A good lerk can soften up marines forever and a good fade has little reason to die while continually getting kills everytime it leaves the hive.
A good shotgun or rifle marine can cancel out 2-3 alien skulk players every wave. The skilled dominate midgame.
The end-game onos stomp and xeno ganeplay versus exo and jetpacks levels out the skill required across players and becomes more enjoyable for everyone. Though games rarely get there without demoralizing everyone midgame.
It's strange to me that the skill required peaks midgame and endgame is full of stunlock mechanics, tanky units and suicide tactics.
I would put the highest skill mechanics on display in the end game so everyone has a good time before the domination of skill kicks in.
It's still active, 4-5 servers in the US full every night and a bunch of UK, Euro and chinese servers. One aussie server.
Plus Unknown Worlds has moved on to Subnautica, so all updates are Community Driven now. Which is pretty neat tbh.
Even after 40 or so hours I was still getting absolutely destroyed, chasing the high of kill streaks I'd gotten early on (against other new players).
Is it still active? Part of me wants to give it another try, though I know only pain and suffering awaits.