The Blogtastic Blogfest That Is Getmeoutofthis.net!

This weekend is Free TF2 Weekend! Not that I care, because I own the game. But it also marks the release of the Sniper vs Spy content pack! This includes new equipment and achievements for these classes but, more importantly, it marks a huge-ass change in how these weapons are unlocked, via a tiny little comment in the update:

You now find new and old items as you play, instead of through achievements.

This is HUGE! This is exactly what I’ve been wanting! The last thing I wanted to do was to grind out achievements just to play with the new toys. I’ve been waiting for this for a long while.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t work quite as I had hoped. I don’t know if it’s a bug, like this suggests, or what, but it is insanely random and unsatisfying to get these weapons. I would have preferred some sort of experience system, or something where I knew every moment of play I put in was earning me stuff. But it certainly didn’t feel that way. Valve has finally put forth an official statement about it, which suggests that, yes, it is tied into how much you play, and that they are going to tweak it. We’ll see.

Still, I played TF2 ALL DAY. For the first, oh, 4 hours, I got nothing. (which is why I also think it’s a bit bugged) Then, shockingly, I got the Dead Ringer. I knew the moment I got it that this was lost on me. I’m bad enough at the Spy normally. But goodness, the Dead Ringer COMPLETELY changes how you play. Only being able to cloak when damaged completely negates a lot of what I had figured out that worked with the Spy, like cloaking to mislead people that you went down one path, and then going the other. I have no idea if the Dead Ringer is going to be optimal or not. I’d say not. But it is fun to try out.
Soon after that, I was granted The Axtinguisher. This weapon, too, is completely wasted on me! It’s effective, no doubt, and I could see someone who was skilled with the Pyro putting it to great use. But damn, I can’t even think of a time when I would switch to the Axe with the Pyro. If I was out of flamethrower fuel, I guess? But the Flamethrower is such a Melee weapon, and I’m so uncoordinated that switching to the axe as soon as I ignite someone just isn’t going to happen. Still, it looks completely bad-ass when you wield it. So it’s got that going for it.
Then, I got another Dead Ringer. Thanks, Valve! That’s… useful. Still, if that blog post up there is to be believed, eventually I can give it to someone. I appreciate such Heart-y abilities. And I will totally give it to someone.
The last thing I unlocked was probably the item that will get the most use from me: The Sandvich! I Om Nomed on that thing quite a bit. Granted, never in a situation where it actually helped. But, you know… there’s an achievement for eating a lot of Sandviches! So I had to chow down, you understand! I had no choice!

Overall, though I got annoyed at the drop system (though not anywhere near as much as the hardcore players. They were used to achievement grinding for a few hours and then enjoying their toys, and were pissed that they weren’t getting the new stuff) I had a lot of fun playing it solid for so long. The main reason was Arena mode. Apparently this got added with the Heavy update or something? But it’s basically TF2’s take on Team Deathmatch, and man, it is PERFECT. The sides are always balanced. Rounds rarely last more than 2 minutes. Whoever draws first blood gets a crit bonus. It is a ton of fun, and I can’t really see me going back to more traditional TF2, in all honesty. It’s all I’ve played since I found it. It even gave me an added appreciation for the Pyro. Once I was unhooked from looking just at capture points, suddenly I “got” how the Pyro worked. I even had a completely badass moment where I ran into a huge group of five guys and Critted them all. It was so sweet.

But yeah, hopefully they get the drop system tweaked. I’m glad they went away from the achievement method, but this isn’t what they should have either. Still, Valve are experts. They can handle this shit.