Mineshaft Reveal
31 October 2011, 7:52 pm

In honor of the 9th anniversary of the first Natural Selection, we’d like to give you the first look at a new map which will soon be available to play in the NS2 closed Beta.  Welcome to “Mineshaft”.  


Steel drills, mining pits, rock crushing machines, tunnels carved through stone and caverns with underground waterfalls are the backdrop for this atmospheric map. The marines start near the planet surface and then descend down towards the alien base. This is a reboot of the NS1 “Mineshaft” map, preserving the name, theme and the top-to-bottom topography, but with an all new layout and look.  Mineshaft represents a different area of the same large refining and mining facility that Tram is part of, but it is much larger in size, with a winding organic layout in keeping with its more natural setting.


“Mineshaft” was brought to life by Marc “Srgt. Barlow” Newton.  With 6 techpoints and stretching over 30,000 square meters, with many different routes and hiding nooks, the “Mineshaft” map is quite complex, though the design attempts to maintain a logical flow between its various fictional locations.

Here are just a few of the landmark areas that epic battles will be fought in and fought over:

Marine Spawn


As the highest elevation point in the map, Marine Spawn is the most architecturally refined and constructed section of the underground mining network, and where the marines will feel the most secure.  It features a viewing platform overlooking a rocky cavern and walkway on one side, and a large elevator on the other side, which would transport miners to and from the surface facility.  


Central Drilling


Central Drilling, with its giant drilling platform dominating the middle of the room, is the main hub of the map, and its 3 different resource nozzles should make it a hotly contested area.


Alien Spawn


Alien Spawn is a large natural cavern, a fitting habitat for the aliens.  Stalactite spiked ceilings, rock formations jutting from the ground, and an underground waterfall, make it both a beautiful and eerie gameplay environment.

Finally, here is a map reveal video of showcasing some of the areas of “Mineshaft”

Thanks for joining us for this update and we look forward to getting this map into your hands soon.


Source: Natural Selection 2 News

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I know, right? I played on the last new map for the first time last week, and had just put in my new video card. I joined aliens, and literally stopped and gawked out the windows for at least a full minute before remembering that I was supposed to be playing. This sort of stunning visual design, coupled with the totally awesome procedural-creep, makes for an incredibly detailed and immersive environment.

Definitely. Although tbh the balance isn't that terrible now. As long as both teams have at least a couple of reasonably skilled players, it can go either way.