What changed in Natural Selection 2 in 2017

The flamethrower can now set targets on fire for up to 6 seconds, with each hit adding 2.1 seconds.

Improved quality of cloaked aliens shader effect for Marines.

Increased direct damage of the Flamethrower to 15 (from 10) and burn damage to 8 (from 6).

Fixed multiple client/server crashes related to file consistency and texture streaming.

All vanilla maps now have higher resolution mini-maps and fixed various mini-map issues.

Fixed issues with selecting movable and non-movable entities, improving commander controls.

Fixed that the flamethrower did not deal any direct AOE damage unless you hit an enemy directly.

All vanilla maps now have higher resolution mini-maps.

Fixed that AI unit’s speed restrictions weren’t applied while turning.

Dissolving ragdolls no longer stop or absorb bullets.

All maps updated to better utilize the glow toggling effect when power is destroyed.

Increased purchase costs to 55 pres (from 45) to make buying an Exo a significant investment.

All maps updated to better utilize the glow toggling effect when power is destroyed.

Increased direct damage of the Flamethrower to 15 (from 10) and burn damage to 8 (from 6).

Fixed that spectator slot users could not join a playing team under certain conditions.

Improved quality of cloaked aliens shader effect for Marines.

Weapon pickup now behaves more intuitively, preventing unwanted auto-switching.

You can no longer charge both railguns simultaneously.

Fixed various client/server crashes related to file consistency, texture streaming, and sound system.

Optimized the update routine for unit status HUD elements for instant updates.

Fixed that AI unit’s speed restrictions weren’t applied while turning.

Fixed that the flamethrower did not deal any direct AOE damage unless you hit an enemy directly.

Health and armor bars of targeted units now update instantly.

Increased purchase costs to 55 pres (from 45) to make buying an Exo a significant investment.

You can no longer charge both railguns simultaneously.

Fixed that the quickplay_ready server flag didn’t work and added it as an option to serverconfig.

Fixed that entity ragdolls did not dissolve properly or on time.

Fixed auto pickup of a Welder and improved weapon pickup behavior.

Decreased the base damage of a railgun to 10 from 33 and adjusted fully charged damage.

Dissolving ragdolls no longer stop or absorb bullets.

Decreased the base damage of a railgun to 10 from 33 and reduced fully charged damage to 150 from 173.

Fixed issues preventing spectators from joining teams under certain conditions.

Transition to 64-bit client for better performance and future updates.

Improved game performance and reduced input delays.

New research option for Aliens to enhance their capabilities and counter Marine strategies.

Fixed multiple memory leaks in the physics layer and improved memory allocation.

Fixed detection issues where enemies could avoid being detected by flying over the observatory.

Increased damage in PvP engagements, adjusted area of effect damage, and modified fire mechanics.

Increased damage in PvP engagements, adjusted area of effect damage, and modified fire duration.

Added cover, fixed stuck spots, and improved gameplay flow on the Summit map.

Enemies can now be detected by the observatory regardless of their height.

Resolved problems with weapon skins not applying immediately in the customization menu.

Adjusted the unlock requirement for Contamination to prevent early game dominance.

Visual improvements and performance enhancements made to both maps.

Optimized occlusion geometry and lighting for better performance on the Derelict map.

Now requires Biomass 10 and can be set on fire, preventing it from destroying structures easily.

New research option for Aliens to enhance their abilities and counter Marine strategies.

Resolved issues with spectator slots affecting player counts after map changes.

End of support for 32-bit systems to focus on 64-bit improvements.

Addressed multiple memory leaks and initialization problems in the engine.

New skin packs available for purchase on Steam.

Fixed issue where changing skins wouldn't apply immediately to the weapon.

Optimized game code for LuaJIT, improving performance and reducing input delays.

Resolved an issue where dying in an exosuit during warm-up hid the HUD after respawning.

Resolved an issue where the server browser would become unresponsive with a mod mounted.

Non QWERTY keyboard users may need to rebind certain features in the menu.

Pathing mesh modified to ignore tech points, ensuring drifters can always build hives.

Fixed an issue where opening the server browser with a mod mounted made it unresponsive.

Whips now correctly face their targets and are removed from the nav mesh properly.

Addressed issues where Whips sometimes didn’t face their targets correctly.

HUD now correctly displays after respawning if the player died in an exosuit during warm-up.

Reworked job and thread scheduling to utilize all CPU cores, slightly increasing performance.

Dedicated servers can now use the -autorestart argument to restart automatically after a crash.

Resolved a crash that could occur when disconnecting from a server during loading.

NS2 now runs on a 64-bit architecture, improving performance and memory management.

Resolved an issue where certain maps allowed structures to be invisible on the marine minimap.

Resolved issues causing crashes and problems with the alien commander tutorial.

Migrated to 64-bit architecture for improved performance and support.

Fixed an issue causing marine mini maps to appear blank on some maps.

Resolved a server script error occurring when a client with a custom badge connected.

Resolved a server script error occurring when a client with a custom badge connected.

Resolved a crash occurring due to the tutorial reminder popup for new players.

Introduced a crash collector that uploads crash reports automatically for diagnosis.

Fixed a bug regarding keyboard layouts not being detected correctly for non-QWERTY users.

Resolved an issue causing marine mini maps to appear blank on some maps.

Adjusted pathing mesh to ignore tech points, ensuring drifters can always build hives.

Fixed a crash occurring due to the tutorial reminder popup for new players.

Servers will restart automatically with previous start-up arguments if they crash.

Now able to utilize all CPU cores, slightly increasing performance and core load distribution.

Adjusted pathing mesh to ignore tech points, ensuring drifters can always build hives.

Resolved issues with corrupted results causing crashes and affecting the alien commander tutorial.

Resolved an issue where certain structures would be invisible on the marine minimap.

Introduced an auto crash collector that uploads crash reports automatically.

Resolved a specific crash that could occur when disconnecting from a server during loading.

A new training module to hone skulk wall-jumping skills with global ranking and badge rewards.

MACs now follow and weld moving players, with improved behavior and reduced blocking.

Damage flinch sound effects now play consistently after the first instance.

Improved stomp shockwave behavior and reliability of marine knockback.

Added new API methods related to the spectator slots for modding purposes.

Resolved issue causing curl to run out of available ports.

Overall rewrite of Whips attack routine for reliability and performance, with multiple fixes and optimizations.

Resolved issue causing curl handler to remain active and exhaust available ports.

Damage flinch sound effects now play consistently after the first instance.

Updated password prompt style and obscured password input by default.

Team messages now display correctly without needing to view the help screen first.

Crash dumps now include exception information for better debugging.

Fade Metabolize now correctly disables Blink during its execution.

Spectator slots no longer count against player slots, allowing full 24 player servers with dedicated spectators.

Guard orders now cancel correctly when the target leaves the team.

New functionality for multiplying two Vector objects per-component.

Spectator slots no longer count against player slots, allowing full 24-player servers with dedicated spectators.

Fixed multiple issues with Whips, including damage sync and attack cooldowns.

New server startup parameter for dedicated spectator slots, improving server browser accuracy.

Stomp shockwave can now move up stairs and behaves more reliably with optimized performance.

Metabolize now disables Blink during its execution.

Removed fall seasonal decorations from the Caged ready room.

Player ping display no longer animates upon first joining a team.

A new training module to hone Skulk wall-jumping skills, featuring global rankings and badges.

Added dedicated spectator slots to improve server management and player experience.

Fixed issues with MACs movement and welding behavior.

Updated password prompt style and functionality for better user experience.

Increased max belly sliding speed, decreased cooldown, and improved control and energy cost.

All frontal damage from bullet-based weapons is reduced by 80% when Boneshield is active.

Increased max belly sliding speed, decreased cooldown, and improved control and energy cost.

Cleaned up pathing meshes to resolve structure placement issues.

Fixed tech status not updating correctly when dependencies changed.

Fixed an issue causing the Marine HUD to be stuck on the screen after spectating an exo.

Rookies will see a popup recommending they play the tutorial when opening the play menu.

Button positions for 'Server Browser' and 'Training' swapped for improved accessibility.

Cleaned up pathing meshes to fix issues with structure placement.

Fixed an issue where Skulk animation got disorientated after jumping repeatedly.

Added an invisible block to prevent Lerks from spiking marine extractors from unreachable locations.

Fixed the training link in the play menu opening the last visited main menu window.

Owned Babblers show up grayed out for the gorge even when not actively attached.

Damage indicator now animates and fades more noticeably.

Fixed Quick Join not finding servers if all available ones were joined less than 10 minutes ago.

Fade personal resource cost increased to 37 from 35.

Alien structures grow twice as slow without a drifter or gorge instead of three times.

Added visual effects to communicate when the Boneshield ability is active.

Corrected the training link to open the appropriate main menu window.

Resolved issue where tech status dependent on higher tech ID was not updated correctly.

Fade personal resource cost increased from 35 to 37.

Corrected issue causing Marine HUD to remain on screen after spectating an exo.

Resolved rare animation system bug causing 'Infinite bone coords' error spam.

Fixed a bug in the animation system causing 'Infinite bone coords' error spam.

Added visual effects to indicate when the Onos Boneshield ability is active.

Fixed a server script error caused by hallucination when attacking a target.

Fixed a script error when babblers attached to aliens after the babler owner died.

Rookies can now join all servers without further restrictions.

Gorges can now place tunnels behind the counter in Terminal.

Crash reporter now sends additional details to help track down common crashes.

Gorges can now place tunnels behind the counter in Terminal.

Resolved issue where Quick Join didn't find servers if all were joined recently.

Fixed the Friends tab not showing any servers unless logged into Steam Friends.

Corrected issue where Friends tab did not show any servers.

Swapped the button positions for 'Server Browser' and 'Training' in the Play Menu.

Focus upgrade attack speed changed to a static 33%.

Fixed overlapping display of death and score numbers in the first person spectator HUD.

Resolved crash issue related to dynamic mesh rendering using DirectX 11.

Red arrow damage indicator now animates and fades for better visibility.

Boneshield no longer regenerates armor, allows movement while active, and has various energy and cooldown adjustments.

Boneshield no longer regenerates armor, allows movement while active, and has various energy and cooldown adjustments.

Resolved script error occurring when babblers attached to aliens after owner died.

Owned Babblers show grayed out status even when not attached to the owner.

Frontal damage from bullet-based weapons reduced by 80% when Boneshield is active.

Corrected animation disorientation issue causing clipping through walls.

Focus upgrade attack speed changed to a static 33%.

Corrected overlap issue in first person spectator HUD.

Fixed a bug that caused clients to crash when placing gorge webs or a sentry battery.

Resolved server script error caused by hallucination attacks.

Alien structures grow only twice as slow without a drifter or gorge now.

Added an invisible block to prevent Lerks from spiking marine extractors from unreachable locations.

Slightly improved the design of the server detail window in the server browser.

Replaced 'Play Now' and 'Server Browser' links with a single 'Play' button for better visibility.

Fixed that badges connected to steam items did not unlock correctly.

Fixed that css files using the old format did not work properly.

Every hive now spawns an egg every 13 seconds, scaling down with player count, and can spawn up to 2 eggs.

Added a player vote to add commander bots and start the game if commanders are lacking.

Added a player vote to add commander bots and start the game automatically after 5 minutes if commanders are lacking.

Displays useful information about equipped weapons/abilities.

The gorge tunnel is now less picky about placement, allowing for easier placement in rough terrain.

Fixed that the Flamethrower dealt extra damage to burning structures instantly instead of after 2 seconds.

Removed leftover links to the deprecated hive website in the main menu.

Fixed that research progress in the commander UI was reset when a player logged out and back in.

Fixed a script error that occurred when blinking as Fade in 3rd person camera mode.

Fixed that the skulk plays running animation after leaping.

Fixed a script error that occurred when Marine.GetMaxSpeed was called without a weapon.

Fixed a script error that occurred when Marine.GetMaxSpeed was called without a weapon.

Fixed race conditions between the render and main thread causing client crashes on texture allocation.

Skulks can now sneak around sharp corners on the ceiling more reliably.

Fixed an issue with physics culling during the concede sequence.

Fixed that badges connected to steam items did not unlock correctly.

Lowered performance costs of each bot by about 80% and optimized pathfinding and decision-making routines.

Increased base damage to 8 from 6, decreased damage bonus against players to 150% from 200%, and decreased costs to 20 pres.

Fixed an issue causing server crashes while processing move packets.

Fixed an issue causing server crashes while processing move packets.

Marine Commander Bots now drop med and ammo packs on request; Alien Commander Bots drop Mist on request.

Marine Commander Bots now drop med and ammo packs on request; Alien Commander Bots drop Mist on request.

Fixed research progress in the commander UI resetting when a player logged out of the Command Station.

Fixed a script error that occurred when blinking as Fade in 3rd person camera mode.

Fixed that CSS files using the old format did not work properly.

Made ready room players mortal and fixed a script error that occurred if a player died in the Ready Room.

Made ready room players mortal and fixed a script error that occurred if a player died in the Ready Room.

Fixed race conditions between the render and main thread causing client crashes on texture allocation.

Increased base damage to 8 from 6, decreased damage bonus against players to 150% from 200%, and decreased costs to 20 pres.

Fixed that warmup mode started the game after the limit of 12 players was reached.

Removed leftover links to the deprecated hive website in the main menu.

Fixed that the skulk plays running animation after leaping.

Optimized the Effect Manager for in-game effects, making update routines about 40% faster.

Optimized the Effect Manager for faster update routines of in-game effects.

Standardized and improved the cooldown HUD display of all alien abilities.

Fixed an issue with physics culling during the concede sequence.

Gorge tunnel placement is now less picky, allowing placement in rougher terrain.

Replaced 'Play Now' and 'Server Browser' links with a single 'Play' button for better visibility.

Fixed that the Flamethrower dealt extra compound damage to burning structures instantly instead of after 2 seconds.

Lowered performance costs of each bot by about 80% and optimized various routines.

Every hive spawns an egg every 13 secs, scales with player count, and can spawn up to 2 eggs.

Made wall walking less unpredictable for skulks, allowing them to sneak around corners more reliably.

Displays useful information about currently equipped weapons/abilities.

Fixed that warmup mode started the game after the limit of 12 players was reached.

Each team needs at least 6 players on their roster by March 17 to participate in the season.

Players must sign up with only one team; otherwise, they will be removed from all but the highest seeded team.

The season will last 2 to 3 months with around 1 match per week scheduled by the teams.

Final team seeding will be published on March 17-18 via a forum post.

Sign ups for the 11th Season of the ENSL will close today, with the season starting on March 22.

Gorge tunnels will now 'eat' clogs to prevent entrances from being blocked.

Fixed a minor rendering anomaly with specular-lights beneath surfaces.

Added 'All' tab back to Server Browser and introduced a new server ranking system for better sorting.

Added March Mod Madness badges to the game.

Fixed seasonal geometry not being assigned to the correct seasonal group in Tram map.

Fixed multiple bugs in the alien commander tutorial, including bots blocking structure placement.

Fixed issue where newcomer tournament badges did not unlock properly.

Fixed bug in Hive that prevented new players from earning new levels.

Added an option to add bots to the Create Server interface, though they may cause performance issues.

Multiple bugs fixed including issues with weapon pickups, level progression, and tutorial glitches.

Added 'All' tab back to the Server Browser and introduced a new server ranking system for better sorting.

Fixed a bug causing the build tool to flicker when building a new power node.

Added new features and fixed bugs in the SDK, including improvements to AddFieldWatcher.

Fixed a bug where clogs could not be destroyed by the gorge who placed them until they exited and re-entered relevancy range.

Re-wrote how clogs work to eliminate jittery movement and 'phantom' clogs.

Fixed that Shifts could not echo themselves.

Fixed a bug where the holographic marine might not accurately reflect the actual spawn progress.

Fixed stuck spots and geometry issues in Refinery and Tram maps.

Fixed a bug that allowed players to reach very high speed with the Exosuit via bunny hopping.

Babblers are more likely to attack nearby enemies, cloak and uncloak properly, and have improved attack distance calculations.

Play Now now uses the new server rating for better search results and validates servers before joining.

Play Now now uses new server rating for better search results and validates servers before joining.

Minimized function execution times in the TechTree class for better performance.

Fixed a bug where a gorge would attempt to consume a hydra but it would continue to live and be non-consumable.

Babblers are more likely to attack nearby enemies, cloak and uncloak properly, and have improved attack distance calculations.

A tournament dedicated to custom game modes in Natural Selection 2, featuring prizes for participants.

Teams will play a match of NS2Large (16 vs 16) followed by division matches in a double elimination format.

All game modes (except NS2:Combat) can be found in the NS2 Steam Workshop or under the Arcade tab.

Every participant will receive a brand new in-game badge, with gold and silver versions for top winners.

Sign ups for the tournament will end on 2 March 2017 at 22:00 CET.

Sign ups for the tournament will end on 2 March 2017 at 22:00 CET.

Open to everyone with a copy of NS2; participants can sign up as a team or individually.

A unique tournament for players to try out custom game modes in Natural Selection 2, with prizes for participants.

The tournament will take place on 4 March 2017 from 19 CET / 13 EST till 23-24 CET / 15-16 EST.

Teams will play a match of NS2Large (16 vs 16) followed by division matches in a double elimination format.

The tournament will take place on February 4 and 5, 2017, featuring maps: Tram, Veil, Summit, Biodome, and Descent.

A competitive tournament for players to test their skills in a balanced 6vs6 environment, with special in-game badges for participants.

Participants are advised to set up Teamspeak 3 for communication during the tournament.

Sign ups for the tournament will end on February 2, 2017, at 22:00 CET.

Sign-ups for the tournament will end on February 2, 2017, at 22:00 CET.

Details on the competitive format for the tournament, including team arrangements and eligibility.

Participants are advised to set up Teamspeak 3 for communication during the tournament.

The tournament will take place on February 4 and 5, 2017, featuring maps: Tram, Veil, Summit, Biodome, Descent.

Announcement of the ENSL.org Newcomer Tournament for Natural Selection 2, including details on participation and rewards.

Increased base health points to 150 (from 125), biomass health bonus lowered to 2 (from 3).

Evolution chamber wasn’t selectable sometimes due to relevancy issues.

Ghost model for certain commander drops wasn't matched up with actual spawn location.

Learn the basics of Alien Commanding, includes hidden achievements and easter eggs.

Fixed flickering texture in Atrium.

Replaced the Machine Gun texture with a higher quality version.

Replaced the Machine Gun texture with a higher quality version.

Slerp calculations fixed to prevent rapid twitching of player models.

Improved badge API handling and support for Steam Item based badges.

Fixed several stuck spots in various maps for Winter seasonal theme.

Exo flashlight now correctly faces forward instead of towards the floor.

Parasite was not correctly applied onto players logging out of the command chair.

Evolution chamber is now selectable without relevancy issues.

Cysts are now more consistently and evenly placed along paths.

Fixed slerp calculations which resulted in player models twitching rapidly.

Decreased weight to 0.21 (150% of the Grenade Launcher) from 0.26 for better aiming and mobility.

Increased base health points to 150 (from 125).

Increased the amount of extra health point mucous grants to 20% (from 15%) of the target’s base hp.

Fixed the perfanalyzer.py to work with the latest plog format version.

Whips kept attacking invalid targets instead of searching for new targets.

Exo flashlight was facing towards the floor.

Lowered the biomass health bonus to 2 (from 3).

Badge API now handles the badge enum correctly and supports multiple columns for each badge.

Decreased weight to 0.21 (150% of the Grenade Launcher) from 0.26.

Fixed missing collision on some props near Sub Access and other areas.

Purchase sound in marine buy menu now plays correctly.

Ghost model for certain commander drops now matches the actual spawn location.

Fixed perfanalyzer.py to work with the latest plog format version.

Cysts are now more consistently and evenly placed along paths, accurate per mouse cursor position.

Fixed that the Entity.AddTimedCallback early parameter had no effect on callback behavior.

Parasite is now correctly applied to players logging out of the command chair.

Fixed several stuck spots in various maps for seasonal themes.

Fixed missing collision on props and flickering textures in Summit.

Increased the amount of extra health point mucous grants to 20% (from 15%) of the target’s base hp.

The purchase sound of the marine buy menu didn’t play correctly.

Learn the basics of Alien Commanding, includes hidden achievements and easter eggs.

Fixed that the Entity.AddTimedCallback early parameter had no effect on callback behavior.

Whips now correctly search for new targets instead of attacking invalid ones.