Team Fortress 2 to go Free To Play

[IAAW]

*Note that the links in this thread are currently busied up all to hell and take forever to load, so it'll take some tries to view them.*

http://teamfortress.com/freetoplay/

Welp, Team Fortress 2 is going F2P. How about that? At any rate, Valve decided that Team Fortress 2 was not cheap enough, so they lowered the price from "cheap" to "free". Well, that's probably not the reason behind the F2P change, but I digress; I believe either tonight, or tomorrow, or at one point Valve makes the change, Team Fortress 2 will become a F2P game and anyone will be able to download and play it. Not necessarily the most important of news, but I felt like posting it anyway. (Sue me.)

But, what's a F2P change without its catches?

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

Quote for convenience (with slight changes for formatting reasons);

Q. Who has a free account?
Anyone who has downloaded the game for free and has not made a purchase in the in-game Mann Co. store has a free account.

Q. Who has a premium account?
If you've ever spent money on TF2, you have a premium account. This includes purchasing the game before it was Free-to-Play, activating a retail version of the game, or making a purchase in the Mann Co. in-game store.

Q. How is a free account different than a premium account?
Premium accounts have a few extra features, including access to rare and cosmetic items through random item drops, the ability to store more items in your backpack, and more powerful trading and crafting abilities. Otherwise, the gameplay experience will be identical for both accounts.

Account Comparison

Backpack: Free/50 slots; Premium/300 slots (expandable up to 1000)
Items: Free/Standard; Premium/Standard, Rare and Cosmetic
Crafting: Free/Limited blueprints; Premium/All blueprints
Trading: Free/Receive items only; Premium/Full trading
Gifting: Free/Can receive gifts; Premium/Can give and receive gifts

Q. How much of the game can I play without paying anything?
The entire game can be played without making a purchase. All game modes, classes, and maps are available. Nearly every weapon is available through achievements, drops, or crafting.

Q. How do I play?
Install Steam. Download TF2 and play! If you've never played before, going through some training is highly recommended.

Q. Is there a way to practice before I play online?
Yes. We offer helpful training campaigns that will teach you the basic gameplay mechanics of various mercenaries. We also have a mode that allows you to practice on an assortment of maps with CPU bots with a variety of skill levels.

Q. How do I convert my free account to a premium account?
Make any purchase of any amount in the in-game Mann Co. store.

Q. Will I need a credit card to play?
No. However, to make purchases from the in-game Mann Co. Store you will need to use one of our accepted payment methods.

Q. What is the Mann Co. Store?
The finest virtual item store in the world, easily accessible from within the TF2 game client.

Q. What are the system requirements?
Check the Team Fortress 2 game page for Mac and PC requirements.

Q. What happens if I buy a retail copy of TF2?
You will automatically be upgraded to have a premium account and will be given a special Proof of Purchase hat to wear on any character in-game.

Q. How does Free-to-Play affect existing users?
It doesn't. You can keep enjoying TF2 as you have before, with all the features and content you've come to expect from TF2.

Q. What do I get if I paid for the game?
To thank you for your years of support, we will be giving players who have purchased TF2 a special Proof of Purchase hat to wear on any character in-game.

Q. Won't going Free to Play mean more griefers and cheaters?
We're increasing our focus on making sure that hostile players can't ruin your fun. Specifically, we'll be keeping a close eye on players exploiting the ability to make infinite free accounts to bypass bans. We've built systems that'll allow us to measure and track what these players are doing, and respond quickly.

Q. How does the Coaching feature work?
If a new player on a Free account upgrades to a premium account and indicates that you were their most helpful friend, you will receive a wearable item. Helping new users via the Coaching feature is a great way to meet new players and help them out!

tl;dr: F2P players will be limited in what they can do crafting and trading-wise; they will only be able to receive items through trade, drops, and gifts, and will only get standard (likely weapons and maybe some hats) drops, while premium players will have access to all current (and future) crafting and drop additions and the trade system. Also, all TF2 players who bought TF2 prior to the F2P change will receive a special Proof of Purchase hat for use on all classes.

tl;dr;tl;dr: F2P players = limited. Premium players = not limited. Become premium by buying game or buying stuff from the in-game Mann. Co Store.

Also, for those who are interested, the Meet the Medic trailer has been officially released (and is Valve-made, I assure you).

Post thoughts and whatnot.

[phe0nixblade]

God damn it.. I payed money for it and I can't even play it. The ****ing thing lags so much anymore. lol

[I like it]

I bought this game 2 years ago in the orange box, I went to play it and found out my computer couldn't run it. It was very fun on my ps3 though. I highly recommend this game if you haven't played it before.

[IAAW]

Originally Posted by phe0nixblade

God damn it.. I payed money for it and I can't even play it. The ****ing thing lags so much anymore. lol

Hah, I has same problem now. My computer's just too old now and can't run TF2 like it used to. Despite the frame dips though (otherwise it runs smoothly), I have fun and enjoy myself as best I can. Minus the dying, anyway.

Wonder what the Proof of Purchase hat will look like.

[ddr_f4n]

Damn yes I just heard about it and definitely getting it now.

Should also state Meet the Medic just came out:

[LJRoX]

LOL TF2 is free to play and that makes CS 1.6 look so much better

[Soul.]

I'm very surprise that it's free to play!

[C@!]

Guys who own the game previously get a free hat :>

[Superfreak04]

Originally Posted by LJRoX

LOL TF2 is free to play and that makes CS 1.6 look so much better

That's what was going through my head, lmfao.

[C@!]

Originally Posted by LJRoX

LOL TF2 is free to play and that makes CS 1.6 look so much better

That's fine with me, TF2 was meant for casual play anyway, Lawl.

[Jousway]

in before all the annoying 12 year olds get the game and ruin everything

[Coolboyrulez0]

That's a pretty cool move from valve. Now I can try it finally, and if I enjoy it I go premium.

[mattgamer15]

I am so excited, i plan to play the game for free and then buy it and upgrade to a premium account

[_Stepdude_]

I bought it with Orange box a few years ago, but I never tried it lmao.

[FN_Boski]

Originally Posted by Jousway

in before all the annoying 12 year olds get the game and ruin everything

Omg this. I played it last night after the Uber Update (which the new hat is okay imo for those who bought before it went F2P).
There were... those and so many randomly flailing around. Someone actually asked, "How do you pick up supplies?" "Supplies? You mean the health packs and ammo?" "Yeah!" -_-

Whatever, still kinda nifty that they are giving others the chance to play, yet I'm rather skeptical about it.

[Jousway]

Originally Posted by FN_Boski

Omg this. I played it last night after the Uber Update (which the new hat is okay imo for those who bought before it went F2P).
There were... those and so many randomly flailing around. Someone actually asked, "How do you pick up supplies?" "Supplies? You mean the health packs and ammo?" "Yeah!" -_-

Whatever, still kinda nifty that they are giving others the chance to play, yet I'm rather skeptical about it.

Valve please make premium only server mode !!

[Nyokou]

I will be getting it. Taking all the free stuff I can get.

[FFR4EVA_00]

Originally Posted by Jousway

in before all the annoying 12 year olds get the game and ruin everything

you just offended 98% of this site's user base

[Crashfan3]

Originally Posted by Jousway

in before all the annoying 12 year olds get the game and ruin everything

in before 12yr old "gangstas" with bots get in and ruin everything

[FFR4EVA_00]

i heard they already hand out bans like halloween candy so