Dave 'dave' hopton continues his Series looking at the third reason why competitive gamers should consider playing TF2

Only just starting? Read the first and second articles in the Series!

This column is the sole opinion of the author and does not represent the opinion of Heaven Media Ltd or the opinion of any affiliates.

Nearly two weeks ago, my colleague Richard Lewis wrote in a penultimate entry for his column on the CSS scene that the TF2 community is one that has “a fanatical devotion that borders on the psychotic”. He's not wrong.

For many people outside the TF2 world, it can be quite hard to see what's so great about a game that's been described as 'cartoons with guns', that appears chaotic and unplayable, and a far cry from the ultra-realistic graphical environments of games like Modern Warfare 2. However, lying underneath all the flame and insults is an online multi-player game that's a truly unique experience to play and watch, and a game thousands of people love playing.

The purpose of this series of articles is to try and convey some of the reasons why the TF2 community is so passionate about the game it plays, and give some insight into why we love it so much. I write this with the intention of dispelling some of the myths surrounding the game, and in the hope that people who had previously dismissed TF2 when it was first released will try it again, and get involved in the competitive scene - especially in the run up to i39.

Daring to be Different

It's a proven fact that 96% of all facts are made up on the spot but here's one that cannot be disputed – TF2 is not your ordinary FPS game. If you were to try and write a recipe for TF2, it would probably look a little something like this:

Although I'm now thinking about food, and you probably are too, my slightly convoluted point is that TF2 brings together some of the best elements of some of the most successful games that have ever been played. Movement from games like Quake and UT, tactics from RTS classics like StarCraft and - dare I say it – MMOs like WoW - as well as aiming skills from iconic titles like CS and CoD. That alone should be a good enough reason to pick up TF2 and would certainly save me from writing any more, but it's not the point of this article. Throughout this series I've tried to present TF2 as a game that builds upon some of the best virtues of the legendary games I just mentioned, and instead of simply replicating them, takes them to the next level – resulting in one of the best gaming experiences you will find.

There are though, two areas of TF2 that without a shadow of a doubt are completely unique - two ingredients I missed off the list, that compared to the thousands of lines of code that go into a game, add more to the end experience than any other. The first of these is the artistic style of TF2.

A Thing of Beauty

Continuing my inclusion of impressive, infallible statistics, a recent study showed that 89% of all newly released games in 2009 fell within the genre of 'attempting to be as realistic as possible by including unrealistic high-tech military gadgets and unbelievable storylines to result in the most realistically unrealistic game-play ever seen (with great graphics)'. Quite possibly the best example of this was Modern Warfare 2, where players enjoy an “ultra-realistic” game-play involving the ability to nuke enemies, whilst carrying an assortment of guns and an impossible amount of ammunition, with the ability to take a ludicrous amount of bullets before finally being killed, just to respawn in the next round.

COD:MW2 – So realistic, it's not

The problem with aiming to be as realistic as possible is that it doesn't make for good gaming. If every game released tried to be true to life then we'd have to wipe out nearly the entire RTS and MMO genres... And as for FPS, well, if you got shot once, then you'd have to spend 3 months recovering in a hospital and endure hours of painstaking physiotherapy, before finally being able to venture into the battlefield once more – only to be hit by the same camping 14 year old who shot you in the first place and hasn't moved since.

So what the hell is the point in trying to make a game realistic? Cadred forum user permee commented on my first article in this Series that “people love realism these days because it reduces the geek factor of a game” but surely people who don't play games perceive it more sad to try and lose yourself in an online world that tries to be realistic, rather than simply playing something unrealistic that's hugely fun and challenging. Chess isn't lifelike, or fun for that matter, but because it works as a game and because a small number of people find enjoyment by playing, it's a well respected past-time.*

And this is where TF2 comes in. TF2 doesn't bother trying to be realistic because it realises that as much as incredible graphics where birds sing and the grass blows can be impressive for the 3 minutes of a trailer, it's the game dynamics and structure that really matter. That's what we play games for – the mental challenge and user experience. If we wanted incredible graphics, we should stand up, turn off the monitor and walk outside: something most parents and MPs would probably celebrate.

The fact is though that for all my bashing of ultra-high-def-super-realistic-next-gen-graphic environments, TF2 isn't an ugly beast – it's actually rather beautiful. Look beyond the cartoon label and you find some breathtaking artwork that suits the ethos of the game perfectly, ranging from hot desert wastelands and industrial complexes to gloriously natural alpine environments.

Not bad for cartoons really

Valve have quite literally spent over 10 years developing the world you see when you launch TF2 and it shows. They spent even more time however, on the game-play, and as a competitive gamer, that's what matters to me. We only end up losing the graphics with FPS configs anyway.

*My grandfather, RIP, loved Chess. I only joke

Dave 'dave' hopton continues his Series looking at the second reason why competitive gamers should consider playing TF2

Only just starting? Read the first and second articles in the Series!

This column is the sole opinion of the author and does not represent the opinion of Heaven Media Ltd or the opinion of any affiliates.

What's so funny?

The second ingredient I failed to include in my fantastic recipe of TF2 goodness was that of humour. If you have in any way encountered the game, then you will be no stranger to the jokes that Valve include that make up a quintessential part of the experience that is Team Fortress 2.

As I mentioned in the first article of this Series each of the 9 classes have their own in-game attributes, including their weapons, speed and health, but this also extends to the personalities Valve have created for them. Ranging from the giant, brutish Russian Heavy, to the constantly drunk, one-eyed Scottish Demoman, these hideously crude stereotypes inject into the game a laugh-out-loud sense of fun, something unrivalled in any other game played competitively. Although it may not sound like much, there's nothing like the added sense of enjoyment one feels when, after making a great spree of kills, your character suddenly shouts out “DOMINATED, and I've been shagging your wife too”.

This blend of violence and humour is something that's clearly proved successful – the amount of machinima that TF2 fans have produced is simply incredible, and if they say that imitation is the most sincere form of flattery, then take a look at Battlefield Heroes – a free online shooter from EA that tried to replicate some of the class characteristics and sheer fun of TF2. Being EA though, they completely fucked it up, and the game only appealed to 13 year old kids who were bored stiff in an IT lesson and were looking for free internet games to pass the time.

And the effect, Doctor?

The whole point I'm trying to make by looking at these two seemingly irrelevant aspects of TF2 is actually rather simple: Team Fortress 2 is incredibly fun to play. Not simply for the cool graphics and the funny lines but also for the other reasons I've pointed out in this Series so far – a great pace, constantly developing tactics, brilliant game mechanics and the need to master a challenging game-sense. Of all the comments I've ever heard and read about TF2 from people who are dubious about it's credentials as a top competitive game, there's one thing that unites them: they all agree that TF2 is fundamentally a fantastically fun game to play.

I don't want to make enemies here but from my own personal experience of playing the Counter-Strike and Call of Duty franchises and talking to people who've been playing since forever, is that the only real satisfaction anyone can take from playing these games is through winning – there's nothing fun about losing, no matter how close the round, no matter how exciting the match. It's perhaps the reason for such a high turnover in the numbers of players who play these games competitively, because there's nothing that sours an atmosphere on Vent more than a raging player complaining at the game registry because he swears he clicked on that Terrorist's head, but the buggy net-code messed up his skills.

Now I'm not naive enough to suggest that losing in TF2 doesn't get annoying and that no one who plays competitively complains about the effects of lag, or rages at poor teamwork. But I'd argue that everything I've mentioned in this article that makes TF2 such a uniquely fun experience permeates down into the competitive community. Sure, when the stakes are high, we take everything involved with competitive gaming as seriously as teams in any other top game – hours and hours of practice, detailed tactics, intense teamwork and immense aim – but we're also able to have a laugh at ourselves and the game we play, and crucially, we actually enjoy playing it – something pretty refreshing for a competitive game.

Interview Time

As with last week, I wanted to get the thoughts of someone who's played TF2 for a long time at the very highest levels. Arto 'agron' Grondahl has been around since the very start of competitive Team Fortress 2, and has played for some of the best teams the game has ever seen, beginning with Fracture and Cruciamentum, before joining the infamous 4Kings line-up that has become Team Dignitas.

Although it's a long time now, what originally attracted you to pick up TF2? Was it the unique approach to the style and design of the game that interested you, or had you played TFC and Fortress Forever?

My army service ended in the summer of 2007 and I bought a new PC and was looking for a game to spend some time on after getting bored with playing RTS games like DoW. I thought about trying out CS(S) and/or the CoD series, but quickly dismissed it as I've never enjoyed playing ”realistic shooters”. I had drooled over QWTF a decade earlier so when I saw the ”preorder now” ad for TF2 in Steam I decided to go for it.

What is it that keeps TF2 so enjoyable for you, considering you've been playing since the very beginning, and it's only relatively recently that the competitive have begun to play a slightly larger range of maps?

My favourite maps are Badlands, Granary and Gravel Pit. Have been from the start and still are, so I'd say the map pool has nothing to do with my feelings about the game. I'm just happy we haven't added too many pesky custom maps to the pools. Playing 9 different maps in ETF2L this season is too much for my tastes.

TF2 is still a game under development in many ways as Valve is updating the core of the game and adding new content, the Leagues refine their rules and the teams develop accordingly. In the early days, HA aka Herbs Army rocked the ESL ladder running a 2 Medics and 4 Soldiers tactic, or along those lines. Add random crits to that and compare it to the game we're playing now with 2 Sollies, 2 Scouts, a Demo and Medic with crits and damage spread disabled.

Compared to other games you have played, what would you say are some of the key strengths of TF2 game-play and the TF2 experience?

Cute graphics and random item drops. I love the hats too.

To be honest all the little things build up a whole that just appeals to me. The action is fast paced and constant (unless your playing vs TCM, ha ha.) and the different maps and game modes provide enough variation to keep things fresh enough on a week to week basis. I also enjoy the fact that the different classes provide players a way to reinvent themselves if they feel like it. For example PwR's vallone used to play Demoman as his main, now he's Scouting it up for the team. Meatshot 8)

I imagine that if I ever decide to take a step back from Div 1 and Dignitas, I'll pick up a fresh class and join a lower Div team and play the game pressure free for the lolz.

agron, left, with his serious game face. Ryb, right, with his not so serious game face

Do you think the amusing lines classes' come out with during games are a nice touch, or would you rather they were left out of the competitive environment?

I don't really notice them while I'm playing because I'm focused on the game and the comms. I've never heard anyone complain about them either so I'd say they only add to the ”ambiance” or what not :)

Do you think the comedy element and graphical style of TF2 makes it a more enjoyable experience to play competitively, or would you say the best competitive games are the ones kept totally serious?

I've never understood the “realistic shooter” trend nor the big importance people seem to put on the game's graphics and art style. If the mechanics work and the game is enjoyable to play, I'm down with it.

I'd even say the art style and comedy element work in favour of TF2 and make it an ideal “eSport” title. It's pleasing to the eye, the action is easy to see and understand , the different classes are easy to identify and have unique characteristics.

I'd also underline the fact that the game play works and flows in a similar manner to real sports like football, which is not the case with cs for example. This makes it a bit easier for someone who isn't familiar with competitive gaming to watch the action unfold as they can draw parallels to real sports they are familiar with.

Much love mummy Agron - any shout-outs?

Shoutouts to Intel, LG, SCAN, EA, Razer, Western Digital, Alienware, Bigfoot Networks and Sound Blaster X-Fi... and m0re for being cuddly.

What are you waiting for?

We're now half way through this Series, and if you have started playing, I hope you're enjoying the game and getting used to the skill it takes; if you have any questions, feel free to PM me on #cadred. If you haven't started playing yet, I can only say you're missing out! Next week we'll be moving beyond the game to another dimension... stay tuned!