Games I Love: Team Fortress 2

With Battlefield 3 just released and Modern Warfare 3 on the horizon, I'm often asked which I prefer. And my answer surprises more often than not: neither.

My favorite shooter - and the only one I'll play - is Team Fortress 2.

I don't like military style shooters. I find that battles between two players end in a second or two at most; either someone catches the other by surprise and kills them instantly, or the player with the better aim gets a headshot and kills the other instantly. The guns in military shooters all tend to blur together; there are the assault rifles with slightly different stats, the shotguns with slightly different stats, and the sniper rifles with slightly different stats.

Listening to the developer commentary in TF2 (Valve commentary is ALWAYS worth listening to) reveals a set of brilliant mantras.

At a glance, a player should be able to tell a.) what team someone is on, b.) what class they are, and c.) what weapon they are using. In military shooters, everyone is the same "soldier in camo", and I can never tell if someone is on my team or if I should be shooting them.

Only two classes have the ability to kill in one shot: the Sniper and the Spy. The Sniper has to get a headshot (no other class has that ability), and his laser sight will alert his prey that they need to beware. The Spy has to get a backstab with his knife, which requires him to be in melee range and sneak up on his target. Both classes have the least health in the game, so they pay for their power with fragility.

Balance between classes is, while not perfect, incredibly well done. All classes fit into a rock-paper-scissors configuration, but skill can trump class counters. Nearly all unlocked weapons are sidegrades, gaining strength in one area at the cost of a weakness elsewhere. One of my biggest complaints with military shooters is that they all have weapon unlocks that are clear upgrades to the defaults, making the barrier to entry incredibly high.

Most of all, Team Fortress 2 gets the pacing of combat perfectly. When combat starts, I have long enough to decide if I should engage or if the fight is a guaranteed loss. Once I start fighting, I know it's going to take more than one shot to kill either of us, so there can actually be a fight. And if it's clear I'm losing, I have the ability to escape while simultaneously allowing my opponent the chance to finish me off. Fights are (almost) never over too quickly or too slowly.

I've come to expect a lot from my shooters. I want fights that last, balanced weapons, and game modes that reward teamwork rather than mere deathmatching. And nothing has offered what I want like Team Fortress 2.