Team Fortress 2 to get unlockable weapons, new game mode

For anybody curious, supposedly these are the leaked medic achievements.

http://www.tfportal.de/gfx/screenshots/tf2/tf2_medic_achievements.jpg

Kick ass pic. But I'm done with TF2. CoD4 is a much better multiplayer game.

As someone who plays TF2 a lot, I'll throw in my two cents. (here's my stats: http://steamcommunity.com/id/wingspantt/stats/TF2)

First, adding new guns is not a big deal IF they must be chosen INSTEAD of current guns. Valve's intent is not to add better guns to the game, but to add alternate guns. This is fine. It makes the game more dynamic and strategic, and rewards people who are experts in their classes.

Second, there needs to be incentives for people to play the least played classes.

http://www.steampowered.com/status/tf2/tf2_stats.php

As you see here, Scouts and Engineers are played 2 to 3 times more than Medics, Spies, and Heavies. There's a good reason for that.

Medics are for many players boring to play. Their main goal is to hold down "HEAL" while dodging bullets, and occasionally hitting the right mouse button. This is important to the team but not overly exciting. A medic has no strategic considerations other than "stay alive and keep everyone else at full health". Anything that diversifies this is good.

Spies are powerful but very hard to play for new players. Additionally, since friendly fire is not an option, spy checks are a given. Spies are almost worthless in organized play, since teams can make simple rules that would make a spy instantly recognizable. Spies should be able to display non-primary weapons, for example. Or perhaps do more SPYING, so that, say, they could hear enemy chat/voicechat.

Pyros are nearly obsolete due to the staggering midrange power of soldiers and demomen. The fact that mediguns, health packs, and dispensers all instantly cure burning doesn't help. IMO only the medigun should cure burning, which would buff Pyros AND incentivize players to play Medic, to counter Pyros. Additionally, the Pyro should probably run at 107% speed like the Medic, in order to make his close range abilities uncounterable simply by "running straight away".

Heavy Weapons Guy is just too slow and simple to be fun for most players. Nobody likes taking 50% longer to cross a map, and the only strategy of his gun is "aim it at stuff" and "don't run out of ammo". If the Heavy had some kind of rage meter or adrenaline or SOMETHING, even a charged-up fist-based charging attack, this would add some dynamicism to the class.

The scout, although played a lot, probably only has high usage numbers due to "Scout Rush" early game tactics. The real problem with the scout is that a single sentry, even level 1, completely destroys a scout. Additionally, a skilled Heavy can cut a Scout down so easily that the Scout's mobility is a moot point.

In summary, TF2 is great but there is definitely room for some dynamic changes that will make certain classes more rewarding.

If my experience with other games is any indication you're going to have alot of people playing to get achievements rather than playing to help the team win with these patches.

Mna I hope there isn't a gun that requieres the 100% of all achievements.I really don't feel like getting Lambada locator.

The only thing I don't like about this coming to Medic first is that when the patch hits and 75% of the players are playing medic to unlock the new achievements, the games will be very boring.

Oh and I should add that the escort game type sounds like Soooo much fun :D I seriously can't wait! I'm worried it's going to be a really long time though because in the PCG article on the read link, it says they'll have an in depth preview of the new stuff in the next issue of PC gamer... which means about a month minimum since the latest issue of PCG UK came out last thursday :/

I'm kinda expecting something that you'll select an alternate weapon 1 or 2 if you want.

A potential example:

Demoman has the grenades and stickies. Alternate for the grenades could be a cluster-bomb type thing and the stickies could be a proximity bomb (where you can only have 3 or 4 down at a time).

I don't expect that once all weapons are out that the game's balance will be changed too much. People will just be more likely to specialize with what they do.

I play Heavy, Demo, and Soldier most often. I'm not gonna start being a medic, just because there are new weapons, I don't want to be a medic.

Where is that pic from?

Just stop freaking out and wait. Valve isn't stupid, and they'd know if the balance goes haywire in one of their games, so just relax and snipe those damned medics!

Way to go Valve.

People have stopped playing your game because there's no emphasis on skill and unless you're able to play with half a dozen friends, there isn't much you can do to contribute to a victory. Playing a multiplayer game and not being able to change the outcome is pretty dull, and why most people have moved on in just a couple months after release.

The game didn't need unlockables, it needed actual depth. Adding a few new guns and abilities won't change the fact that combat is full of spam, luck (crits), and forces good players to do as well as bad players due to the limited emphasis on skill.

These changes will do nothing to slow the hemmoraging of players from TF2.

basing the new upgrades on achievments worries me... how hard will it be to unlock? I can imagine getting pretty mad being on BLU when most of the RED team has enhancements. Hell, I still can't seem to get that "get 7 friends to play with you at one time" achievement yet. :(

One thing (I'm not sure if anyone else mentioned it), when the update comes out, everyone of us who have had past notice will know exactly what to do (including all of us). What happens to the newbies who havn't a clue? Will the people with new weapons have a greater advantage over newbs? Mabye they'll make a "No new-weapons mod" for new players on some servers?

I am so scared for the balance of TF2 right now.

I am nervous and excited at the same time. I really hope they don't end up just making better versions of current weapons when you unlock achievements. If they're going to add weapons they should all stand on their own with unique advantages and disadvantages. Potential balance issues aside, I have been pining for more weapons to play with. Give the pyro and demoman some new weapons next and we'll be in business.

Tell me this will be free on XBL, i'm not going to pay for something that i'll probably never use... (i suck at TF2, well, i don't suck, i just have friends that pwn)

I stopped playing after COD4 even though I enjoy TF2 more. The leveling in COD4 just hooked me. I am so glad that I can go back to TF2 now with something new to accomplish.

These are new achievements for the medic class right? I hope they take more effort than the existing medic achievement that only take a few rounds to get.

Teh Wickerman sez:

This is new and exciting!

It's Valve. I honestly don't think there's anything to worry about.

Oh great, WHAT THE $*&%^!!! I don't want to have to play for tens of hundreds of hours to get these "new" weapons, it's the reason I stopped playing all the other online shooters. I DO NOT WANT TO DIG FOR GOLD OR FIGHT FOR HOURS FOR NEW WEAPONS. I want to play OUT OF THE BOX when I need a fun fix. PLEASE DON'T DO IT it will fail just like the rest.