Team Fortress Unlockables and Maps

[Mike Fang]

So, Valve has apparently hit on the FPS multiplayer version of World of Warcraft with Team Fortress 2. This has probably been the best FPS multiplayer game I've ever played, and I don't say that lightly. However, I'm curious about other people's feelings about the unlockable weapons they've been coming up with. On the official TF2 forum there's all sorts of opinions on individual weapons, plus lots of suggestions about what the classes that haven't yet had unlockables made for them should get when they do. But rather than start yet another thread on that forum, I'm interested what a slightly broader audience thinks; have the unlockable weapons improved the game, made it worse, or do they really serve little purpose?

Also, company has been making player-created maps part of the normal updated packages so you don't have to wait a long time to download them as "custom" maps. Personally, I think it's great that a game producer is actually paying so much attention to it's clientele and the creative smelting pot that is this game's fan base. Of course not everybody may feel that way, so again I'm interested to know other people's feelings on it.

 

[gibboss28]

I like the new unlockables. They add more strategy to a game that does need teamwork and its nice that the weapons are neither better or worse than the ones the class starts off with. and its always fun to be a heavy having both a crit charge and an uber charge being used on ya at the same time. xD

Its a shame that the updates arent that quick but ah well.

Though quick question..

So, Valve has apparently hit on the FPS multiplayer version of World of Warcraft with Team Fortress 2.

What d'ya mean by that?

 

[Eyclonus]

I think he means that its addictive.

I think the unlockables do add more strategic depth to the game; the Backburna now forces pyro players to be less "FTW" berzerker charges and more inclined to ambush at choke points. Whilst many, many people disagree and will fill a decent sized PhD thesis ranting about imbalance, I think its kind of hard to make this call till there are few more packs released.

Valve has definately been paying attention to the fanbase, I've noticed that following every pack release, theres a string of patches meant to adjust one or two details about the update rather than most devs approaches of not caring once the most obvious flaws are fixed.

 

[GothmogII]

Well, you've to grind for the weapons, and they're listed as level x flamethrower etc. Thought it was rather cute ^^'

 

[Fenixius]

But rather than start yet another thread on that forum, I'm interested what a slightly broader audience thinks; have the unlockable weapons improved the game, made it worse, or do they really serve little purpose?

It depends entirely on what you mean by "improved". The new updates are a terrible hindrance to the game the day they hit, as you'll find teams made up of three quarters whatever the new update was for, but excepting that, I find them to be a boon to the game's longevity.

The game shipped with, what, 6 or 7 maps? Now it's got something like 16 (or 11 if you don't count Arena), but either way, the game has expanded a lot. Oh, and there's a new tileset in the game. Not just maps; two new gametypes have been added, a bunch of weapons, Achievements have been capitalised on in a meaningful way (Microsoft, for the love of the Gods, learn from this), and the weapons you unlock via the Achievements aren't overpowered but provide variety and versatility to each class.

So yeah, I'd say the bonus content has been pretty damn good. I'm eagerly awaiting more, and I'm still playing TF2 largely because of the guys I play it with and the new gear and maps and stuff we keep getting. I'm sure I could expound on why all the new stuff has been great, but I think you get the idea.

 

[gibboss28]

But rather than start yet another thread on that forum, I'm interested what a slightly broader audience thinks; have the unlockable weapons improved the game, made it worse, or do they really serve little purpose?

The new updates are a terrible hindrance to the game the day they hit, as you'll find teams made up of three quarters whatever the new update was for

That depends on the servers you play on. Theres quite a few that put limits on the amount of people who can play a certain class which makes the game alot more tolerable when it comes round to class updates.