unknown-worlds posts

It's been a little while since we have reported on Natural Selection 2, the upcoming sci-fi first person shooter-RTS hybrid game from developer Unknown Worlds Entertainment. The game is still in its beta stage but new updates continue to be made to the title for people who have pre-ordered Natural Selection 2.

The next patch for the game, which should be released sometime today via Steam, should contain a new feature for the alien faction: alien vision mode. The above video shows off how the alien vision mode will work and should be helpful if the human faction managed to cut the power in the game's level. Remember you can still pre-order the standard edition of the game in order to access the beta test content.

Natural Selection 2 is an indie darling, and for good reason: the original mod is an absolute blast, and the development team has managed to turn one of the best mods ever into a stellar stand-alone sequel. This trailer shows off some of the beta features and content, giving players that didn't pre-order the game a glimpse into the current development. It's certainly looking great, although the framerate chug in the video is slightly concerning. Despite this, we can't wait to get our hands on this FPS-RTS hybrid and once again explore stations filled with Skulks, Fades, and other nasty little aliens.

Download HD Natural Selection 2 Beta Gameplay Trailer
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Natural Selection 2 entered its own version of the closed beta stage last Friday but since its release there have been some issues with the build. In its latest dev update on the Unknown Worlds Entertainment web site, the developer admits, "It's definitely disappointing to see that we missed some serious problems with the beta release"

The update details plans on what the dev team is working to fix in the next beta patch including server crashes, low frame rates and more. It states that a patch with those fixed should be going online sometime on Monday. If you still want to get in on the closed beta its still available for purchase for $34.99 at the game's official web site. The purchase will, of course, allow folks to get the final version of the game at no additional cost when its ready.

Natural Section 2 will be getting one step closer to its official release very soon. Earlier this year developer Unknown Worlds Entertainment launched the playable alpha version of its long-in-development sci-fi RTS-FPS hybrid game. However the alpha version became unavailable for purchase once the test actually started.

Now Unknown Worlds has announced that the beta version of the game will finally be released on Friday via Steam. Folks who have already ordered the beta test or ordered and have played the alpha version will gain access to the beta build which will include the new alien Fade creature plus new alien structures and more content. Like the alpha test the beta build will also contain the game's mod tools for people to make their own levels for the game. Unknown Worlds will also be updating the beta on a weekly (more or less) basis). Access to the beta test will cost $34.95 but only 10,000 beta seats are secured; after those are set the beta will be made unavailable for purchase. Everyone who purchases the beta version will get free access to the final version of Natural Selection 2 when it is released

Our sister site Joystiq has a new cinematic trailer showing off the new alien (and Nightcrawler-like transported capable) Fade character which you can check out after the jump:

It's been a little while since we have had a development update for Natural Selection 2 but today the upcoming first person shooter-RTS hybrid game from developer Unknown Worlds Entertainment posted some info on its web site on a new in-game weapon, the flamethrower.

The primary trigger will be your basic cone of heat and flame coming out of the weapon which sets enemies on fire. There is now secondary trigger effect yet but the update says, " .. we have several ideas kicking around that we'd like to experiment with." The flamethrower will be the only weapon that will be able to half the alien's dynamic infestation abilities. You can check out a brief video of the weapon in action above this post. There's still no word on when Unknown Worlds plans to release the final version of Natural Selection 2.

We are still waiting any word that Natural Selection 2 will be entering its alpha playable phase but in the meantime the official web site for the upcoming FPS-RTS game from developer Unknown Worlds Entertainment has been updated with some info on one of the game's alien structures, the Hydra.

The Hydra is dropped into the game's levels by one of the alien monsters, the Gorge, as you can see via the YouTube gameplay footage at the top of this news post. Once in place it acts like a turret that fires spikes at both marines and human structures in all directions. The Hydra can be placed on walls and ceilings as well as floors and can also sense if marines are nearby giving players on the alien side a small heads-up.

While we are still waiting for developer Unknown Worlds Entertainment to release their promised alpha version of Natural Selection 2, the development team has updated the game's early development tools for those folks who pre-ordered the upcoming first person shooter.

One of the updates is the addition of the game's cinematic tool that lets mod makers create in-game cut scenes and videos. There's also a new tool called Decoda that debugs the game's Lua scripts. Unknown Worlds actually licenses Decoda to third-party developers for Xbox 360 and PS3 code development. The development tool updates should now be available via Steam for pre-orders.

While Unknown Worlds announced they were going to move their upcoming first person shooter Natural Selection 2 over to Steam's client, this week they finally made the move to host their pre-order engine test build on Valve's PC game download service. While pre-orders for the game are still being taken on the game's official web site people who do will get an unlock key for Steam via email.

The engine test build has also been updates with features like the server browser now active along with some other minor features and bug fixes. There's no word yet on when an actual alpha build will be made available for pre-orders.

Developer Unknown Worlds Entertainment has been pretty generous with pre-release support for their upcoming first person shooter Natural Selection 2. Folks who pre-ordered the game have already gotten access to the title's level editor. Now the developer has released an engine test build of the game for all pre-order customers.

The engine test is just that; a way for the development team to see if their in-house game engine will run on a variety of computers. It consists of a couple of levels where your player character can run around in and shoot at animated dummy targets. It does not have the actual Natural Selection 2 gameplay implemented.

The latest video from Unknown Worlds's upcoming first person shooter Natural Selection 2 spotlights an alien playable unit called the Lerk. The relatively small, flying, creature looks sort of like a vulture and sports a deadly needle attack, where projectiles rapidly shoot out from the sides of its mouth. Unknown Worlds is currently taking pre-orders for Natural Selection 2 at their web site.

Download HD Natural Selection 2 'Lerk' Reveal Trailer (279 MB)
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