Team Fortress 2 & ARMA 2 MP now free.

[Abram]

http://www.teamfortress.com/freetoplay/

http://www.arma2.com/free

A few different restrictions for both, but still neat.

[DaFox]

http://www.teamfortress.com/freetoplay/

http://www.arma2.com/free

A few different restrictions for both, but still neat.

It will definitely be interesting to see how they turn out. There's a definite negative stigma with free games.

I bet that Valve will be making some money though, I mean a quarter of the items on the store cost more than TF2 did. You have to buy an[y] item to upgrade to a premium account which you can see here: http://www.teamfortress.com/freetoplay/faq.php

My favourite server is nearly full at 7 AM right now which is rather insane considering it's only ever full from like 9-12 at night with regulars.

[Delphium]

The way I see it... FREASH MEAT! HRHRHR

[Paradigm Shifter]

I loved TFC, but hated TF2.

I suppose it might give me reason to play it, but BFBC2 is all I'm playing online ATM. Picked up ARMA2 in that cheap deal on Steam, so might start playing that eventually.

[yogibbear]

I go through phases of TF2 addiction. My only issue is I find most of the pure loadouts better except for the soldier and the ubersaw. Everything else, default wins.

Currently playing Arcanum, again. Despite all these new games...

[DaFox]

My friend summed it up quite nicely

It sounds like a fucking xbox 360 in here

[Cynagen]

I guess this means we know what TF2's value to cost would be on a Rambling LOL!

[GeneralAdmission]

I had a lot of fun with TF2 in the first few months after launch. Interest waned after a while since it had no significant large-scale, objective-based mode that I really love in other titles (BF, SWBF2). This coincided with the introduction of new weapons and unlocks. At first I thought "hey cool", but then it quickly turned into THE GREAT ITEM GRIND. I remember clearly the day I connected to one of my favorite servers and found it full of scouts all double-jumping in place trying to achieve some unlock.

I double-jumped a few times, then came to my senses, quit the game, and left that idiocy behind.

[DaFox]

At first I thought "hey cool", but then it quickly turned into THE GREAT ITEM GRIND. I remember clearly the day I connected to one of my favorite servers and found it full of scouts all double-jumping in place trying to achieve some unlock.

I double-jumped a few times, then came to my senses, quit the game, and left that idiocy behind.

You don't have to get sucked into that at all. I've put well over 1000 hours into TF2 and I have only done half the achievements. (Most of them achieved randomly. The Double Jump thing for example, if you play Scout enough you will just end up getting the achievement.) For the most part the original weapons are fine too and for the other weapons more or less just provide alternate play styles.

Playing the game without worrying about what items or achievements you or anyone else has it a lot more fun.

[Paradigm Shifter]

But GenAd goes have a good point about achievement whores. It's all very well to say 'just play the game' but everyone needs to have that attitude. ;)

[yogibbear]

I had a lot of fun with TF2 in the first few months after launch. Interest waned after a while since it had no significant large-scale, objective-based mode that I really love in other titles (BF, SWBF2). This coincided with the introduction of new weapons and unlocks. At first I thought "hey cool", but then it quickly turned into THE GREAT ITEM GRIND. I remember clearly the day I connected to one of my favorite servers and found it full of scouts all double-jumping in place trying to achieve some unlock.

I double-jumped a few times, then came to my senses, quit the game, and left that idiocy behind.

Hence you go on a good server that kicks people who are just stuck in spawn item farming etc.

Anyway there's no unlocks you need that you can't get easily. None of the alternate weapons/hats or anything are any better than the default loadouts. If anything a lot of the newer weapons have negatives that make them LESS useful except in specific circumstances and change the playstyle of classes moreso than change the game balance.

[The_cranky_hermit]

Having the weapons available is a gameplay advantage, however. Even the most situational weapon is an advantage to have, because if the situation where it is useful happens, you can use it. And some of them are easily upgrades under common circumstances, like the Liberty Launcher, which *every* soldier main I've seen switch to. I've also heard that the Enforcer is a pure upgrade for DR spies.

Getting all of the weapons without paying for them is a ridiculous prospect, especially with the Uber Update which adds something like 20 new weapons, many of which have high crafting requirements -lots of them are 2 reclaimed + another rare item, and then there's that one requiring 8 Jarates.

[DaFox]

Hence you go on a good server that kicks people who are just stuck in spawn item farming etc.

Yep I literally have no problem with the other players in the game aside from 1-2 days after a major patch.

Having the weapons available is a gameplay advantage, however. Even the most situational weapon is an advantage to have, because if the situation where it is useful happens, you can use it. And some of them are easily upgrades under common circumstances, like the Liberty Launcher, which *every* soldier main I've seen switch to. I've also heard that the Enforcer is a pure upgrade for DR spies.

Getting all of the weapons without paying for them is a ridiculous prospect, especially with the Uber Update which adds something like 20 new weapons, many of which have high crafting requirements -lots of them are 2 reclaimed + another rare item, and then there's that one requiring 8 Jarates.

Sure there are weapons that are better, but at the end of the day it's all about the trade offs. The extra rocket in the default rocket launcher is very very powerful.

I haven't payed for a single item but I have absolutely no problems with it. You absolutely do not need all of the weapons.
I primarily play soldier, I would really like a Liberty Launcher but it's no big deal, I can still kill other soldiers that have it whom are just as good as me, with my black box or regular rocket launcher.

You could always trade if you want a specific item it takes just a couple minutes for regular old items.

[The_cranky_hermit]

Sure there are weapons that are better, but at the end of the day it's all about the trade offs.

You're missing my bigger point. Being able to pick and choose the trade-offs at will is ALWAYS better. At the end of the day, you are at a disadvantage compared to people who bought weapons. Just because you aren't getting curbed-stomped doesn't mean you're not at a disadvantage.

[DaFox]

Sure there are weapons that are better, but at the end of the day it's all about the trade offs.

You're missing my bigger point. Being able to pick and choose the trade-offs at will is ALWAYS better. At the end of the day, you are at a disadvantage compared to people who bought weapons. Just because you aren't getting curbed-stomped doesn't mean you're not at a disadvantage.

I don't disagree, it's just really not a big deal at all. You gain items fast enough freely anyway.

[suiken_2mieu]

I just picked this game up for the first time and didn't think anything special. Here nearly 4 hours later, I was like WTF have I been missing?

[The_cranky_hermit]

I don't disagree, it's just really not a big deal at all. You gain items fast enough freely anyway.

Not fast enough for me. I still don't have my Sydney Sleeper or any of the Shogun items, let alone the 20+ Uber Update items. Meanwhile, enemy soldiers are wasting my scouts better than I can waste theirs, not out of skill but out of paying money to get the upgraded rocket launcher, and that makes me feel pretty resentful.

It also makes me fear a slippery slope. The Mann Co. Store originally didn't sell weapons. Later it did, but there were only a few. Then there was the Australian Christmas update items, which at first you had to buy festive keys to unlock. Now there's 20 new items, and some of them are more advantageous than normal, and buying is the only reliable way to get them. Valve wouldn't be able to get away with selling, say, a radar device that shows the positions of your enemies, but a year ago, they wouldn't have been able to get away with selling the Liberty Launcher. Taken gradually enough, they probably could turn TF2 into Pay2Win, and now that it's F2P, there's more incentive for that than ever.

[Tanuki]

http://www.gamespot.com/news/team-fortress-2-gets-100-in-game-engagement-ring-6350470

Bad Valve! Bad!