Test Rig

Improved Gameplay & New Features

A few years later after the initial Team Fortress, TF2's final design still closely resembles Team Fortress Classic, but with an illustrative and stylized look influenced by the artist J.C. Leyendecker (1874-1951). As expected, Team Fortress 2 uses Half-Life 2's Source Engine as well.

All of the classes were retained, but their weapons and their style were changed. The grenade throwing ability was removed to prevent too many stalemates as well as grenade spamming. New maps were added, and some maps like 2Fort, Dustbowl and Well were revised with a thematic feel (circa 1960s, judging by the large shelf-sized computers).

One of the best examples is the 2Fort map. Instead of 'Flag' they called it 'Intelligence', and there's a huge control centre with computers and tape backup machines in the basement. This gives you an impression that you are working in the company, and you are responsible for defending the base and also at the same time you are responsible for contributing to the team.

Instead of the old monotonous announcer back in the TFC days, the announcer in TF2 (voiced by Ellen Mclain) is more disappointed, impatient (or you evencan say impertinent) and fierce, urging players to quickly reach their objectives before the time runs out. Apart from this, nailguns, double-barreled shotguns and some weapons from TFC (Pyro's Incendinary Cannon, Engineer's Rail Gun and Medic's Super Nail Gun) are no longer present. The weapons were all simplified and specially made for a specific class too.

The models of the classes have been exaggerated to help the player distinguish the different classes quickly and more accurately. A scout or a spy would have a smaller body frame, while a soldier or a HW Guy would have a larger body frame. Previously in TFC, I could never distinguish between a Demoman and a Scout from a distance. But in TF2, it is a no-brainer to tell the difference.

Freeze cam	Nemesis

The Freeze-cam feature automatically kicks in when you get killed by an opponent by focusing your view to him for a short moment. If you let an opponent kill you more than three times, you get a new Nemesis, and if you kill him back, you will get a Revenge.

They added some humour in the game as well. For example, if you get blasted into smithereens by your opponents nearby, the cam will shift the focus to that person, while pointing your disintegrated body part (like "your arm" or "your torso") at the same time.

Disintegrated body part	Taunt

The taunt feature varies from class to class, and even from weapon to weapon held by a player. It seems that the developers also included many small details to the game which has certainly enhanced its gameplay and playability value.

The game also focuses a lot on visual styles. Compared to the original TFC, the HUD in TF2 is very complete - each player has a status of their own team's Capture Points (for CP maps) and Intelligence (for CTF). It'll change when the enemies starts to occupy that location. Engineers will not have too much of a problem in maintaining their sentry guns, dispensers and teleporters. Once built, they can see their status. A Medic will know who needs his attention - a bubble with a red cross inside will show up in from of the screen, with the directions to boot.

HUD	Burning

Almost everything in the game is recognizable - from a Demoman's bombs to the Medic's medigun stream. Even players who are on fire (that IS certainly Pyro's job) can be distinguished by their teams based on the flare present on their burning bodies.