can. Just thought i'd make that clear.

DOOManiac · September 2002

radiocage is correct, but really you never notice, due to most of the time a marine sees a level1 on the ceiling it is promptly followed by the bob leaping and eating his face :)

coil · September 2002

Not having your view reorient was something the team thought a long time about, and trust me that ultimately it works well. There's also no confusing view rotation when you *do* drop, as happens in AvP1 and 2.

World models currently do not align to the wall, either... this will probably not be in for v1, but if it's possible will probably make it into version 2.

Longtooth · September 2002

I am glad the camera dosen't flip, it makes it easier to munch on those mamalian little meat bags.

Is flying really worth it?

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