Great article as always.

its missing mana tho

Goo dread

also, Krikland, WA

Can't read it right now but I have no doubt that its gonna be a good article.

:\

means game wont die for at least a year

i'll just correct this bit right here: i don't think i said that or believe it

truth is we don't know and they don't know

Article says it'll probably be 6v6 no class bans no unlock bans.

That's about the best it could get.

Im pretty excited to see whats going to happen with more weapons and less restrictions. Might it suck ass, yah, but it also might be alot of fun with your friends. Certainly it will bring in more players, money, and will grow the comp scene.

edit: Nice read!

if it's no class limits, this is going to be rough.

I hope the community is willing to stick through changes and hopefully actually get the game to be better than it is now

I for one welcome our new medic stack meta.

The max utility of Medic that would make since is 3 for 6 person team and that's assuming their's basically 3 ultiduo teams per team. More than likely the optimal utilization is going to be 2.

I'm squealing like a little girl

I imagine that valve will quickly realize the need to limit the number of classes allowed for things like Medic or Demo. But beyond that, I really don't think that a lack of class limits would break 6s. Even now, after the recent demo nerf, I'm not certain you'd need to limit the number of medics and demos either.

2 Medics might have the advantage of more up time for ubers, but medics are useless in non uber fights. So that composition would be punished heavily in transition plays.

More than 1 demo could be dangerous, given how much damage that class can put out. But the demo also requires a high level of protection given how useless it is at close range. So again, I suspect that the composition would be fairly easy to exploit.

I expect we'd see a lot of 'pocket strats' built around interesting class compositions or individually talented players who can make less common classes viable. But I also expect that the meta of 2 scouts, 2 soldiers, 1 demo, and 1 medic will still survive, given that it has been proven to be the most effective composition across the largest range of situations.

Fuck yeah

having this for multiple regions would be amazing (i just want my name on things ok)

"2 Medics might have the advantage of more up time for ubers, but medics are useless in non uber fights. So that composition would be punished heavily in transition plays."

1st part is right, 2nd part is wrong. The heals from 2 medics would be insane in non-uber fights.

Also with the GRU and Displinary Action unbanned heavy becomes a shit ton more viable. Could you imagine 2 medics healing a heavy?

We, as a competitive TF2 community, have supported multiple modes (6s, 9s and somewhat the more recent 4/5s) for the entire length that we've collectively been TF2's competitive scene. I think everyone can manage to continue doing so.

Whatever the case, and whatever the progression this system has starting from when it drops, I hope this turns out to be as awesome as it sounds.

PS Seeing oPlaiD dealing with the comp. TF2 community again is great. He's a great writer and player.

A potential problem with this is that the meta may change A LOT between skill levels. Bad players will be more effective with two medics for example because punishing them for having less fraggers in off-uber fights will require coronation and situational awareness that less experienced players don't have. Similar to how an open team can get away with running full time pyros but that becomes less viable as players skill increases.

These same things happen in HL as well, in lower levels heavies get much more heals and its not until the top that you see demos and scouts getting heals and ubers. And obviously almost the entire role of snipers change.

I'm not suggesting that things won't change. People are going to try out some crazy stuff, and some of it will work. But the point I was trying to make is this:

2 medics is powerful, but those medics, alone, don't contribute damage, so if the other team does counter them, the team is collectively weaker. A heavy, with even just a single medic, is strong. But moves slowly, and is hard countered by a sniper. A sniper, is strong, but does not have much health and is weak at close range.

Without weapon bans all of these other classes are more viable, but I still think (and I could definitely be wrong) that each composition would have more inherent weaknesses either in the form of hard counters from the other team or an inability to move quickly for timing critical pushes. I don't think that 2 soldiers, 2 scouts, 1 medic, and 1 demo will always be the best option. Even in our current system there are plenty of times when off classes are just better. But I do think that that class composition will prove to be the most reliable. And the other compositions will be too vulnerable to counters to be run as often.

To catch a team off guard, sure, that is what a pocket strat is for. But run it repeatedly against the same teams and it will get shut down.

Good article. It really lays out every detail nicely for people outside the comp community.

I've seen so many confused reactions from non-TF2 players

on class limits:
The only problem i see with no class limits is for solo queueing.

The best solution would be to have a solo/duo-queue system where you pick class beforehand and a seperate one for premades.

2 demos, 2 scouts, One solly, Medic.
Cry every time.

Regarding the timetable, look at the past few summers. In 2014 there was Love and War (June 18). In 2013 there was Robotic Boogaloo (May 17). In 2012 there was Mann vs. Machine (August 15) and Pyromania (June 27). Combined with the fact that some code supporting matchmaking has been in the game for at least six months (https://youtu.be/OIviG2U8h90?t=1m54s) I'd say the "at least a year off" estimate is very conservative and Valve knows more about when they'll be releasing MM than they let on.

No class limits will break the game almost as much as no item bans will

Do you really want to queue into a game where everyone refuses to play medic and your team is filled with snipers? How about 3 Quickfix medics with 3 BFB scouts?

There is going to be extremely little communication in these games. Barely anyone on your team is going to use a microphone (ingame voice is kinda shit to begin with) and people will not have the minimal game-sense required to enjoy 6v6. Most of the people playing in these matchmaking games will be very bad new/pub players.

Should make it highlander only with UGC maps/whitelist. There is a reason why 5cp doesn't work in pubs, things like payload and attack/defend offer clear objectives your team can contribute towards. You can read more about Valve's pub design philosophy in some map making documentation.

If Valve wants a healthy competitive scene their focus should be spreading awareness through the in-game stream lists as well as main menu popup/notifications directing people towards the already established systems that actually work like TF2Center.

inb4 5 or possibly 6 mini sentry engies

Yeah but the entire point of this is to make the game overall more balanced. So some weapons will be improved and others nerfed (and thus classes get better/worse) and ideally we should eventually see a rather dynamic game.

I will be exclusively playing Mini-engie until the gunslinger is nerfed some how

if i wanted to play hl id play a fucking pub

So, you mean it could be exactly like lobbies and centers are right now.

News flash for everyone: at the lowest ranks people are going to do stupid things. Run stupid classes, play stupid. They are new, they don't know better, and they will either learn and (as a result) rank up, or they won't care and stay at about that level.

Match Making isn't going to replace outside leagues, tournaments, or other official forms of competition in the exact same way it doesn't in dota and CS:GO.

If you are expecting Valve to make and run a fully functioning league then you are going to be disappointed. Period. Nothing that they can feasibly do is going to make players, who don't know better, immediately start playing the exact meta that you want them to.

As a medic I don't play in centers unless I know people on my team because I have played centers before where my pocket spent the entire game playing engineer. Or where no one on my flank said anything. I've played in UGC matches where teams ran a heavy to mid for every single mid, and Open matches against essentially full time snipers and pyros. It happens now, it is going to happen more in match making and that really shouldn't be an issue.

Exposure to streams and tournaments that showcase 'correct' play, a desire to rank up, and the natural quality of stupid strats to fail more often than not (especially against intelligent players), is going to weed out a lot of the nonsense and let the 'cream rise to the top' so to speak.

edit i am retarded