TF2 A TF2 Rant - The New Update

The TF2 matchmaking update is fucking awful. For starters, you can't choose which map to play now. Hell, you can't even choose a single game mode to play; you have to pick at least 2 for the game to choose from. The worst part? CASUAL MODE. It works the same way as Competitive Mode, only it is free. Same level system. Same penalties for leaving. Same scenario of playing a game and then back into the lobby and waiting for fucking ages again. The clue is in the word CASUAL. I don't want to be forced into a matchmaking match. I want the option to have Quick Play to jump into a game that I won't be penalised for leaving. I am not a comp player. I play TF2 to kill some time. But if I need to go, or my internet cuts out, or I just get bored and want to play something else, I can't leave, even in CASUAL Mode because I'll get fucking penalised. DOESN'T SEEM TOO FUCKING CASUAL TO ME VALVE. The worst part is even Casual forces you back to the fucking lobby. I understand lobbies for comp matches, but for casual fuckabouts? NO. IT'S A BAD FUCKING IDEA. People want to go pubstomping. THAT IS WHAT CASUAL TF2 IS; exactly what Quick Play was before this fucking update! Valve can try and hide this behind as many hats, miscs and taunts as they fucking want. The fact remains that this highly anticipated update has been implemented horribly and has made TF2 a giant pile of shit for casual fans. Don't tell me I can go on community servers, because that's when shit gets super stupid. Shite custom maps, admin abuse, adverts, bad fucking plugins (apart from Harpoon's Payload server of course, where I just suffer from game breaking lag because of my poopy home internet). It's a bad fucking update, and hopefully, at least as far as Casual Matchmaking replacing Quick Play goes, it gets reversed, because it has genuinely made me, someone who likes TF2 and was just starting to get back into it again after a hiatus, say fuck it. Fuck this update. I mean, when people are literally begging for autobalance to come back to casual pub games, YOU KNOW SOMETHING IS WRONG.

 

THANK FUCK THEY ACTUALLY LISTENED

 

"It's no secret that Casual Mode has had a rough launch. We wanted to give you an update on what we're doing to address your concerns.


Short version: We hear you. Later today, we will be shipping a patch to Casual Mode that will remove the penalties for abandoning a game, and allow you to narrow your game mode selections from two modes to a single mode before queuing. Additionally, in the very near future, we will be shipping a more comprehensive Casual Mode patch that will let you select the maps you will be matched into.


We've provided a more detailed breakdown of Casual Mode's issues and how we are addressing your concerns below.


First, and most important, queue times. The queue times you are currently experiencing are a bug, not a feature. It is something we are actively working to correct. Several backend issues appeared post-launch that culminated in long wait times. Removing this issue is our highest priority right now.


Second, abandonment penalties. We had put in a ten-minute cooldown period to encourage players to complete matches. Your feedback has convinced us that it is more important for players to be able to come and go as they please. Today's patch will remove abandonment cooldown penalties from Casual Mode.


Third, user choice. We'd intended to roll out the number of match options available to players incrementally, so as not to overload the matchmaking system with too many variables on Day One. In retrospect, of all the match options to hold back, map selection should not have been one of them. It is the next feature we are adding to Casual Mode, and you will get it very soon.


Fourth, Casual Mode levels. Levels are a cosmetic feature that show how much you've played. They can never be lost, and they do not affect matchmaking. We did a poor job of communicating that Casual Mode Levels are in no way similar to Competitive Mode Ranks (which do affect matchmaking, and can be lost).


Finally, we wanted to note that we value the role the community plays in the development of this game, and do in fact read all the feedback sent to us, as well as through reddit, the forums, streams, and more. We are not always as talkative as we perhaps should be, but we are listening."

I still don't think we NEED matchmaking for casual play at all though.