Early/base marine lacks variety.
Radman
Join Date: 2013-04-05 Member: 184656Members
Join Date: 2013-04-05 Member: 184656Members
The ability system is great for aliens because while it enhances higher life forms, it allows skulks to customize their life form and try out different play styles.
But if you aren't the best at combat, you can still play gorge, which has a massively different set of experiences available to it.
Marines have weapon and armor upgrades. They may fit well into the metagame, but they don't really diversify marine play. The welder also doesn't change marine gameplay, it just allows them to ALSO weld stuff. They are still most useful shooting and building stuff, but you also get this extra ability on the side (that is still secondary to your first two goals).
New players sit on skulk/ar all game. Either because they keep losing their investments, or because they don't want to invite extra complexity into their game (they are still learning SO much, they don't want to be bothered with learning lerk as well). It's nice to have those stat boosts on marines, but you're losing the enjoyment a player gets out of choosing their load out, deciding their play style, executing it, then trying out a new one, all within the comfort of a low responsibility, low risk marine.
But if you aren't the best at combat, you can still play gorge, which has a massively different set of experiences available to it.
Marines have weapon and armor upgrades. They may fit well into the metagame, but they don't really diversify marine play. The welder also doesn't change marine gameplay, it just allows them to ALSO weld stuff. They are still most useful shooting and building stuff, but you also get this extra ability on the side (that is still secondary to your first two goals).
New players sit on skulk/ar all game. Either because they keep losing their investments, or because they don't want to invite extra complexity into their game (they are still learning SO much, they don't want to be bothered with learning lerk as well). It's nice to have those stat boosts on marines, but you're losing the enjoyment a player gets out of choosing their load out, deciding their play style, executing it, then trying out a new one, all within the comfort of a low responsibility, low risk marine.
Comments
All the "roles" you mentioned are basically different ways of saying you need to shoot stuff. I understand that they ARE different goals that lead to different playstyles, however there is value in allowing players to customize their marine towards the sort of playstyle they want to employ. For example, marines typically go in pairs, one person in front, and the other person covers them. Wouldnt it be fun to have traits specialized to those roles?
shotguns should come out as soon as fades. so, midgame as much as that. gorges can be earlygame, but really, they are nonoptimal except maybe as comm. gorges die for free or a couple of res. and can't really help with pushes as much as another good skulk unless biling. realistically, aliens don't have early game choices either. and have even less lategame ones. fade, vs shotgun jp or dualies. if I want to have fun I go gorge orrailgun, if I want to win I go fade or shotgun jp.
What kind of thing exactly are you suggesting? Be specific.
I'd say NS2 is more diverse than for instance CS, which has been the prominent FPS game for a long time.
What gives? Why do you feel NS2 is less diverse. Is it actually NS2, or has your view of games changed?
that's what the game is balanced around
adapt or die
Something similar to the abilities that aliens something to diversify base marines a bit, and make it a little more interesting.
...now, BITING or CHOKING them on the other hand...now THAT's "variety"
seriously though, the last game that had "weapons" which "fired" things at the enemy and truly had variety was tribes 2.
planetside2, tribes ascent, battlefield 'n'...these games dont have as much variety as they have different models with different sounds that do the same thing. it's sorda useless except as a pay to play model.
its like they cant make anything very powerful or interesting because it could hurt balance...
you want TRUE VARIETY???
try this...one player paints a target another player fires a guided shell at it.
...or how about one player recovers a dead alien carcass and uses it to create some sort of booby-trap for other aliens.
...or how about some sort of bio-magnetic friction device that slows down aliens but you cant fire a weapon while using it.
teamwork
cooperation
...aliens have it, marines...eh, marines are boring.
anyhoo...what the marines have is the cream of the crop.
theyre marines, they use the tools that they are given and they win.
...unless i'm in the hive- then they lose.
Oh man Tribes 2 was glorious with its massive multiplayer online battles. Damn, now you've made me want to play it again, but the game's dead