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QTI · Jan 23, 2008, 01:49 AM

Anyone playing the PC version of Team Fortress 2 on your Mac? I wonder how it runs (if it runs?)...

I've been playing the XBOX version. Its extremely fun when you can join a 8x8 game without lag and with good team players... but lagging is pretty bad and it makes it really difficult to find a good game to join. I don't have a PC and am wondering if anyone is playing on their Macs.

madlep · Jan 23, 2008, 04:32 PM

Yep. All the source games (Half Life 2, Portal, TF2) run nicely on my macbook pro under bootcamp. Have heard only mixed reports of how well they run on standard macbook.

Have run them on recent iMacs as well, and they're also good.

jokell82 · Jan 27, 2008, 04:51 PM

I love this game. Was addicted to TFC back in the day and I bought the Orange Box for 360 just for TF2. Debating whether or not to upgrade my very old PC to get the new maps and the new medic updates. Sounds like the 360 wont get them (or if it does, it will be a paid upgrade vs. free on the PC).

sek929 · Jan 27, 2008, 05:44 PM

I feel guilty for not even touching TF on the Orange Box, but I hear the matchmaking isn't very good right now.

jokell82 · Jan 27, 2008, 05:51 PM

Originally Posted by sek929

I feel guilty for not even touching TF on the Orange Box, but I hear the matchmaking isn't very good right now.

There is no matchmaking. Just hop on a server and play.

Oh, and just because you're good at Halo 3 does not mean you'll be good at TF2.

sek929 · Jan 27, 2008, 06:19 PM

I'll probably suck, but maybe I'll see what the fuss is about one of these days.

Hell, we might even be able to get some NN folks together since we all have eachothers GT.

harbinger75 · Jan 27, 2008, 07:27 PM

for TF2...but I've had to play on my PC. The Steam/Valve apps are going to be the first ones on my MBP when I pick it up in the next couple weeks (along with WoW).

TF2 has been a great breath of fresh air in the "capture the flag" and "team deathmatch" type play. The cartoon stylization caught me fairly quickly, and I play regularly now. A definite must.

Chuckit · Jan 27, 2008, 07:51 PM

I've the opposite way about the cartoon stylization. The graphics have kept me from wanting to try this game. (I know it seems shallow, but they just look really unattractive to me.)

jokell82 · Jan 27, 2008, 09:04 PM

Originally Posted by Chuckit

I've the opposite way about the cartoon stylization. The graphics have kept me from wanting to try this game. (I know it seems shallow, but they just look really unattractive to me.)

You should definitely give it a chance. It looks a lot better than you probably think.

Chuckit · Jan 28, 2008, 03:50 PM

I gave it a try. You're right, the look didn't annoy me as much as I thought it would. Though I did get a voice message from some dude afterward telling me that I was "the worst spy ever." (It was true. I kept messing up the cloaking and popping out right in front of people.)

jokell82 · Jan 28, 2008, 03:54 PM

Originally Posted by Chuckit

I gave it a try. You're right, the look didn't annoy me as much as I thought it would. Though I did get a voice message from some dude afterward telling me that I was "the worst spy ever." (It was true. I kept messing up the cloaking and popping out right in front of people.)

Yeah a few of the classes aren't so "n00b" friendly, the spy being the biggest one. You really have to know what you're doing to be a good spy.

Although I've never been so disappointed in someone else's play that I felt the need to send them a voice message about it. What a weirdo.

Dakar the Fourth · Jan 28, 2008, 03:56 PM

Yeah, sounds like the type of jackass you'd find on Halo.

Chuckit · Jan 28, 2008, 03:59 PM

Yeah, I had no idea which classes were the good noob ones, so I just picked the spy because it sounded fun. After it became clear I wasn't getting it, I switched to a medic so I'd have an excuse to just follow people around and figure out what was going on. I'm not sure if the guy sent the message before that or if he was still raw about my lack of spy skillz.

jokell82 · Jan 28, 2008, 04:15 PM

Originally Posted by Chuckit

Yeah, I had no idea which classes were the good noob ones, so I just picked the spy because it sounded fun. After it became clear I wasn't getting it, I switched to a medic so I'd have an excuse to just follow people around and figure out what was going on. I'm not sure if the guy sent the message before that or if he was still raw about my lack of spy skillz.

Medic is a great way to learn the game (plus you can work on your Medic achievement).

sek929 · Jan 28, 2008, 04:28 PM

Originally Posted by Dakar the Fourth

Yeah, sounds like the type of jackass you'd find on Halo.

Yup. You have a few different classes of assholes during internet matches.

1. 13 year-old with a fondness for the N word.
2. 13 year-old screaming various inaudible things.
3. 13 year old that has nothing to do but get super nasty at a game and then make fun of those who have lives when he pwns them.
4. 18 year-old stoners/drunks swearing constantly.
5. 18 year-old losers with the same situation as #3.
6. My friend Cheezydog who berates anyone silly enough to say anything to him.
7. Me, but usually i don't have a mic so my obscenities go unheard.

Dakar the Fourth · Jan 28, 2008, 04:31 PM

1. gets on my nerves. Then it gets in my head and I'll start using it. Annoying.

I dealt with 4 this weekend (I think stogie was there). It was hilarious. I'd post what he said, but its just not worth it without an impression.

sek929 · Jan 28, 2008, 04:34 PM

I would just love to see these little shits say n*gg*r in front of my 6 foot 4 black friend.

Dakar the Fourth · Jan 28, 2008, 04:35 PM

By the same token, nothing amuses me more than being told I'm a wack n* by some black dude. Usually in a complementary fashion.

sek929 · Jan 28, 2008, 04:41 PM

Haha, totally.

My aforementioned friend is a huge gentle giant too, what a silly kid to hang out with. Having a large black friend comes in handy when you're 135 pounds soaking wet and you need a group of kids out of your house.

We were throwing a party a couple years back and some *********s were giving me and my roomies a hassle. My friend (Brian) just came up the basement stairs and said "Is there a problem here?" Man did those kids scramble

mr. burns · Jan 28, 2008, 06:03 PM

i've been playing pretty steady since the release, on my woodcrest macpro. i have about 90 hours played as a demoman, 20 with sniper and not much more than 4 each or so with the others and just can't get enough. it's the only game i play. with x1900xt, it plays flawless at max settings, 1600x1200. with 60+ constant fps and all the effects turned on, it's really beautiful. i'd thought the creative people in the mac community would appreciate the art direction. it's pretty brilliant to be honest. i'll be playing and just have a smile on my face because the graphics and voice overs are so well done. the heavy cracks me up when he's mowing people down. 'TIME TO RUN, COWARDS! RAAAAAAHHHH.'

my experience with other players has been pretty pleasant. i stick to the same 4 servers or so and it's rare that there's anyone annoying on voice. everyone's pretty cool. most players are in their mid 20s like WoW.

if anyone plays on any california bay area servers, keep an eye out for Bob Ross.

Steam Community :: ID :: Bob Ross

harbinger75 · Jan 28, 2008, 06:22 PM

I can't seem to stick with a class. I guess it depends on the map, game type and whether all the people on my team have chosen the Scout or not.

I began getting pretty good with the Engineer, so I've gotten most of my hours with that class. I like making sentry guns and dispensers for protection and resupply. If we're on 2Fort, I'm Engineer guarding the intelligence all the way!

harbinger75 · Jan 28, 2008, 06:28 PM

Chico, eh Mr. Burns? I used to live in Yuba. Haven't been back since 1989, though.

mr. burns · 06:54 PM

as far as which classes to start out with. medic is good. so are soldier, heavy and engineer.

when playing medic, you're the primary target. try to find a good heavy/soldier/pyro or even demo to follow around and heal. the better the person you're healing, the easier it'll be to stay alive. never stand still, as snipers are always looking to take you out with an easy head shot. try to keep your buddy in between you and the enemies to avoid getting rushed. during the warm-up period before a map starts, make sure to keep your medigun healing someone so it'll charge your uber and it'll be ready when the game starts. that's pretty key in dustbowl, whether you're attacking or defending. you need that uber to make a good push out of the gates.

engineer is pretty easy to start out with but it takes a lot of experience to figure out all the good places to put sentries and how to defend yourself and your buildings at the same time. first thing you should do when leaving your spawn room is make a teleporter entrance and then go back in and re-up your metal. make the exit a little behind the front lines or right by where you're building, so your team can return to action faster, but save that for after you build a dispenser and sentry, unless you have an ammo spawn close. when you find a spot to put a sentry, put down a dispenser first, if you have the time. once the dispenser is down, you have an endless supply of metal to upgrade and build from. try to keep your dispenser right by your sentry so that you can heal yourself and your sentry when it's taking fire. unless it's a pyro attacking the sentry, you can duck down behind the gun and it'll take the damage, instead of you, while you heal it with the wrench.

anyone who's played long enough knows how nasty the soldier can be. those rockets might be slow but their huge splash damage means you can just shoot in the vicinity of the enemies feet and take them out pretty fast. you don't have to hit them directly. then of course there are critical rockets which pretty much vaporize anything in the splash damage range. can't count how many times i've turned a corner only to be insta-gibbed by some crit rocket landing at my feet. soldiers also have a lot of hit points and medics follow them around about as much as they do heavies. if you're just roaming around without a medic they're still the best all around offensive class to start playing with.

heavies are easy to play but are much more dependent on having a medic with them. being so slow, they're sitting ducks if they get attacked by surprise and their gun isn't revved up.

mr. burns · 07:04 PM

Originally Posted by harbinger75

I can't seem to stick with a class. I guess it depends on the map, game type and whether all the people on my team have chosen the Scout or not.

I began getting pretty good with the Engineer, so I've gotten most of my hours with that class. I like making sentry guns and dispensers for protection and resupply. If we're on 2Fort, I'm Engineer guarding the intelligence all the way!

i played the team fortress classic mod for half-life, back in the day and was always a sniper for some reason. maybe because it was so hard to be a sniper when everyone was still playing on 28.8-56k modems. sniper wars were fun and i didn't really care what else was going on. i was pretty young lol. when i got TF2 i started with the sniper because of my fond memories, but i started to realize they're not all that useful all the time, and usually a team only needs one or two at most.

you can't go wrong with the demoman, though. it's just one of those classes that is always needed, and is really versatile so that's what i usually go with. they have a pretty steap learning curve but once you get good, it's so fun. imo, a good demoman can wreak way more havoc than a good soldier.

from northern cali, eh? i'm actually down in san jose now. i went to school at chico state. guess i should change my profile

.

jokell82 · Jan 28, 2008, 06:59 PM

I've been pretty addicted to the Pyro in TF2. Never was a big Pyro fan with TFC, but it's now my #2 class for playing time behind the engineer.

mr. burns · Jan 28, 2008, 07:25 PM

yeah, pyro is a lot of fun. he just seems a little too weak against soldiers and heavies at the moment. every other class is no problem to burn down, but a soldier or heavy with buffed health from a medic takes too long, i think. you can completely ambush them and strafe to stay behind them, but in most cases all the soldier has to do is just turn and shoot his feet once to blow you up, which usually results in them blowing themselves up in the process and robbing you of your kill and points.

heavy just needs to turn and get 3-4 bullets in the pyro and that's enough to kill them. even less if he crits at all. if you're lucky, they burn to death after they've killed you.

i think all the pyro really needs is an increased crit chance when attacking from behind. they should have a better chance of taking a soldier or heavy out when catching them by surprise like that.

ort888 · Feb 1, 2008, 11:34 AM

I tried to get into this on the Xbox but every game I got into was laggy as hell. It seems to have really bad net code on Xbox Live.

Annoying, because it looks really cool.

jokell82 · Feb 1, 2008, 11:39 AM

Originally Posted by ort888

I tried to get into this on the Xbox but every game I got into was laggy as hell. It seems to have really bad net code on Xbox Live.

Annoying, because it looks really cool.

There are some lag issues. There is a patch ready for release to help these issues but Microsoft has been "certifying" it for two months now. That's why I'm buying it for the PC tomorrow.

QTI · Feb 28, 2008, 12:10 AM

Currently I got a Dual 2G PM and it still serves me well with my needs. I've been playing TF2 on XBOX it could be quite frustrating some times (lagging and other issues). I am trying to decide whether I should upgrade to a Macbook Pro or even a Mac Pro... a main purpose would be TF2 for PC... Since I've got a tower seems it would make more sense to get a laptop so I'm thinking about the base or medium model MBP. Does TF2 run well on it? But then the price difference from a base model Mac Pro doesn't seem to be that big...

Chuckit · Feb 28, 2008, 01:10 AM

Originally Posted by QTI

Currently I got a Dual 2G PM and it still serves me well with my needs. I've been playing TF2 on XBOX it could be quite frustrating some times (lagging and other issues). I am trying to decide whether I should upgrade to a Macbook Pro or even a Mac Pro... a main purpose would be TF2 for PC... Since I've got a tower seems it would make more sense to get a laptop so I'm thinking about the base or medium model MBP. Does TF2 run well on it? But then the price difference from a base model Mac Pro doesn't seem to be that big...

I hear it runs pretty well.

jokell82 · Mar 5, 2008, 09:05 AM

Anyone playing this on Steam? My steam ID is "thejokell" - hit me up if you want to play.

ShortcutToMoncton · Mar 9, 2008, 11:35 AM

It's funny; I was a huge TF fan and also got pretty amazingly good at CTF sniper mods in UT back in the day... and that makes me completely scared to even think about getting Orange Box.

I don't have any time as is, and it will suck all the goodness of life out of me, I know it.

Sigh. I have no fun.

greg

sideus · Mar 10, 2008, 08:09 AM

Tf2 is great. I play on both the PC and Xbox.

Judge_Fire · Mar 12, 2008, 08:30 AM

Originally Posted by jokell82

Anyone playing this on Steam? My steam ID is "thejokell" - hit me up if you want to play.

Surprisingly, judge_fire is my ID, feel free to link up. The trans-atlantic lag might be an issue, though, but I'm craving the 'With friends like these'- achievement...

Turias · Mar 12, 2008, 01:58 PM

This game has been running great on my Mac Book Pro (non-duo) in Boot Camp. My steam ID is Turias if anyone wants to play.

antidesign · 02:58 PM

I just got a new Mac and the Orange Box and am working on getting everything set up to play. Can anyone explain what Steam is- is it necessary to play? And will I need anything more than Boot Camp and Windows XP, like more drivers or anything? I'm looking forward to playing, I just don't want to spend hours installing stuff.
Also, what kind of mouse do you all use? I don't want to spend $50 on a mouse so I'm thinking of getting that Microsoft intellimouse. All you really need is two buttons right?

Another question- I read somewhere that there weren't as many maps for TF2 as there were for TFC. Is this true, and are there other maps available to download like there used to be? Are they the same maps as TFC? I would love to be able to remember everything and just jump in and start playing rather than learn all new maps.
I played TFC many years ago on a PC and really liked everything the way it was. I'm hoping TF2 will be every bit as good as I remember TFC being and better.

QTI · Mar 13, 2008, 11:18 AM

Sorry I don't have an answer to any of your questions, as I have been playing the XBOX version and just placed an order for a Mac Pro today... look forward to trying out the PC version!

I haven't played TFC but could not believe that I'm still playing TF2 on XBOX after so many months.

Which version of Windows should I get by the way? XP or Vista (and which version of them)? I'm quite confused by the options...

jokell82 · Mar 13, 2008, 11:21 AM

Originally Posted by QTI

Sorry I don't have an answer to any of your questions, as I have been playing the XBOX version and just placed an order for a Mac Pro today... look forward to trying out the PC version!

I haven't played TFC but could not believe that I'm still playing TF2 on XBOX after so many months.

Which version of Windows should I get by the way? XP or Vista (and which version of them)? I'm quite confused by the options...

Get XP. It's a lot more reliable when it comes to drivers than Vista is.

Turias · Mar 30, 2008, 07:01 PM

I just made a public Steam group called "MacNN". If anyone wants to play some TF2 or any other Steam games, join up!

Drew · Apr 1, 2008, 11:36 PM

I have the orange box for the 360, and today I bought it off Steam.

I have an iMac C2D 1.83 GHz, the white version.

Let me just say that it won't run worth a ****.
First off, whenever I start a game, i'm playing with shadow people in a world that's bright as hell. I'm moving at around 10fps, and I can't do anything. It took me an hour to get it to WORK, and it still won't do anything. Anyone have any suggestions other than "get a new pc"?

Drew · Apr 1, 2008, 11:37 PM

Originally Posted by Drew

I have the orange box for the 360, and today I bought it off Steam.

I have an iMac C2D 1.83 GHz, the white version.

Let me just say that it won't run worth a ****.
First off, whenever I start a game, i'm playing with shadow people in a world that's bright as hell. I'm moving at around 10fps, and I can't do anything. It took me an hour to get it to WORK, and it still won't do anything. Anyone have any suggestions other than "get a new pc"?

boot camp with XP, btw. intel GMA950 FTL.

Luca Rescigno · Apr 2, 2008, 03:17 PM

Yeah, a GMA 950 isn't going to be able to play most games. I'm surprised you even got it to start, much less play (albeit at super low framerates).

There may be some hope if you right click on the game in Steam, look at the properties, then click on "Set Launch Options" and add the text "-dxlevel 80" to it. "-dxlevel 81" might also be worth trying. The game won't remember those settings, though, so you'll either have to enter it every time you launch the game or edit the registry to make it permanent.

It's worth a shot. That trick should be able to get at least some Half-Life 2-based games to work on a GMA950. But if it doesn't work, there's nothing else you can do short of buying hardware that is capable enough to play games.

mr. burns · Apr 20, 2008, 03:43 PM

new goldrush map coming out this week, along with the new medic achievements that progressively unlock 3 new weapon choices:

The Blutsaugher
For players that earn one third of the 36 new medic achievements, they will be given a new syringe gun. Called "The Blutsaugher," this new weapon no longer has the ability to score critical hits against an opponent. Instead it will draw health from enemies each time a syringe hits. Especially useful as a weapon to retreat away from the fight while staying alive.

The Critzcrieg
Once a medic has earned two thirds of the achievements, they will be granted "The Critzcrieg." This new medigun uses its ubercharge not for invulnerability, but to give its recipient 100% chance to fire critical ordinance. Medics and the player they are charging need to be careful though, because as much fun as it is to fire critical rockets as fast as you can, the other team will see what you're up to and try to put a quick stop to your plan.

The Ubersaw
For the determined medic that has earned all 36 of the new achievements, they will find themselves the proud owner of "The Ubersaw," which will take damage done in melee attacks and convert it directly to ubercharge. Four hits with this new weapon will fully charge whatever medigun the medic has equpped.

moep · Apr 21, 2008, 01:38 AM

Giving players actual in-game rewards for unlocked Achievements is a really cool idea.
I haven't played TF2 for a quite a while now so I'm out of the loop in terms of news — does Valve plan to add similar rewards for all other classes?

jokell82 · Apr 21, 2008, 09:06 AM

Originally Posted by moep

Giving players actual in-game rewards for unlocked Achievements is a really cool idea.
I haven't played TF2 for a quite a while now so I'm out of the loop in terms of news — does Valve plan to add similar rewards for all other classes?

It's planned for all classes. Rumors used to be that the Pyro was next, but in a recent interview Valve talked about the Engineer unlocks, so the Engy may actually be next on the list.

Chuckit · Apr 21, 2008, 10:52 AM

Oh, man. The Critzcrieg will be absolutely horrifying teamed with a Heavy.

jokell82 · Apr 21, 2008, 01:44 PM

Originally Posted by Chuckit

Oh, man. The Critzcrieg will be absolutely horrifying teamed with a Heavy.

I'm thinking demo with 8 crit stickies.

jokell82 · Apr 29, 2008, 10:03 PM

Gold Rush update is out, and it is FUN. So far I've yet to get to stage 2, though. Red keeps winning at that last point.

Judge_Fire · May 30, 2008, 03:48 PM

Achievement unlocking affects games being played in interesting ways. Suddenly, the servers were full of medics and people picking up the skill of playing them. Whatever class comes next will likely unleash a similar wave of people hunting achievements.

It keeps the game fresh in unexpected ways, for a long time, as these are released on a seemingly slow schedule. A game full of spys will be... interesting