After more than a decade of seeing how many different variations on the standard FPS one could play online, game developers are going all-out to differentiate their games from the crowd and offer something new. Cue Unreal Championship 2: The Liandri Conflict from publisher Midway Games and developer Epic Games, the team behind the whole Unrealfranchise. This entire game is something new disguised as something old-school—a first-person shooter/third-person brawler with massive numbers of characters to choose from, each one different. Even those characters of the same alien (or, occasionally, human or augmented human) race have differences between the male and female archetypes. Little differences, but differences all the same.
Never stop to hold a pose when Necris are around.
All told, UC2 boasts seven different races (if you count out-of-nowhere-but-that's-so-cool guest star Raiden of Mortal Kombat®fame):
The Humans are just plain old humans, but get power adrenaline mod choices to make up for their normal humanity.
The Juggernauts are some of those genetically engineered dudes I was talking about. The Juggernauts were in the first UC—on the cover, in fact. Big, high-health, slow, tough, and great for first timers.
The Necris are a little bit vampire and a whole lotta ninja (in the broad, general ninja fighting-style sense, not actual ninja). They can drain foes' health and turn invisible. More details below.
The Nakhti, also seen in UC, are the mid-range, middle-weight all-stars, and earn every penny. Think ancient Egyptian-y. More details below.
The Skaarj, big repto aliens, are slow but strong, with a look reminiscent of that guy from Brute Force™. Excellent at melee.
The Liandri, the big corporation that's sponsoring this shindig, has decided to enter the championship with a pair or fightin' robots with amazing reflexes and jumping abilities. These guys can even scavenge themselves for more ammo.
The Elder God gets only one representative, but that rep is none other than Raiden. So deal.
Welcome to Nakhti country.
The Nakhti: Anubis Anubis, who looks more like Imhotep than Imhotep, is an excellent first fighter for beginners, as is his female counterpart Selket (you may remember Selket and a couple of friends from a particular shot in the game intro). Anubis is well-rounded in both melee and ranged combat.
Note: The following stats are for Anubis; Selket's skill set is slightly different.
Race Pistol: Nakhti Scorpions—Energy, not unlike Halo® 2plasma pistols. Melee Weapon: Nakhti Staff—Like Stargate? You'll love the Nakhti staff.
Adrenaline Powers
X, Left Trigger: Repulse—Knock incoming projectiles aside with the awesome power of magnets.
X, Right Trigger: Energy Burst—A big knock-back attack for when the enemy is swarming you.
X, A: Nimble—Get fast, and jump high; then jump higher, and higher …
X, X, Left Trigger: Heal—Something to do with some kind of healing, I think?
X, X, Right Trigger: Warrior Spirit—Enhances your general combat abilities for a short time.
X, X, A: Speed—Feel the need? This is like Nimble on crack without the jumping.
"Necris" is UC2-ese for "undead vampire ninja."
The Necris: Lauren With a name like "Lauren," you just know she's got to be some kind of goth vampire chick with nanoblack instead of blood. Don't let this undead hottie get behind you, or it's over.
Note: The following stats are for Lauren; Brock's skill set is slightly different.
Race Pistol: Dual Enforcers—Now that's old-school! The Necris variety can shoot stun pellets, too. Melee Weapon: Necris Swords—Poison blades mean enemies stay hurt. Adrenaline Powers
X, Left Trigger: Ethereal—Best. UC2. Mod. Ever. Lauren fades out of sight, but a shadow image appears a couple of feet away from her. Your enemies have to attack all around that shadow to hit you. Sweet!
X, Right Trigger: Siphon—A ranged vampiric attack that sends out balls of your own blood (!) that suck up enemy health and deliver it back to you free of charge. Don't forget to tip.
X, A: Nimble—See Anubis.
X, X, Left Trigger: Vampire—A less complicated way to heal yourself at the expense of your enemies, this adrenaline boost heals you when you inflict damage.
X, X, R Trigger: Wraith—Become almost invisible, and at the same time almost immune to enemy attacks. Excellent for getting to the sniper's lookout.
