Mod Showcase: The Hidden

Welcome to another episode of Mod Showcase! Brickinator’s back and this time we’ll be taking a look at The Hidden, a custom game mode that makes stalking people socially acceptable. The Hidden is inspired by a Source mod of the same name. It uses arena mode as a base and can be played on the usual arena maps. One team has one player who gets to be the titillating titular character and the other have to kill him. And wear his skin. The Hidden is forced to play as the Spy, but he has some very exciting abilities. Not only… [Continue Reading]

SOLDIER BLOG POST CONFIRMED!

Oh Soldier, never have I imagined a class with such a simple concept (A jack of all trades with an unconventional core weapon choice of the Rocket Launcher versus the typical Assault Rifle) have such a lacklustre support from the community and the developers themselves. Now wait one minute there Stick, have you seen the Soldier’s weapon count? Heck, did you read the comics? He’s practically the poster boy for the TF2 team! Well on face value, you sure do have a point. The Soldier has a lot of weapons and he has one very prominent presence in the comics.… [Continue Reading]

The Art of War

Argeon is the face of SPUF fiction and a highly visible member in the weapon balance scene. Creator of the successful “Which Weapons Need Changing?” thread and the “Write Some Moar” contests, he also takes free requests for TF2 Fiction and is one of SPUF’s most frequent posters throughout the TF2 section. Today, we got him to write a little about himself. 1. What originally got you into TF2 fiction? To be completely honest, it’s a long trip with an inspirational figure which drew me on board. It started out as a knack I had at writing stories, ever since… [Continue Reading]

Sniping for those who hate scopes…

Vlepsophobia, the fear of scopes.
Vlepsophobia, the fear of scopes.

I never told anyone this, but I have a phobia. Vlepsophobia. The fear of scopes. Actually, that’s a lie, although the word I used is theoretically correct. But ever since I started playing First Person Shooters, staring with Left 4 Dead at 5 frames per second, moving onto Garry’s Mod and settling down in Team Fortress 2, I have always been troubled by using the scopes provided on certain weapons. It’s the tunnel vision, I think, that puts me off. Anyway, today, we’re discussing what to do if you want to snipe but hate peering down a scope.

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6v6, 9v9… 4v4?

Competitive TF2 comes in many forms, including relatively niche ones like Ultiduo (a 2v2 duel of Soldier/Medic combos) and BBall (rocketjumping CTF — dunk that intelligence!). For the most part, however, the main competitive leagues have stuck to the old standbys of 6v6 and 9v9/Highlander. Come January 24th, this will no longer be the case. The 4v4 format has been picked up by UGC, one of the biggest competitive TF2 leagues (certainly the biggest in the North American Highlander scene!) — and the first match of the season will be here by the end of January. The format isn’t entirely… [Continue Reading]

Some Tips for Controlling Your Remote Control Sentry

So you went ahead and downloaded this mod! But somehow you aren’t good at playing a heavy with a rocket launcher taped to his head? Never fear, this article will give you all the advice you need! Tip 1: Strafe – You don’t have to shoot the gun. It shoots for you. Instead, focus all your energy on moving around. Dodge projectiles. This is seriously the main perk you have over regular sentries. Tip 2: Get a fellow engineer to help out. A man on the front lines repairing is a godsend for a moving sentry. Repair damage, replenish ammo,… [Continue Reading]

The Art of Voucher Ringing

Team Fortress 2 was released initially as part of the Orange Box, which fulfilled the minimal multiplayer requirement to make that package feel worth purchasing. For the longest time, I feel that I’ve made that 49.99 dollar purchase stretch for years, making it worth its while until Keys, and overall, The Mannconomy came out. Once there was a defined path for my wallet to siphon into my all-time online timesink, the game’s metagame evolved. It was no longer about gunning each other down, it was about obtaining the prettiest, shiniest crap that you can don upon your visually self-proclaimed elite… [Continue Reading]

Some reasons for you to use your microphone.

You jump into a game. What game? Any game, you’re not fussed. But you jump in, ready to push a cart and capture the control point, and it’s deathly silent. No, the server isn’t empty, in fact, there’s 23 players running around like maniacs. But NO ONE is talking. And that cart hasn’t moved for a good three minutes.

Time to get the microphone out! What? You don’t want to? Then shut up and read this thread. Oh, and plug your microphone in.

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January 7th – January 14th

Whooee…really big week, this one is. Probably because it’s one of the first weeks of the new year, and Valve has returned from their end-of-the-year vacation ready to go fix some bugs. On January 7th, 2008 Valve patched one of the signature glitches exploited by legendary griefers Team Roomba: Jumping into the Well door as it opened let a scout lock the door partially shut, preventing teammates from escaping the spawn room. Here are some highlights from one of their videos: The same time Valve also fixed another Well exploit where Soldiers, Demomen and Engineers could reach the roof in… [Continue Reading]