Sniper vs Spy

I’m not sure how many of you have played, or heard of, Valve’s critically acclaimed team-based shooter, Team Fortress 2, before; but recently there has been quite a lot of fun to be had with regards to news of the latest update to the game, which will update two very different and distinct classes, the Sniper and the Spy.

A little background detail: Team Fortress 2 is a first person shooter game in which two teams, RED and BLU, fight it out in one of several different objective-based games on zany maps. Each player can choose one of nine classes, each with a distinctive personality, weaponry and playing style - ranging from the fast moving, American, baseball loving Scout; to the German Medic who has no concern for his patients, or the big slow Russian Heavy who names his guns.

Since the release of the game, Valve have gradually released large updates for the game, generally focusing on upgrading a certain class by giving it unlockable weapons, each with their own distinct benefits and disadvantages, as well as other major content expansions. While these new weapons affect gameplay, all the unlockables are still fine-tuned to keep the gameplay perfectly balanced, with no single class being overly powerful, thus keeping the emphasis on having a range of classes on your team to counter all your opponents.

This update was originally advertised as being an update for the Sniper, however a few days later it was revealed to be an update for the Spy, and now it’s an update for both. Why these two particular classes were chosen and how the marketing has been so effective, is mainly down to the in-game rivalry that exists between classes. Snipers generally perform best hanging back and taking out enemies at long ranges with their sniper rifles, and aren’t best suited to close combat, with a simple SMG and machete for defense. Spies, on the other hand, are masters of stealth, who can cloak temporarily and disguise as enemy players, as well as being able to insta-kill anyone with a single melee to the back - also known as the backstab.

Generally this means while the Sniper is busy looking out for targets far away, the Spy is easily able to waltz up behind him and get an easy backstab kill. The latest update makes attempts to counter that, by giving the Sniper some protection in the form of an electrically charged shield that stuns any backstab attempts, and throwable jars of urine that short out enemy Spies cloaking devices. The Spy on the other hand, isn’t doomed though, as he can utilise a new high-powered revolver that is just as accurate as the Sniper’s rifle, but with a long reload time, as well as gaining new cloaking devices that work in new ways.

One more thing that has always helped to the success of these updates are promotional videos released by Valve as part of a “Meet the Team” series, focusing on a single class and their story. The latest instalment is Meet the Spy, a hilarious look at the aspects of the Spy and how enemy Spies are able to deceive their way in to the objective with cunning and stealth. You really should watch it!

And go out and buy TF2 on Steam (or as part of the Orange Box on the Xbox 360) and start enjoying!