therewascake.

A Heavy Problem

It’s been five days since Valve Software released the Heavy update for Team Fortress 2 on the PC. In that time, I’ve had the opportunity to play on most of the new maps which were released (all of which have been fantastic) as well as earn enough achievements to unlock the three new weapons that were included in this update, all being very interesting and useful in the right hands. I applaud Valve for releasing such excellent content so regularly after the launch of the game.

Although Valve has done a wonderful job of releasing said content, I do see a problem with how it is being “unlocked” within the game itself. I mentioned that I had earned enough achievements in order to unlock these three new weapons. Although I have indeed unlocked all three weapons, I didn’t necessarily earn anything. I spent 50 or so minutes on one of hundreds of “achievement” servers, working together with other players who also wanted to have access to the new items in a timely manner.

I simply don’t think I can earn many of these in normal matches, at least not within any reasonable time frame.

The very notion that there are servers with no other purpose than to help players unlock these achievements is just one of many warning signs that something isn’t right.

After thinking through this issue, I’ve come up with a number of potential solutions, some of which are not very good. The one I present is the one I think most viable for the way I want to play the game; it might not be ideal for everyone. My solution: give the weapons to everyone, day one.

The main draw of this game is the team based gameplay, hands down. It’s not the tacked on achievements that some of the gaming community seems to be so fond of. It’s not even the charming character each one of the classes displays. The game is simply a blast to play. Adding great new content to this core experience can only cause players to like it more. Why ruin all that by making some of the most attractive new content unavailable at launch and unlockable with crazy achievements?

If my solution were implemented, I would also tweak the achievement system. As far as I can tell, the over-arching goal of the achievement system for Valve is to have players play in ways they wouldn’t normally play - to think outside the box. Due to the number of achievements that are needed to make these unlockables challenging to get, many of them end up being inane goals like “Kill 100 enemies while you are both underwater”. Why not make fewer, update centric achievements? Focus on skills that are solely based on the new strategies and maneuvers players can perform with the new content. Not only is this a more organic way of earning achievements, it will actually have players learn how to best use these new weapons and even develop new ways of using them.

All that being said, I do see a further problem with Valve releasing just one class update at a time; unfortunately, this problem is very much out of their hands. With each new update - first the medic, then the pyro, now the heavy - players will see the utter proliferation of the updated class on each team. Whether these players are trying to earn achievements (with the current model of unlocking the new content) or just playing around with the new weapons (which would occur under my suggestion), there would be more of the updated class on each team than there should be.

The only solution I can think up - other than purposely limiting classes or punishing teams with too many of one class - is actually built right into the game: the natural ebb and flow of the gameplay. Teams that are more balanced will always come out victoriously, no matter what skill level is present on the other team [ed. note - this is speaking from a pub perspective, not a competitive one.]. If players want to win, they’ll have to balance out their team relative to the other team. One hopes that the team you’re on wants to win.

In any case, I’m thoroughly happy with the effort Valve is putting into each and every one of these content packs and I hope to see more soon!

Gully

This is my friend. His name is Gully.

While waiting alone to be picked up after work, I took notice of the many sea gulls that literally littered the parking lot of Brunswick Bowl. Gully was just one of many gulls that congregating in the parking lot around me; although just one of many, he was different. After hopping around the grass for some time, no doubt looking for something delicious, he decided that he could use some company too and stood next to me on the curb.

We talked about a variety of subjects; I carried on about the smell of rubber in my clothes and he waxed poetic about the taste of garbage.

Being an impatient chap, he grew tired of waiting for my ride. With a nod and a squawk, he extended his large wings, ran along the parking lot, and took off.

I watched him soar in the dusk sky far above, doing what I can only dream of. He would swoop up and up in large circles and then glide downward in what could only feel like an eternity. Again and again he would repeat this pattern, as if saying that he hoped I could do the same with a little instruction.

Eventually, he became dimmer and dimmer as he traveled further away, compelled only by the wind and his wits, until he faded into nothingness.

Here’s to you Gully - hope you had a safe landing.

Selective Memory

Sometimes I really dislike only remembering the good bits of times past. Although it’s nice to reflect on these times, it also provides a really distorted view of what I’m going to experience in the future.

During my time at my first summer job, things got tough. It was busy, the hours were long, and I had to work really hard - I was exhausted from all of the work and longed for an easier time. In fact, I longed for the previous job I had, where it seemed like all I would do is walk around and talk to a good friend of mine, while putting out products.

Wrong.

Fast forward to going back to my previous job. It’s busy, the hours are sometimes long (although, not always), and I have to work really hard. And I’m exhausted.

I’m not afraid of hard work - I just wish I knew it was coming.