The Game Census
Natural Selection 2 cover art

Natural Selection 2

Unknown Worlds Entertainment · 2012-10-30

Steam

ActionIndieStrategy

Modes: Multiplayer

Releases: Oct 30, 2012 (PC (Microsoft Windows))

A fast paced multiplayer shooter that pits aliens against humans in a strategic and action-packed struggle for survival!

111
playing now
85%
positive of 13k reviews
Very Positive
steam rating
1,000,000–2,000,000
owners (SteamSpy est.)
85/100
critic score (2 outlets, IGDB)
78/100
IGDB user rating (30 ratings)
gold
deck/linux tier (ProtonDB)
$4.99
steam price (US)

111 players in-game as of 2026-08-30 17:00 UTC (census sample)

Natural Selection 2 is a multiplayer video game which combines first-person shooter and real-time strategy rules. It is set in a science fiction universe in which a human team fights an alien team for control of resources and territory in large and elaborate indoor facilities. It is the sequel to Natural Selection.

Health check

Quietly active
  • · 111 players in-game at the last census sample.
  • · 130 reviews in the last 8 weeks (~16/week).
  • · Review velocity up 2% vs the prior 8 weeks.
  • · Top 9% of 10,862 Action games in the census by review count.

Health tier since 2026-08-29

Estimated sales: 535k–1.1M copies

Review-multiple estimate from 13,363 total reviews — how this is computed.

All-time low: $0.99 at Steam (2025-12-18) · bundled 2×via IsThereAnyDeal

12-month high $4.99 · on sale 19 of 30 observed days (census price snapshots)

Review momentum

PositiveNegative
16516520182026Week of 2018-01-01: 42 positiveWeek of 2018-01-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2018-02-01: 36 positiveWeek of 2018-02-01: 13 negativeWeek of 2018-03-01: 32 positiveWeek of 2018-03-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2018-04-01: 16 positiveWeek of 2018-04-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2018-05-01: 17 positiveWeek of 2018-05-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2018-06-01: 45 positiveWeek of 2018-06-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2018-07-01: 44 positiveWeek of 2018-07-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2018-08-01: 25 positiveWeek of 2018-08-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2018-09-01: 21 positiveWeek of 2018-09-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2018-10-01: 17 positiveWeek of 2018-10-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2018-11-01: 71 positiveWeek of 2018-11-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2018-12-01: 32 positiveWeek of 2018-12-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2019-01-01: 24 positiveWeek of 2019-01-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2019-02-01: 29 positiveWeek of 2019-02-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2019-03-01: 13 positiveWeek of 2019-03-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2019-04-01: 44 positiveWeek of 2019-04-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2019-05-01: 47 positiveWeek of 2019-05-01: 15 negativeWeek of 2019-06-01: 93 positiveWeek of 2019-06-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2019-07-01: 109 positiveWeek of 2019-07-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2019-08-01: 28 positiveWeek of 2019-08-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2019-09-01: 35 positiveWeek of 2019-09-01: 20 negativeWeek of 2019-10-01: 31 positiveWeek of 2019-10-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2019-11-01: 165 positiveWeek of 2019-11-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2019-12-01: 81 positiveWeek of 2019-12-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2020-01-01: 61 positiveWeek of 2020-01-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2020-02-01: 51 positiveWeek of 2020-02-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2020-03-01: 69 positiveWeek of 2020-03-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2020-04-01: 54 positiveWeek of 2020-04-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2020-05-01: 47 positiveWeek of 2020-05-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2020-06-01: 60 positiveWeek of 2020-06-01: 16 negativeWeek of 2020-07-01: 64 positiveWeek of 2020-07-01: 15 negativeWeek of 2020-08-01: 35 positiveWeek of 2020-08-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2020-09-01: 31 positiveWeek of 2020-09-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2020-10-01: 32 positiveWeek of 2020-10-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2020-11-01: 49 positiveWeek of 2020-11-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2020-12-01: 57 positiveWeek of 2020-12-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2021-01-01: 46 positiveWeek of 2021-01-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2021-02-01: 44 positiveWeek of 2021-02-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2021-03-01: 36 positiveWeek of 2021-03-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2021-04-01: 19 positiveWeek of 2021-04-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2021-05-01: 26 positiveWeek of 2021-05-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2021-06-01: 28 positiveWeek of 2021-06-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2021-07-01: 28 positiveWeek of 2021-07-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2021-08-01: 26 positiveWeek of 2021-08-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2021-09-01: 19 positiveWeek of 2021-09-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2021-10-01: 14 positiveWeek of 2021-10-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2021-11-01: 41 positiveWeek of 2021-11-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2021-12-01: 36 positiveWeek of 2021-12-01: 14 negativeWeek of 2022-01-01: 35 positiveWeek of 2022-01-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2022-02-01: 33 positiveWeek of 2022-02-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2022-03-01: 21 positiveWeek of 2022-03-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2022-04-01: 18 positiveWeek of 2022-04-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2022-05-01: 20 positiveWeek of 2022-06-01: 23 positiveWeek of 2022-06-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2022-07-01: 24 positiveWeek of 2022-07-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2022-08-01: 22 positiveWeek of 2022-08-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2022-09-01: 13 positiveWeek of 2022-09-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2022-10-01: 9 positiveWeek of 2022-10-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2022-11-01: 18 positiveWeek of 2022-11-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2022-12-01: 25 positiveWeek of 2022-12-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2023-01-01: 25 positiveWeek of 2023-01-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2023-02-01: 27 positiveWeek of 2023-02-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2023-03-01: 15 positiveWeek of 2023-03-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2023-04-01: 15 positiveWeek of 2023-04-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2023-05-01: 20 positiveWeek of 2023-05-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2023-06-01: 20 positiveWeek of 2023-06-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2023-07-01: 14 positiveWeek of 2023-07-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2023-08-01: 11 positiveWeek of 2023-08-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2023-09-01: 12 positiveWeek of 2023-09-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2023-10-01: 13 positiveWeek of 2023-10-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2023-11-01: 17 positiveWeek of 2023-11-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2023-12-01: 28 positiveWeek of 2023-12-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2024-01-01: 15 positiveWeek of 2024-01-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2024-02-01: 14 positiveWeek of 2024-02-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2024-03-01: 18 positiveWeek of 2024-03-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2024-04-01: 11 positiveWeek of 2024-04-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2024-05-01: 14 positiveWeek of 2024-05-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2024-06-01: 8 positiveWeek of 2024-06-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2024-07-01: 18 positiveWeek of 2024-07-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2024-08-01: 13 positiveWeek of 2024-08-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2024-09-01: 9 positiveWeek of 2024-09-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2024-10-01: 10 positiveWeek of 2024-10-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2024-11-01: 21 positiveWeek of 2024-11-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2024-12-01: 12 positiveWeek of 2024-12-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2025-01-01: 21 positiveWeek of 2025-01-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2025-02-01: 9 positiveWeek of 2025-02-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2025-03-01: 5 positiveWeek of 2025-03-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2025-04-01: 14 positiveWeek of 2025-04-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2025-05-01: 9 positiveWeek of 2025-06-01: 11 positiveWeek of 2025-06-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2025-07-01: 9 positiveWeek of 2025-07-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2025-08-01: 5 positiveWeek of 2025-08-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2025-09-01: 16 positiveWeek of 2025-09-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2025-10-01: 12 positiveWeek of 2025-10-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2025-11-01: 7 positiveWeek of 2025-11-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2025-12-01: 20 positiveWeek of 2025-12-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2026-01-01: 15 positiveWeek of 2026-01-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2026-02-01: 18 positiveWeek of 2026-03-01: 13 positiveWeek of 2026-03-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2026-04-01: 4 positiveWeek of 2026-04-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2026-05-01: 14 positiveWeek of 2026-05-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2026-06-01: 12 positiveWeek of 2026-06-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2026-07-01: 15 positiveWeek of 2026-07-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2026-08-01: 10 positiveWeek of 2026-08-01: 1 negative
Weekly review counts (Steam review histogram). Positive above the line, negative below.

Players online

126132026-08-06 21:00 — 76 players2026-08-07 05:00 — 27 players2026-08-07 13:00 — 69 players2026-08-07 21:00 — 112 players2026-08-08 05:00 — 51 players2026-08-08 13:00 — 94 players2026-08-08 21:00 — 109 players2026-08-09 05:00 — 53 players2026-08-09 13:00 — 103 players2026-08-09 21:00 — 116 players2026-08-10 05:00 — 20 players2026-08-10 13:00 — 67 players2026-08-10 21:00 — 68 players2026-08-11 05:00 — 18 players2026-08-11 13:00 — 68 players2026-08-12 21:00 — 80 players2026-08-14 05:00 — 56 players2026-08-15 12:00 — 108 players2026-08-16 20:00 — 126 players2026-08-18 04:00 — 60 players2026-08-19 11:00 — 32 players2026-08-20 19:00 — 125 players2026-08-22 02:00 — 88 players2026-08-23 10:00 — 47 players2026-08-24 18:00 — 80 players2026-08-26 02:00 — 82 players2026-08-27 10:00 — 13 players2026-08-28 17:00 — 102 players2026-08-30 01:00 — 82 players2026-08-30 17:00 — 111 players
Concurrent players, hourly average, last 30 days (census samples).

Price history

$24.99$0.992015-01-012026-08-012015-01-01 — best price $6.242015-05-16 — best price $7.492015-12-01 — best price $9.992016-05-30 — best price $9.992016-07-14 — best price $9.992017-04-07 — best price $9.992017-11-28 — best price $9.992018-10-30 — best price $2.492019-04-27 — best price $4.992019-11-10 — best price $1.992020-06-25 — best price $1.992021-08-11 — best price $8.952021-10-02 — best price $9.992021-11-02 — best price $8.352021-12-22 — best price $2.492022-02-08 — best price $7.652022-04-29 — best price $9.992022-06-25 — best price $4.002022-07-19 — best price $7.522022-08-24 — best price $3.992022-11-15 — best price $9.992022-12-22 — best price $1.992023-02-07 — best price $2.942023-03-06 — best price $2.992023-05-05 — best price $4.992023-06-12 — best price $2.602023-07-16 — best price $4.992023-07-29 — best price $2.992023-09-01 — best price $9.992023-11-30 — best price $4.072024-03-07 — best price $4.992024-05-21 — best price $9.992024-11-27 — best price $2.492025-06-27 — best price $2.492026-02-18 — best price $3.292026-05-13 — best price $4.992026-07-09 — best price $4.992026-08-01 — best price $4.94
Lowest recorded price across tracked stores, per day (census snapshots).

Attention

496242026-05-31 — 496 pageviews2026-06-03 — 210 pageviews2026-06-06 — 169 pageviews2026-06-09 — 134 pageviews2026-06-12 — 112 pageviews2026-06-15 — 235 pageviews2026-06-18 — 89 pageviews2026-06-21 — 69 pageviews2026-06-24 — 72 pageviews2026-06-27 — 59 pageviews2026-06-30 — 137 pageviews2026-07-03 — 72 pageviews2026-07-06 — 73 pageviews2026-07-09 — 51 pageviews2026-07-12 — 55 pageviews2026-07-15 — 55 pageviews2026-07-18 — 49 pageviews2026-07-21 — 58 pageviews2026-07-24 — 41 pageviews2026-07-27 — 45 pageviews2026-07-30 — 46 pageviews2026-08-02 — 37 pageviews2026-08-05 — 45 pageviews2026-08-08 — 32 pageviews2026-08-11 — 43 pageviews2026-08-14 — 41 pageviews2026-08-17 — 49 pageviews2026-08-20 — 65 pageviews2026-08-23 — 35 pageviews2026-08-26 — 52 pageviews2026-08-28 — 28 pageviews
Daily Wikipedia pageviews (attention proxy, census-recorded).

Completion

60+
achievements tracked
18.5%
earned "They Just Keep Coming"
9.6%
median achievement earned by

Global achievement rates from Steam.

Details

WindowsMulti-playerPvPOnline PvPSteam AchievementsSteam Trading CardsSteam WorkshopSteam CloudValve Anti-Cheat enabledIncludes level editorFamily Sharing10 DLC

9 supported languages: English, French, German, Spanish - Spain, Polish, Russian, Finnish, Romanian, Swedish

Console footprint

PlatformPlayers trackedCompletionTrophies/achievements
Steam (Steam)12,5180%137

Players tracked by Exophase (achievement/trophy trackers) — a sample of the player base, not total sales.

Player tags

FPSRTSCo-opIndieActionAliensSci-fiShooterModdableStrategy

Census log

Computed from census-recorded observations only — dates are observation dates.

Players also track

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Similarity via IGDB.

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