An update on Valve Software's Team Fortress 2 blog has unveiled more of the content planned for the Heavy update, scheduled to hit the multiplayer shooter next Tuesday.

The first of three unlockable weapons planned for the Heavy are Killing Gloves of Boxing (or K.G.B.), which replace the Heavy's bare fists as his melee attack. When landing a killing blow with the K.G.B., the Heavy receives five full seconds of guaranteed critical hits, which can be used to kill more foes and further extend the remaining time.

The crit bonus can also be used with the Heavy's other weapons—the shotgun and the minigun—allowing the class to lay waste to enemies at a distance. The gloves offer a slower swing speed than the Heavy's uncovered fists, making use of the item somewhat riskier than the standard equipment roll-out.

Along with two yet-unannounced unlockable weapons, the K.G.B. will be obtainable via a total of 35 class-specific achievements. The Heavy's new weaponry will likely see a similar structure as the previously released Pyro update, which granted unlockable weapons at 10, 16, and 22 earned achievements.

While the requirements for the achievements have not yet been specified, their names and iconography—paired with the image file names—offer a few clues as... Read more

Update: Valve has released new details on the Heavy's first unlockable weapon, the K.G.B. (Killing Gloves of Boxing), as well as information on the Heavy's 35 new class-specific achievements.

Original Story: The largest update yet to Valve's online shooter Team Fortress 2 is set to go live next Tuesday, August 19, according to the developer.

The update will include seven fresh maps and a new game mode, in addition to new unlockable weapons and achievements for the Heavy class.

Valve plans to reveal each element of the patch--as well as a "special installment" to the "Meet the Team" video series--in a series of daily updates to its website.

The first announced map was revealed to be community-created level cp_steel (pictured above). Described as a "complex Attack/Defense control point map" by Valve, the arena was created by Jamie "Fishbus" Manson, and marks the first of six website reveals.

The mysteriously unannounced game mode will come supported with five Valve-crafted maps. A "new Payload map focusing on more open spaces than Goldrush" will also be released, according to Valve's Robin Walker.

Team Fortress 2 followers may remember a "leaked" image (left) that recently convinced many fans that the Spy update was on its way from developer Valve. The screen was soon revealed to be a fake, the words "Hoax by Kaanin" found in small print at the bottom.

Now a new post on the official TF2 blog reveals that even some Valve employees were deceived by the image.

"His mocked-up image was convincing enough that even some of us at Valve were momentarily fooled," said Valve's Eric Smith. "Well played, Kaanin."

Another patch for the PC version of Valve's Team Fortress 2 is now available, addressing numerous bugs and glitches in the class-based online multiplayer shooter.

The patch will be downloaded and automatically installed upon restarting the Steam client. Changes include:

• Fixed rcon crash caused by too many incorrect password attempts
• Fixed clients experiencing connection problems during round restarts
• Fixed flares not always being removed on impact
• Fixed 32 player servers not working correctly with SourceTV enabled
• Fixed dropped flags sometimes falling through the world... Read more

The third of Team Fortress 2's nine classes to receive class-specific achievements and unlockable weapons will be the Heavy, developer Valve has revealed.

One of the goals of the upcoming update will be to "make the Heavy more viable when he has no Medic to pair with," TF2 director Robin Walker wrote on the game's blog. However, he noted the key challenge is to enhance the Heavy without changing its role relative to the other classes, especially in the fabled Heavy-Medic combo.

Other variables to consider include the tactical pros and cons of the lumbering giant, such as the Heavy's limited mobility while firing and the minigun's spin-up time.

Class-specific achievements and unlockable weapons first hit the Medic class in April, followed by the Pyro class update in mid-June. The company plans to ... Read more

A new patch for the PC version of Valve's Team Fortress 2 has been released, addressing issues arising out of the recent Pyro Update and numerous other woes.

The patch will be downloaded and automatically installed upon restarting the Steam client. Changes include:

• Fixed backburner's flame critical hits not being recalculated after collision. This meant that it would check if the target was looking away once and after that the flame could score a critical hit again even if the orientation changed
• Added back some damage falloff to the Pyro's flamethrower. Not nearly as extreme as it was before the Pyro class pack
• Fixed bug that caused Demomen to take a small amount of extra damage from their own grenades and fly farther using them... Read more

A new patch is now available for the PC version of Team Fortress 2. The update offers four changes, including one which reduces the Medic's unlockable requirements. Changes are as follows:

• Reduced Medic's unlockable requirements to match that of the Pyro's. Medic players now meeting the requirements will receive their unlockables shortly after joining a server
• Fixed Spy sapper viewmodel animation popping
• Fixed another issue with the Hot on your Heels achievement
• Incorporated the new Russian fonts into the base Team Fortress 2 fonts. Fixes the missing fonts problem when running in Russian with English VO

As previously announced, Valve's Team Fortress 2 free weekend is now live, offering free play to those gamers who haven't yet purchased the game through Sunday evening.

The free weekend follows this week's debut of the Pyro class update, which offers three new weapons unlockable via 36 Pyro-specific achievements. The update also includes two community-created maps—including Shacker -sk-'s CP_Fastlane—and a new alternate function for the Pyro's stock flamethrower.

Players interested in taking part need only download the game through a Steam client, with full instructions available at the free trial website.

As promised, developer Valve has just released the free Pryo update for the PC version of its class-based mutiplayer shooter Team Fortress 2.

In addition to 35 new achievements and 3 unlockable weapons for the Pyro class, the update packs two new community maps--CP_Fastlane from Shacker Arttu "-sk-" Maki and CTF_Turbine from Bill Johnston--and the option for Pyros to blast out compressed air with the stock flamethrower.

Unlike the previous Medic update, which required players to get all the achievements to get all the new weapons, Pyros gain the Flare Gun after 10 achievements, unlock the Backburner at the 16 achievement mark, and earn the Axtinguisher with only 22.

Per the norm for Steam updates, the patch will be automatically downloaded once Steam is restarted. While you're waiting, why not reacquaint yourself with the Sniper?

Keep reading for more details, including full patch notes... Read more

The full details of Valve's next Team Fortress 2 update have leaked in advance of their official release, revealing the achievements, unlockables and changes to the Pyro along with the two included community maps, all of which are due this Thursday, June 19.

Along with the previously revealed Axtinguisher, Pyro players will be awarded with the Flare Gun and Backburner for obtaining the 35 new achievements. As with the Medic update, weapons will be unlocked as Achievements are earned, with the Flare Gun coming first, the Backburner second, and the Axtinguisher last.

In addition, the Pyro's stock flamethrower will be updated with a new function, allowing players to blast enemies away with compressed air through a press of the alt-fire button.

Detailing the two community-created maps included with the update... Read more

Update: All the details on the Pyro class changes, including achievement and new weapons, are now available.

Original Story: The full details on Thursday's Team Fortress 2 update may not arrive until tomorrow, but a complete list of the 35 new Pyro-specific achievements has leaked along with their respective illustrations.

The images provide another look at the that blunderbuss and flare gun-esque unlockable weapon glimpsed in today's Meet the Sniper vignette.

While the exact requirements of the achievements remain unknown, the often amusing names give some hint as to their conditions. Our favorites include Dance Dance Immolation, OMGWTFBBQ, and Weenie Roast. You can see them all compiled by Jimbomcb or browse on through.

The complete achievement list can be found below... Read more

Update: The official details on the new weapons have arrived, revealing the device pictured below to be the Flare Gun, which can ignite an enemy at long range.

Original Story: Though the official details aren't slated to arrive until tomorrow, the latest Team Fortress 2 character vignette contains a brief glimpse of Pyro's second unlockable weapon.

The device, which appears to be a blunderbuss, joins the Axtinguisher as one of the three unlockable weapons for the fire-happy Pyro class.

As with the recent Medic update, the weapons will be available to players once they earn a set number of class-specific achievements.

The free Pyro update will be available on Thursday, with full details hitting tomorrow. Registered users can use the HD Stream.

While the achievements and unlockables for the Pyro class hit Team Fortress 2 this Thursday, developer Valve wants to make sure you're familiar with the Sniper as well.

In case you aren't well acquainted with some of the other classes, be sure to Meet the Scout, Meet The Demoman, Meet The Engineer, Meet The Soldier, and Meet the Heavy. The remaining three classes--Pyro, Medic, Spy--are expected to receive their long-awaited and undoubtedly humorous introductions in due time.

Though Meet the Sniper was originally slated to debut alongside the details of Thursday's update, including a list of Pyro achievements and weapon details, Valve informed Shacknews that those details are now slated to arrive tomorrow, June 18.

That said, the following footage contains a brief glimpse of one of the Pyro's new unlockable weapons. For a better look, scope out our screengrabs and looped footage of the device. Registered users can use the HD Stream.

Update 2: All the details on the Pyro update, including achievement, new weapons and the two community maps, are now available.

Update: Valve has released the Meet the Sniper vignette. The studio also informed Shacknews that additional details on the Pyro update, including a list of achievements and unlockables, will not arrive until Wednesday, June 18.

Original Story: Valve has announced that the Pyro class update for its online multiplayer shooter Team Fortress 2 will be released this Thursday, June 19.

The update includes three unlockable weapons—such as the previously unveiled Axtinguisher—which can be obtained via 35 new class-specific achievements. Valve has previously stated that the Pyro update will also include "significant changes" to the core class which will be enacted regardless of whether players have the new weapons.

In addition to the new weapons and achievements, two community-created maps for the game will be included in the update. To tide players over til Thursday, Valve also plans to release Meet the Sniper, the latest video in its series of comedic class profiles, tomorrow morning.

The developer also revealed that it will hold another Team Fortress 2 free weekend, allowing players who haven't yet purchased the title to play the game for free from Friday morning through Sunday evening. During that time, players can download and play Team Fortress 2 from Valve's downloadable PC gaming platform Steam free of charge.

A new study published in the journal Cyberpsychology and Behavior found that red teams triumph over blue teams more than half of the time in online multiplayer shooters, reports the Associated Press.

Researchers studied the outcomes of 1,347 matches in Epic Games' Unreal Tournament 2004 (PC), in which players were allowed to choose between joining the red or blue team. The study found that the red team won 55% of the time.

University of Copenhagen neuroscientist Mihai Moldovan suggested that one possible explanation for the skew in results could be the color red's role as a psychological distractor for men. Results were collected by Moldovan from public ... Read more

The upcoming Pyro update bound for Valve's multiplayer shooter Team Fortress 2 is "almost completely wrapped" and will include changes to the core class beyond the addition of unlockable weapons and achievements, the company revealed in a Steam client update today.

One of the new weapons, dubbed the Axtinguisher, does about half the damage as the standard axe but will guarantee a critical hit when striking enemies set ablaze by the Pyro's flamethrower. The update included concept art of this new weapon.

The post added that the class will see "significant changes" that will be enacted for every player, regardless of whether they have unlocked any of the new weapons via the accompanying Pyro-specific achievements. No further details were offered as to what those changes might be.

The company noted that player feedback from the Medic update, which added three new weapons unlockable via 36 total achievements, was incorporated into its plans for this latest tuning of Team Fortress 2.

"We've spent time looking at how the recent Medic release went, and have rolled feedback from that release into the new item designs for the Pyro and ... Read more

Valve has revealed that the Pyro will be the next Team Fortress 2 class to receive class-specific achievements and unlockable weapons, with the Sniper being the next to be featured in a series of character-based trailers.

The company introduced the concept of unlockables earlier this year via a set of Medic-specific achievements and weapons, with players earning new equipment when as they completed 12, 24, and all of the 36 achievements. Valve plans to eventually grace the seven remaining classes with new armament in due time.

No details as to when the Pyro achievements and weapons will be available were provided to CVG, though Team Fortress 2 director Robin Walker previously told Shacknews that, "we're really excited about where TF2 will be going over the next year," suggesting that the studio may be hoping to release all of the updates within that time.

The free update is likely to hit the PC version first. Though Valve has said details on console DLC are due "pretty soon", the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 editions of the class-based multiplayer shooter have yet to receive any of the content updates released thus far.

Speaking to Shacknews at last week's EA Spring Showcase, Valve Software marketing director Doug Lombardi addressed the state of downloadable content for Team Fortress 2 on consoles.

"We're looking at bringing the Goldrush and the new achievements and stuff out to the 360," Lombardi said. Valve internally developed the PC and 360 versions of TF2, with the PS3 edition outsourced to EA UK.

"How and when is still sort of being determined, on pricing and that kind of stuff. On the PC it's sort of wide open, you can release stuff whenever you want. On the console there's a little bit more of a pathway."

Since its release last October, Valve has supplied the PC version of Team Fortress 2 with two major updates. As of yet, no content updates have been provided for the console versions of the title.

"What we've been waiting for is until we had a critical mass of new content to put out," Lombardi added. "So we feel like we're kind of there now. We'll probably be making some announcements pretty soon on what will happen with the 360 stuff. I don't know that--unfortunately I don't know that any of that will make it to the PS3."

The long-awaited PC update to Valve's Team Fortress 2 has been released.

TF2 owners looking forward to earning Medic achievements, scoring the three new weapons, and playing on the cooperatively-focused Goldrush map can now log onto Steam and receive their free satisfaction.

Valve also notes that a worldwide Team Fortress 2 Free Weekend will begin on Friday at noon PDT, allowing access to the entire game for anyone with a free Steam account from May 2 to May 4.

Full patch notes after the link. ... Read more

The Scout from Team Fortress 2 would like you to meet him. He is kind of a big deal. If you haven't had a look at these yet for some odd reason, then here are a few others to check out: Meet The Demoman, Meet The Engineer, Meet The Soldier.

The long-awaited Goldrush expansion to Team Fortress 2 is just around the corner, so it may be time to sharpen up those skills. Also have a look at our interview with Robin Walker discussing the upcoming changes to the Medic class.

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Registered users can use the HD Stream. Or you can download the full Meet The Scout HD WMV at FileShack.