Team Fortress 2 sees two teams (RED and BLU) compete in a series of different core game modes, including “attack/defendâ€, “capture the flagâ€, “king of the hillâ€, “control points†and “payloadâ€.
Game Modes
Attack/defend is a timed game mode that involves players on the BLU team attempting to take control points from the RED team.
Capture the flag involves players attempting to steal the opponents flag, which within the game is represented by a briefcase containing military intelligence.
King of the hill involves the RED and BLU team vying for a central control point, which can be controlled by members surviving in the control zone until the round ends.
Control Points mode features one unclaimed control zone in the center of the map, and the others are split equally amongst the teams.
Payload is perhaps the least conventional, featuring players moving a cart of explosives along a track towards enemy territory, with one team attempting this, and the other thwarting it.
Characters
Players can choose from nine different character classes, all of which have different strengths and weaknesses that are best suited for different scenarios and modes, categorized as offensive, defensive, or support.
Offensive
The Scout is a baseball fan who uses his speed and agility to his advantage. He wields a shotgun, pistol, and his trademark bat in combat.
His special abilities include the ability to double jump, and the ability to count as two players when capturing a control zone, making it faster.Â
The Soldier is a patriotic midwesterner, who wields a rocket launcher, shotgun, and folding shovel during combat. One of the slowest characters, The Soldier’s saving grace is his extended health, making him extra effective during heavy assaults.
The Pyro is a mysterious pyromaniac wearing a flame retardant suit and a breathing mask that muffles their voice.
Wielding their signature flame thrower, as well as a shotgun and fire ax, they also have the special ability to shoot compressed air to repel explosives, projectiles and approaching enemies.Â
Defensive
The Demoman is a one-eyed, alcoholic Scotsman who wields a grenade launcher and sticky bomb launcher. His role is to set traps, and to provide supporting fire using his explosives.
His special ability is the “sticky jumpâ€, sacrificing a portion of health to use the sticky bomb to catapult himself from danger.Â
The Heavy is a large Russian man wielding a minigun (referred to as “Sashaâ€), a shotgun, and his fists. The slowest character in the game due to his size, he possesses increased strength and resilience from attack.
The Engineer is a Texan, whose skills as an engineer, inventor and construction expert make him a valuable member of the class.
Able to build structures, sentry guns, ammo and health dispensers, and teleporter modules, he is vital in most game modes.
Wielding a shotgun, pistol, and wrench, he is skilled in melee, as well as assembling and demolishing structures throughout the map. Â
Support
The Medic is a German doctor, who uses his medi-gun to heal allies during combat. He also wields a syringe gun, and a bonesaw when encountering enemies on the field.
His special ability is that of a healer, able to rejuvenate fallen teammates and provide health boosts where needed.Â
The Sniper is a New Zealander, raised in the Australian outback, whose main role is to provide cover and supporting fire for the other members of the team.
Armed with a sniper rifle, as well as a submachine gun and a kukri (curved knife), his main ability is instant kill using headshots.Â
The Spy is a cigarette smoking French operative, dressed in a suit, tie and balaclava, he wields a revolver and a butterfly knife, and uses cloaking devices, disguises, and electricity suppressors to sabotage and infiltrate enemy zones.
The Best Fields Of View
Due to the fast pace of the game modes, it is important to have the right settings if you wish to survive more than a few seconds. The field of view affects how much of the screen you can see during play.
As the gameplay is first person, it can be easy for others to sneak up on you during combat, as such it is important to play in a way that works for you.
Field Of View
This is perhaps the most standard setting on TF2, with a higher setting providing a wider field of view (allowing you see more in the immediate vicinity), and a lower setting giving you a narrower one (meaning you can see less).
This can be done by heading to Options, selecting Video, selecting Advanced, and using the FoV slider to select the level that works best for you.
Viewmodel FoV
First person shooters often mean that the player character’s arms, hands and weapons are in the frame. This can prove disorientating and distracting, as well as providing more blind spots.
With a smaller viewmodel, it means less gun blocking the field of view, and a higher view model ultimately means less overall blindspots.
This can be done by going to Options, selecting Advanced, and moving the view model slider to whatever setting works best.
Minimal HUD
Your HUD (of head up display) is the information surrounding the screen, often featuring the player’s health, ammunition, and a small compass/map to show enemies or objectives.
In first person shooters, these can be distracting or act as blinspots, and so some players might opt to minimize this as much as possible to enable better vision.
This can also be achieved by going to Options, selecting Advanced, and selecting Turn on Minimal HUD, alleviating these blind spots and creating a less cluttered screen.
Final Thoughts
If there is one thing TF2 promotes, it is teamwork, sticking to assigned roles, and honing a good play style that works for you.
The fast paced nature of the game means that anything other than that will result in repeated deaths, low scores, and a lot of frustration.
Why not check it out, and implement some of these techniques for yourselves? You’ll thank us later.Â
My name is Ashley Newby and I want to put integrity back into esports and get the hype surrounding them paramount once more. During my teenage years, I happened to stumble across a Street Fighter tournament online and I was hooked.
From that day, I have kept up with and watched many tournaments including Valorant, Super Smash Bros, and League of Legends. I even got to compete in my first one earlier this year!
