Why Team Fortress 2 Is The Best Multiplayer Shooter Ever

TL;DR- TEAM FORTRESS 2 IS WAY BETTER THAN HALO 3 AND COD 4

Whenever I hear teenagers talking about the latest online shooter, I feel slightly disappointed for them, because they haven't played Team Fortress 2. Halo is a decent online shooter. DECENT. That's it. Anyone who says otherwise does not have a proper perspective on games as a whole. In my opinion, it's tedious to play Halo for extended periods of time because of all of the "crappy-player-compensation" (I.e, magic sniper bullets that hit your target like they were both polar opposites). But what about the others? COD4(and 2), for example? They're very fun, no doubt, and they're far more respectable than Halo 3 and its bastardized expansion. I still feel, however, that they lack that certain "something" that makes a good team-based shooter an amazing team-based shooter.

In games like Halo, COD, and even Counter-Strike (though to a lesser degree if the players are competent), gameplay consists of "teams" of opponents trying to kill one another and/or complete objectives. However, these "teams" are farcical. They're simply conglomerates of independent players who all want to kill anyone that isn't painted the same color as them. Honestly, unless with a large group of very good online friends, when's the last time you saw any actual teamwork going on in a shooter? Yeah, you may save a team mate accidentally by shooting a target that was gunning for him, but it's all based on chance encounters. You're almost encouraged to go solo in these games unless it means certain death. The only reason you care about your teammates in these games is because they can serve as distractions to the enemy so YOU can get away or remain unharmed while YOU kill them.

Team Fortress 2 (and its prequel, which is by now ancient, but very fun, history) does none of this. It does exactly what an online team-based shooter should do. First off, the art style is completely different from any other (good) shooter I know of. It's not cell shaded, but it's not realistic, either. It's a stylized, Pixar look that gives it its own identity. The art style also serves to GREATLY enhance visual information delivery to the game's players. Instead of everyone being a drab brown or gray, or (if they are two distinct colors) being impaired by all the lovely bump-mapping and environmental models. Every player is distinct in appearance. The models all display the teams color clearly, regardless of the lighting (with some very slight exceptions in small, shadowy corners). This means that players spend less time wondering WHO they should shoot and more time actually shooting the maggots. The art style, being obviously unrealistic, also allows for certain particle or texture effects that serve as announcements for certain players that would otherwise seem "unrealistic." (Blue explosions or red grenades in halo anyone? No.) All of these game-enhancing qualities are augmented by the fact that the game is gorgeous, both artistically and technically.

The second, big reason why TF2 > most other shooters in terms of multiplayer is the class system. Halo and Counter-Strike do not use class systems. Nor does Call of Duty. Any sort of "class system" in these games is an arbitrary set of weapons and/or perks. They may serve their purpose, but they're essentially just a quick buy button from a vendor. TF2, on other hand, is actually DEFINED as a class-based shooter. Each class is distinctly different in appearance, sound, abilities, weapons, speed, and hit points. This means that all of the classes are situational, and each serves a specifically-designed purpose, but this is actually not a drawback. Considering the fact that you can get in 15v15 games, you always have another member of your team that can bring his own unique abilities into the fight. Even small-scale games benefit from the class system by ensuring variety in terms of the way the player(s) approach(es) his(their) opponents. The class system gives the game a huge variety, which is something that most other shooters lack horribly after X amount of weeks have been played. Team Fortress 2 is always fun, and most of the time the combat is unexpected every time you play.

Because of the class system, there's no such thing as an "uberweapon." Every class has and can only use the weapons made for them, and all of them (with the exception of the shotgun) are distinct from each other in every way and, just as their respective classes do for the team as a whole, serve a specific purpose for the player wielding them. Because of this fact, there are no weapon spawns on any of the maps, only ammo/health. This means that you'll never encounter a situation where one player bum-rushes to the nearest rocket launcher and begins griefing the hell out of you and your wimpy, little pistol.

Anyway, I planned to write more, but I'm lazy and none of you will read it anyway.

I'd also like to add that this is for the PC version. You should NOT play it on the 360, since no one else does.

Team Fortress 2 has it all - a wonderful art-styIe, awesome characters, insane amounts of polish and balance and--and this is what it truly excels at--teamwork. The cIasses give loads of gameplay variety, the goal-oriented teamwork paves the way for awesome battle scenarios and the fantastic community provides a bottomless amount of maps, mods, servers and everything in-between. Nothing comes close.

:lol: I stopped reading after you said people who think otherwise about Halo 3 multiplayer doesn't have a proper perspective on games. As the saying goes, "To each their own." I'm no teenager and I've been playing games since the Atari 2600 days, not that there'd be anything wrong with others that may fit that category, so I'm quite comfortable with my perspective on gaming. Personally I find Modern Warfare 2 to be the best multiplayer game I've ever played followed closely by Halo 3 and Gears of War 2. I find MW2 to be insanely addictive, fun, and just flat out the most rewarding mp game.

You failed to mention jarate!!! :cry:

:lol: I stopped reading after you said people who think otherwise about Halo 3 multiplayer doesn't have a proper perspective on games. As the saying goes, "To each their own." I'm no teenager and I've been playing games since the Atari 2600 days, not that there'd be anything wrong with others that may fit that category, so I'm quite comfortable with my perspective on gaming. Personally I find Modern Warfare 2 to be the best multiplayer game I've ever played followed closely by Halo 3 and Gears of War 2. I find MW2 to be insanely addictive, fun, and just flat out the most rewarding mp game.

Archangel3371

In terms of gameplay, Halo 3 is generic in every way. All of the games you mentioned are console games. PLAY THE PC, THERE'S A REASON VALVE MAKES SO MUCH MONEY!

[QUOTE="Archangel3371"]

:lol: I stopped reading after you said people who think otherwise about Halo 3 multiplayer doesn't have a proper perspective on games. As the saying goes, "To each their own." I'm no teenager and I've been playing games since the Atari 2600 days, not that there'd be anything wrong with others that may fit that category, so I'm quite comfortable with my perspective on gaming. Personally I find Modern Warfare 2 to be the best multiplayer game I've ever played followed closely by Halo 3 and Gears of War 2. I find MW2 to be insanely addictive, fun, and just flat out the most rewarding mp game.

Pupaluppa

In terms of gameplay, Halo 3 is generic in every way. All of the games you mentioned are console games. PLAY THE PC, THERE'S A REASON VALVE MAKES SO MUCH MONEY!

Meh, maybe it is and maybe it isn't generic. I really don't care where it fits in some people's categories, I know what I like and that's what really matters. Also I've played many different games on many different systems including PC and I'm very familiar with Valve and their games both as PC original and console ports.

And this is why alot of PC-centric gamers get flack around here. Suggesting that someone who enjoys Halo or CoD as much as PC shooters is somehow misinformed or that they must not have played many PC shooters is just silly. I've been playing PC shooters since Wolfenstein 3D and I still think that console shooters can be just as enjoyable as PC titles.

However, I do think TF2 is one of the best shooters around. The constant stream of updates really keeps the game fresh. And the whole war thing for this latest update, absolutely brilliant.

Also, GO SOLDIERS!!!

I love TF2 but i also like Halo3, i getting it for christmas so i can play against my friends since they only have an Xbox 360

Totally agreed. TF2 is amazing and you don't even need the best pc ever to play it lol. Halo is only decent and is like every shooter. TF2 is the best.....

Actually the main reason PC gamers get flack around here is for biased and unsupported elitism. To each their own, as somebody who's played both console and pc shooters I can honestly say that I prefer the former. I'd go for some Killzone or Modern Warfare over TF2 any day.

TL;DR- TEAM FORTRESS 2 IS WAY BETTER THAN HALO 3 AND COD 4

Whenever I hear teenagers talking about the latest online shooter, I feel slightly disappointed for them, because they haven't played Team Fortress 2. Halo is a decent online shooter. DECENT. That's it. Anyone who says otherwise does not have a proper perspective on games as a whole. In my opinion, it's tedious to play Halo for extended periods of time because of all of the "crappy-player-compensation" (I.e, magic sniper bullets that hit your target like they were both polar opposites). But what about the others? COD4(and 2), for example? They're very fun, no doubt, and they're far more respectable than Halo 3 and its bastardized expansion. I still feel, however, that they lack that certain "something" that makes a good team-based shooter an amazing team-based shooter.

In games like Halo, COD, and even Counter-Strike (though to a lesser degree if the players are competent), gameplay consists of "teams" of opponents trying to kill one another and/or complete objectives. However, these "teams" are farcical. They're simply conglomerates of independent players who all want to kill anyone that isn't painted the same color as them. Honestly, unless with a large group of very good online friends, when's the last time you saw any actual teamwork going on in a shooter? Yeah, you may save a team mate accidentally by shooting a target that was gunning for him, but it's all based on chance encounters. You're almost encouraged to go solo in these games unless it means certain death. The only reason you care about your teammates in these games is because they can serve as distractions to the enemy so YOU can get away or remain unharmed while YOU kill them.

Team Fortress 2 (and its prequel, which is by now ancient, but very fun, history) does none of this. It does exactly what an online team-based shooter should do. First off, the art style is completely different from any other (good) shooter I know of. It's not cell shaded, but it's not realistic, either. It's a stylized, Pixar look that gives it its own identity. The art style also serves to GREATLY enhance visual information delivery to the game's players. Instead of everyone being a drab brown or gray, or (if they are two distinct colors) being impaired by all the lovely bump-mapping and environmental models. Every player is distinct in appearance. The models all display the teams color clearly, regardless of the lighting (with some very slight exceptions in small, shadowy corners). This means that players spend less time wondering WHO they should shoot and more time actually shooting the maggots. The art style, being obviously unrealistic, also allows for certain particle or texture effects that serve as announcements for certain players that would otherwise seem "unrealistic." (Blue explosions or red grenades in halo anyone? No.) All of these game-enhancing qualities are augmented by the fact that the game is gorgeous, both artistically and technically.

The second, big reason why TF2 > most other shooters in terms of multiplayer is the class system. Halo and Counter-Strike do not use class systems. Nor does Call of Duty. Any sort of "class system" in these games is an arbitrary set of weapons and/or perks. They may serve their purpose, but they're essentially just a quick buy button from a vendor. TF2, on other hand, is actually DEFINED as a class-based shooter. Each class is distinctly different in appearance, sound, abilities, weapons, speed, and hit points. This means that all of the classes are situational, and each serves a specifically-designed purpose, but this is actually not a drawback. Considering the fact that you can get in 15v15 games, you always have another member of your team that can bring his own unique abilities into the fight. Even small-scale games benefit from the class system by ensuring variety in terms of the way the player(s) approach(es) his(their) opponents. The class system gives the game a huge variety, which is something that most other shooters lack horribly after X amount of weeks have been played. Team Fortress 2 is always fun, and most of the time the combat is unexpected every time you play.

Because of the class system, there's no such thing as an "uberweapon." Every class has and can only use the weapons made for them, and all of them (with the exception of the shotgun) are distinct from each other in every way and, just as their respective classes do for the team as a whole, serve a specific purpose for the player wielding them. Because of this fact, there are no weapon spawns on any of the maps, only ammo/health. This means that you'll never encounter a situation where one player bum-rushes to the nearest rocket launcher and begins griefing the hell out of you and your wimpy, little pistol.

Anyway, I planned to write more, but I'm lazy and none of you will read it anyway.

Pupaluppa

You claim to be an experienced online player yet you respect Call of Duty (which doesn't concern itself with balance)? Fair enough.

Your claim that other onlines games don't have teamwork is hilarious. You must have only played console games online for a few seconds if you labor under the delusion there is no teamwork on console games.

Also, uberweapons are a balance problem, not something inherent in games where weapons spawn and not a problem necessarily eliminated by a game being class based (there is nothing stopping a class's weapon from being unbalanced).

As for variety coming from players being forced to all play different roles, not necessarily. Game variety is determined by the tools availiable to players and hwo they like to use them.

Your gushing about TF2's art stye cemented the impression that you are writing a love letter to TF2 rather than an evaluation of TF2's merits vs those of console shooters.

Send your post to Valve, maybe they'll give you a figurine or some points on Steam or something.

I could never get into Team Fortress 2, don't know why, just wasn't my thing. Maybe it was all the updates and changes to the game that kinda put me off.

TF2 is too addicting, I really like the community too, I played like 8 hours a day and my computer overheated, maybe Ill play it again once i fix me computa

TF2 is a lot like KZ2.F1Lengend

KZ MP is lot like TF2

Your claim that other onlines games don't have teamwork is hilarious. You must have only played console games online for a few seconds if you labor under the delusion there is no teamwork on console games.CarnageHeart

Most multiplayer FPSs have some sort of team modes, but nothing that's comparable to Team Fortress 2 in which teamwork is the whole point. It's in the title. In Team Fortress 2 a team consisting of the best players in the world that aren't working as a team will lose to a team of average players working together. Each and every time. I don't know of any other multiplayer FPS that places importance on teamwork to such degree. It's also possibly the most balanced multiplayer game ever devised which is an incredible feat considering it's a cIass-based game.

[QUOTE="CarnageHeart"]Your claim that other onlines games don't have teamwork is hilarious. You must have only played console games online for a few seconds if you labor under the delusion there is no teamwork on console games.UpInFlames

Most multiplayer FPSs have some sort of team modes, but nothing that's comparable to Team Fortress 2 in which teamwork is the whole point. It's in the title. In Team Fortress 2 a team consisting of the best players in the world that aren't working as a team will lose to a team of average players working together. Each and every time. I don't know of any other multiplayer FPS that places importance on teamwork to such degree. It's also possibly the most balanced multiplayer game ever devised which is an incredible feat considering it's a cIass-based game.

I didn't accuse TF2 of a lack of balance (as long as its been around, it would be astounding if it wasn't balanced) I just stated that the TC's claim that there is no teamwork in console shooters is baseless.

For example, in Warhawk zones mode is awesome because various bases are surrounded by rings. The bigger the ring, the more points a team gets. Long story short, its a matchtype where those who work together and don't play for themselves win (the same could be said of CTF and Collection).