YOU STILL WANNA PLAYTEST WITH US??

Tired of dull sawblades, unexpected... wait, I think we said that last time. Our first wave of playtesters have been very helpful with ironing out bugs and testing out our upcoming features, they've been so diligent in fact that we've decided to go ahead and start another wave! So if you missed out on the first wave, now's your chance to try!

If you've sent us an application before but weren't accepted, now's the time to go back and re-read your responses, perhaps remove that paragraph about "Destroying the dev team and rebuilding it in my image" and clean up your writing.

Certain applications were put in the backlog already and were just waiting for a better time, which could be now!

So what are you standin around for, take that pen an quil and get writing!

https://forms.gle/QYZ6rkkziY3tWp8V7

Judging by the loud explosion sounds, wet thuds, and the orchestra of crickets on my front porch, it seems that one more year has passed for Open Fortress, not just one in fact, this time, it's FIVE!

For some, everything they could ever wish for, for others, no time at all, but we are OPEN FORTRESS, and this is a cause for celebration!
There is much to say, and to help, I'll consult my trustworthy advisor and Co-General. Let's hear what he has to say:
"Wait, what? Its been five years? IT HAS NOT BEEN FIVE YEARS ALREADY!!
I'm over here fending off polar bears from invading my home in the alaskan wilderness, and you guys are expecting a big anniversary post! Well, guess I better fax you guys this latest info for the occasion! (And hope one of these bears doesn't gnaw my arm off)"

While we wait for the wonders of technology to do their thing, why don't we look at less sentimental tearjerkers and rather at the future!

Indeed, the last couple of months have been quite eventful behind the scenes.
Open Fortress, in its core, is a collection of games and gamemodes with Team Fortress at its heart, so it's been quite saddening to see many of its modes and features forgotten and unplayed, which is why we've been cooking up a new way for the game to flow, which would not only let players experience more that the game has to offer, but also future-proof it for any new games and gamemodes added, for example: Retromode!

Now, not to get your hopes up too much, we're still not actively developing Retromode, our main focus is polishing up and finishing Deathmatch, but this is a big step towards a more varied experience.

Instead of the old and dusty map votes at the end of the game and tucked away vote menus to change the mutator, we now have a brand-new end of round voting screen that includes gamemodes, maps and mutators, all of which are now more customizable than ever, both on our end as well as the server's end.

The commonly used plugin "Rock the vote" now also has an in-game equivalent in the call-vote menu.
From having every single option as a possible vote, to only hosting a single map and gamemode, the system is as customizable as it gets, and we hope to see both regular players, as well as creative server hosts, to make full use of the system.
Of course, we're also working hard to allow old geezers to host servers without this new system so as not to break compatibility with tried-and-true plugins and methods.

The system, mechanics-wise, is mostly done; the only thing left is coding the UI for it, which will come with a few new VGUI updates as well.

The system is quite big, and we want to make sure everything works correctly, as it encompasses the entire game.
Many other changes and updates have been made during its development, and we might want to push those out before it's done, so we can't guarantee the vote system will be in the next update, but it definitely will come soon!

As for actual gameplay changes, you might've caught some teasers of a certain new powerup, the Jetpack!

Look Up! Look Down! Look Out! Mercenary does it everywhere!
The jetpack lets the user soar through the air at will and keep or increase their momentum, and don't worry about your jetpack running out mid-flight, modern medicine has made fall damage a thing of the past.

And before you ask, yes, a certain egg-laying Tachyglossidae is already back on his mission to collect gemstones or something like that, as our modeler James Retro has been hard at work to make this beautiful contraption a reality.

Now that's classy!

Many of our mappers have also been hard at work and wanted to share their progress:

Take a look at this in Dev bloodrun re-artpass by Pigeon!

And something that's been long in the making ( and is still in the making... ), a tutorial map! It's still quite a ways off, but we're making slow but sure progress on it.

A change in scenery is always nice to spice up the day.

Now, let's see how our fax machine is doing.
Ah, here it is.

Five years? It doesn't feel real, yet as I stare at this single gray hair on my head, the reality is beginning to set in that I'm almost thirty. Through working on this project, I've made some amazing friends and had the privilege to work alongside some very talented people, and despite the hardships we sometimes face, it's the wonderful community we've amassed that makes everything worth it. You all are what keep this whole thing going, what keeps me motivated to continue being part of this, and, of course, continuing to perform the part as your favorite masked man. To all of you, in the community and on my dev team both past and present, from the bottom of my heart, thank you all. - Stachekip

Five years... That's over half of Team Fortress 2's development time now, crazy to think about. One day you're opening Visual Studio to figure out what an "Int pointer" is, and next thing you know, you have blood on your hands, a goat horn stuck in your head, and a pentagram beneath you; and also a Project with hundreds of contributors and thousands of fans. The first year was so exciting. I had just turned 16, learning about the engine, figuring out how to make the bare necessities work, then people started joining, and wanting to contribute, and quickly things started developing, the first maps, the first actual playable build, I remember the multi-weapon system genuinely being an accident at first, giving a dozen weapons in each of the first 3 slots.
The Mercenary actually got a model! And his voice actor, now a good friend of mine, also decided to lend his hand and approval.
New UI, the Loadout system, more modes... As the second year dawned, the first big boom happened, and we had so much trouble hosting the downloads due to our non-existent funds.
Hosting is definitely something that is still plaguing us to this day...
Development on Retromode started, but quickly faded, more polish for DM, internal struggles with keeping the mod afloat and the team running, to the point where I left for a bit...
Third year's hazy for me due to my absence, but I know the team bounced back and got into the structure it is today, for the better I feel.
Next Year was the big shut-down, which halted development to a crawl, and finally we're back, trying as best as we can to continue what we started.
I am so thankful for everyone, especially the team, be it people who stuck around till current day, be it the ones that have moved on, and especially the ones who perished on the climb. - Kay

Tired of dull sawblades, unexpected "BONK!"s, and assault rifles bursting into flames?
Well, we are too! Open Fortress has been in open alpha since its inception, and public testing helps out a lot in discovering bugs. However, since making a public version takes quite a bit longer than making a development version, internal testing has been a major part of our workflow, and unfortunately recent changes have left us unable to accept new internal playtesters for a long while... UNTIL NOW!

That's right, we are re-opening playtester applications, and with a brand new server to boot! If you've been on the nice list this year and have been very active in our Discord, you may have a higher chance of getting accepted. In particular, we're interested in server operators for the next update, as it introduces changes in how they flow.

Well, what're you waiting for, Christmas? Unless you've been on the.. what's the opposite of nice? Not nice? Unless you've been on the not nice list this year, then check out the form below to apply!

https://forms.gle/QYZ6rkkziY3tWp8V7

[System]

• Updated FMOD to newer version

• Enabled FMOD debug mode

• SourceMod now officially supports Open Fortress

[Gameplay]

• Big projectile and Explosion update

  • Changed how blastjump knockback is stored
    • Now saved separately from damage
    • Self damage reduction or increase now doesn't affect it anymore
      • Shield now properly protects you, without sacrificing blast jump height
    • Fixes weapons like the China lake doing more self damage than intended
  • Changed how collision detection is handled
    • Should be more consistent across the board now
    • All damage is now done from the PROJECTILE'S team, rather than the shooters, which fixes changing teams allowing for friendly fire
  • Changed how visuals are networked
    • Visual information should now be stored in the projectile itself, which fixes edge cases where the weapon is deleted after a projectile is fired

• Added self damage stat for weapons

  • Reduced Gravity gauntlets self damage

• Wait to respawn no longer works in duel

• Re-implemented bot_spawner entity

[UI]

• Added patch version to the main menu

• Added "include_res" option to res files

  • Allows a res file to include another res file within itself ( With depth support )
  • To use, create a "include_res" container anywhere in your res file, ex:

            "include_res"
            {
                "include" "resource/ui/foreground.res"
                "include" "resource/ui/background.res"
            }

• Added edit_line_number parameter to combo box

  • Set the number of items in the dropdown menu.

• Added command to open the loadout menu while In-Game open_charinfo_direct

• Main menu submenus are now precached and will only load once, so opening and closing them should be faster now

[Bugfix]

• Fixed "map" command no showing the loading screen when used
• Fixed loading dialog not closing upon being disconnected
• Fixed options menu and server browser lingering in the background after being deselected
• Fixed Lockdown bots counting towards balance
• Fixed Lockdown bots not thinking
• Fixed bots forgetting how to put one leg after the other every other tick
• Fixed bots ignoring players in FFA entirely
  • They still have a small FOV and don't look around often
• Fixed Spectators "ragequitting" duel matches
• Fixed certain weapons causing the crit sound to play on loop when headshotting
• Fixed projectiles hitting teammates if the shooter changed team midway through
• Fixed Flamethrower and GIB AOE not hitting teammates with friendlyfire
• Fixed projectile visuals like explosions using the wrong effects if the weapon is removed early
• Fixed cl_quickzoom_out_time and cl_quickzoom_in_time not being clientside
• Fixed jitter when colliding with players in FFA
• Fixed jitter when colliding with teammates when of_teamplay_collision is enabled
• Fixed superweapons not dissolving
• Fixed Shotgun not having the two extra reload sounds that were erroneously removed at some point

[Stability]

• Updated libcurl version, fixing a major security flaw
• Added few more failsafes to prevent FMOD Play sound from crashing
• Base class information for bot_spawner bots is now also precached, which should reduce lag on first spawn
• Fixed crashes related to animation handling
• Cleaned up how class precache is handled
• Minor crash fixes related to bots
• Quickzoom is now more stable on high ping scenarios

[Maps]

Trisect

• Reset length to from 60 to 30 seconds and decreased respawn time on invisibility, shield, and duel shield powerups.
• Expanded the yellow section
• Completely remade the green section to fit circular gameplay better.
• Removed the elevator for now (will most likely be back in a future version)
• New slipgate from the yellow section’s display case to the catwalk over the blue section.
• Added various health and ammo pickups across the map
• Added more spawn points
• Much better lighting
• More artpass progress
• Included navmesh for bot pathfinding

Fotia

• Reworked the indoors Office section
  • Now less cramped and more spacious
• Reworked haste powerup room
• Rest of the map scaled down for sake of flow
• Adjusted the angling of some slopes on the B-side of the map for better flow
• Added a new route into the fan room

[SourceMod]

With this update comes Official support from SourceMod. To use SourceMod now, you simply need to get the latest version off of their website:
https://www.sourcemod.net/downloads.php

Alongside this version of OF-Tools, which is much more lightweight:
https://github.com/openfortress/SM-Open-Fortress-Tools/tree/first-party-sm

Calling all mercenaries! The eggheads over at R&D have been looking for new ways to expand our horizons, all in order to best demonstrate our firepower on all fronts both physical and digital, and to let the criminal underworld know this: We. Mean. Business. Long story short, we just discovered this new-fangled "YouTube" thing, and by then it had occurred to us that we now have the technology to show off some of our strongest mercenaries we've got to offer! While at the same time, catching instances of goons goofing around on the job, just for that false sense of security if one were to enlist. Which is why we need YOU!

Yes, that's right. It's about damn time to show this world what you're really made of. Whether you're a godly ass-kicker, or a goofy goober, there's always room for a merc like you! If you've got what it takes, then march right on over to [email protected] and hand over YOUR clips, all for the chance at being showcased in one of our future broadcasts. Now GO! MOVE IT!

(In layman's terms: Send us your clips, whether they're cool frags or assortments of funny moments, and we'll put em' in compilations on our official Youtube channel.)

Listen! Can you hear that in the distance? The sound of marching, the sound of a hundred pairs of boots in formation, the sound of a certain gravel-voiced drill instructor barking commands? That’s the sound of us coming to get you, because we want you - not to court martial you for war crimes (although we’re collecting some compelling evidence on that front), but to recruit you. That’s right: applications to join the Open Fortress development team are now open!

You can apply to contribute to any part of the development process, from the creative to the technical, from the gameplay-related to the promotional - although at the moment we’re particularly interested in recruiting new programmers, 3D modellers and music composers. But no matter your speciality, if you feel you’ve got what it takes, get your butt to the application form and get typing. Who knows - soon enough you too could be a valued and vital member of the team, helping to bring Open Fortress out of the basic training that is alpha and into the flying colors of beta, full release, and beyond!

Right now, we are especially eager to scout out for new programmers to help bring our game together swiftly and successfully. So if you know how to separate lines of code from the frontlines in the trenches, then get those boots of yours on and start marching!

Note: if we don’t reach out to you immediately, that doesn’t necessarily mean that your application has been rejected. Evaluating everybody’s applications might take a while, so sit tight and we’ll get back to you in due course!

Just a friendly reminder for those unaware, we have created a bug tracker on GitHub available here: https://github.com/openfortress/public-issue-tracker/issues

If you've got any issues you'd like to report, please make them here. We'll try to keep you posted on any bugs that are being/already fixed in our development build of the game.

Please also be sure to follow the template provided when submitting an issue so we can ensure it can be fixed.

Thanks and have happy fragging!

Open Fortress’ small development team may be taking things slow and steady right now, but that doesn’t mean we’re averse to putting out larger updates every now and then; we’ve still been hard at work behind the scenes, whether that’s tinkering with cool new gadgets, improving the existing OF gameplay experience, or dealing with hate mail from unhappy fans. (Well, one unhappy fan, but he’s very unhappy. More on him later.)

Today we’re pleased to announce the fruit of our labors with Revision 13, the latest major update for OF. Read on to find out more!

The Saw Ballista

Three out of four medical professionals agree that an intact spinal column is necessary for higher cognitive reasoning. The other medical professional, adamant that a lack of vertebrae can be creatively worked around, is DEAD - his belief violently disproven by a Saw Ballista to the torso. This versatile addition to the Deathmatch super weapon roster is one mean piece of machinery, capable of slicing and dicing opponents in all manner of gruesome ways, from point-blank carnage to creative round-the-corner trick shots. (Did you know that the saws it shoots are made of 0.9% rubber - just bouncy enough to bounce off walls, but not quite enough to bounce off human flesh? Or kevlar, if that’s what your opponent’s wearing. Either way that sucker’s going down, and it ain’t gonna be pretty!)

Deathmatch Maps

What use is a superweapon if you haven’t got an equally super battleground to try it out on? Today’s update adds dm_angeles_dev, the first new OF map to feature the Saw Ballista and the second to take place in sunny L.A., following last year’s duel_mulholland. Angeles is a tight, vertically-oriented warren of alleyways, rooftops and offices, with players encouraged to make the most of the space through jump pads and slipgates. If Mulholland is the responsible older sister of the OF map family, Angeles is the scrappy younger brother, stealing expensive muscle cars and joyriding them down Interstate 405 while drinking milkshakes and firing sawblades at little old ladies - a habit not even the map’s eventual artpass will cure it of. Fun for target practice though.

We’ve also added the Saw Ballista to dm_campway, an existing Deathmatch map and a remake of the DOOM II classic Entryway. The demon-infested corridors of the original map may now be a secret spy base disguised as a holiday campground, but you’ll be getting in just as much ripping and tearing with the new addition to your arsenal. As the old campfire song goes: “YOU ARE HUGE! THAT MEANS YOU HAVE HUGE GUTS!”

Another homage to the golden age of the FPS, dm_facility_dev takes the classic GoldenEye 007 map and retools it from the ground up, bridging the quarter-century gap between our mod and the original game in a way that James Bomd himself would no doubt be proud of. (That’s not a typo - James Bomd is the founder of the American Dev Texture Fan Society, and he’s been pestering us for many years to promote his little club on one of our blog posts. Here you go, Mr. Bomd!)

But the new maps in this update don’t just hark back to the oldest generation of multiplayer shooters. dm_auxiliary_dev takes its inspiration from TF2 fan favorites such as cp_steel and cp_foundry, throwing a unique hexagonal layout and an intricate network of scaffolding into the mix. And while the Saw Ballista may be a gruesome newcomer to the old frontier, no doubt Auxiliary’s eventual artpass will make veterans of the Gravel Wars feel right at home.

Right at the opposite end of the spectrum, dm_hangar’s new artpass is quite simply out of this world. Our finalized rendition of DOOM’s E1M1 map aims to do the iconic level justice, building on the outer space theme partially developed by Valve in rd_asteroid and taking it in all-new directions. Just make sure you watch out for those pools of toxic green sludge - shipping breathable air up to the Moon is pretty expensive, and doesn’t leave much left in the budget for OSHA safety certification.

Finally, dm_control has received a cool new artpass, with a cliffside facility theme that James Bomd would surely feel right at home in. There, two shoutouts in one blogpost - hope you’re finally happy, Mr. Bomd! Now will you please stop sending us aggressively worded letters?

MCTF Maps

Outside of Deathmatch, today’s update adds two new work-in-progress maps for the Mercenary Capture The Flag gamemode. Halloween may be behind us but spooky shenanigans still abound in mctf_obzen_dev, a throwback to the torchlit dungeons of classic Quake and Unreal Tournament maps. Meanwhile, mctf_august_dev finds the mercs battling in a partially flooded submarine base that would no doubt raise a knowing smile from the mouth of James Bomd. (Turns out he’s also the editor of Tallahassee Model Submarine Digest Monthly, so shoutout to those guys as well or whatever. Look, would you argue with a man who’s started sending you cow manure in the mail? We’ve had to fumigate the offices five times already, and he’s said he’s considering sending it in larger envelopes. If this isn’t the end of it we’ll have to start returning the favor, and God knows where we’re gonna find a cow in this economy.)

Finally, as part of our wider efforts to broaden the gamemodes covered by the OF map pool, mctf_badworks_dev adds a new spin to Badworks, already represented in both Mercenary Domination and Deathmatch. Three gamemodes, two teams, and only one rule - out here in the desert it’s kill or be killed. Or maybe that’s two rules? Eh, we’re game developers, not mathematicians.

Note: with the sheer number of work-in-progress maps added in this update, we’ve also decided to add a new #map-feedback channel in our Discord server. Head there if you have any suggestions or encounter any map-specific bugs that need reporting

And more!

Texture improvements, bug fixes, and many other smaller touch-ups all await in Revision 13, which is now available for download; full patch notes will be released in a separate blog post per usual. Enjoy, and as always, happy fragging! (Except for you, James.)

We've updated the download page to include a direct download of Open Fortress as a .zip file, for those who want the option now that we're spacing out major content updates. We have also updated the link for the Linux installer to go directly to the murse download on sourcehut, as the video link was confusing for some users. In addition both of these options should download much faster for users in North America, and potentially in other regions as well; our original cluster/load balance setup was routing traffic incorrectly, causing slow download speeds, but this has now been fixed.

Happy fragging!

Update: the wrapper script for Windows users is now compatible with Windows 7! While we strongly recommend you upgrade your OS if you're still running Windows 7 (due to its lack of support for current Windows security updates, which could leave your system vulnerable to attacks and viruses), now you too can enjoy a spot of fragging in the interim. Make sure to check here for how to install if you're running Windows 7!

Get your flared pants on, because today’s update drags Open Fortress into the disco age kicking and screaming! After over a year in development, Mulholland - a Duel map set in a state-of-the-art Hollywood recording facility - has been added to the standard OF map rotation, with a full art pass, a suite of custom models and textures, and some groovy new background music. Now you too can blow up your sworn enemies in SoCal’s most stylish music studio! (Just try not to blow up the mixing desks as well, because Mulholland has two of them and they’re $100,000 each. Disco doesn’t come cheap!)

Who’s that handsome source mod knocking at your front door? Why, it’s Open Fortress, back home after so long spent fighting in the wars - and he’s bought you a beautiful bouquet of flowers, lovingly marinated in a deadly mixture of gunpowder, human blood and rosemary. That’s right - this bouquet is none other than revision eight of Open Fortress, available for download right now!

Ever since we reopened public downloads for OF earlier in the year, we’ve been hard at work behind the scenes, both refining existing content and adding new stuff too. We know you’ve been eager for more content to help make your fragging experience even more enjoyable, and hopefully this new update will provide just that. Although the full patch notes are too long to feature in this blog post, read on for an extended highlight of just some of the features revision eight brings to the table.

We’re kicking things off with the addition of Mercenary Domination, a new team-based variant of Deathmatch that comes with a handful of maps, both completely new ones and ports of existing maps. If you need an idea of how exactly the mode works, it's kind of like collecting a bunch of adorable beanie babies, and when you hit 100 of them you win! Unfortunately one can never experience the joy of collectible bean plushies nowadays, as these little buddies were discontinued 23 years ago to this day. Sad.

Elsewhere we’ve added a new Mercenary Capture The Flag map, Pagoda, which takes the action to the misty mountains of Japan (thanks in part to E-Arkham and Freyja, whose original Japan Pack assets are now included within OF); and there’s a bunch of other new and updated maps too, including a rainy redux of MVM stalwart Mannhattan for Deathmatch. Duke it out in the biggest apple of them all! (Just pay no attention to the mysterious beeping sounds you may or may not hear above the boiler room.)

But these stomping grounds wouldn’t be much good without some fashionable attire to stomp around in - hence why we’ve also added three new Mercenary cosmetic packs for you to equip. Whether it’s a sleuthy detective, a sneaky ninja or an honorable samurai, these getups are the perfect disguises for when the police come asking about the mysterious flower bouquet explosion that just rocked your neighborhood. (Trust us, they can smell that blood-gunpowder-rosemary mix from a mile away.)

Next up, two new announcers have graciously taken time out of their busy schedules to cross over from other planes of existence and yell at you as you make that perfect bodyshot. Hailing from the dusty corrals of Fistful of Frags, the Vigilante has plenty to say about the strange new modern world he’s found himself in, one with just as much violence to go around but not quite as much whiskey to pass. By contrast, Louie Ficknit - the rambunctious robot host of fellow arena shooter Tomb Fetus - is much more attuned to the thrills and spills of Deathmatch, although he’s admittedly used to less blood being spilled and more confetti. You’d better get ready to bumble, because he’s expecting some good bumbles out of all of you!

And there’s much more - bug fixes, animation improvements, new HUD elements, optimized performance, and many other adjustments. We hope you’ll appreciate all the hard work the OF development team has put in, and we also hope to add many more exciting features to the mod going forward. Enjoy the update and stay tuned!

Hello once again, fellow Mercenaries!

First things first: the Open Fortress website has been given a brand new coat of paint, as part of a wider overhaul of OF’s visual language and design style. We’ll be introducing these refinements to the game proper in the future; for now, you can get a taste of it on these very pages. Check it out! Tell your friends! Embrace the power of purple and sepia!

Secondly, its been quite some time since we reopened downloads, and on the sidelines we’ve been paying close attention to some of the questions that players, fans and the community have raised. Why am I shooting at men in colorful jumpsuits? Where did all these guns come from? Why are you in my house? These and many more pressing FAQs will be addressed right here, right now…

The Basics

Q: What is Open Fortress?

A: Open Fortress is a free Team Fortress 2 mod that introduces new gamemodes, weapons, characters, maps, and more to the world of TF2. These additions, crafted by over a hundred community contributors, build upon the iconic mid-century aesthetic of TF2, the gameplay features of classic FPS games, and the creativity and innovation of the Source engine modding community.

Q: Is Open Fortress an arena shooter?

A: Partially! While the Deathmatch gamemode certainly takes inspiration from classic arena shooters and delivers a modern spin on their established gameplay features, it is only one of many gamemodes that are planned for inclusion in OF. Think of these other gamemodes as “games within a game”, each one utilizing the same core mechanics and visual style, but also incorporating wildly different gameplay features and unique narrative conceits.

Q: What happened to the reverse engineering project? Will the game remain open source?

A: When we originally approached Valve with our reverse engineering efforts, they requested that we shut down OF Base, our codebase of reverse engineered gameplay code. Due to Valve’s request and despite our best efforts, OF will remain closed source indefinitely; in layman’s terms, you won’t be able to create your own mods using OF code. However, we may release a few snippets of our own code and other standalone systems for the community to use.

Q: Can I apply to be a developer on Open Fortress?

A: Yes you can, right now! Our developer application process has gone live and is now ready for anybody who wishes to apply.

Q: Does Open Fortress have any social media channels?

A: We do indeed! You can find links to our Twitter account, YouTube channel, and community Discord server at the bottom of this website. The right of this page also features both a RSS feed for the OF blog and a Twitter feed for all our latest Tweets. Be sure to keep an eye out on all these channels for future content teasers, community content showcases, and more!

The Story

Q: What’s the backstory of the Deathmatch gamemode?

A: In a nutshell - it’s the 1970s, and the Gravel Wars are finally over. Mann Co., TF Industries and the RED and BLU teams have all collapsed, with the whereabouts of both the Administrator and Olivia Mann currently unknown. The resulting power vacuum has caught the attention of mysterious shadowy figures from the global criminal underworld, who have begun employing freelance mercenaries to carry out their top-secret orders; these mostly consist of looting the now-abandoned facilities of the old megacorporations, rumored to contain top secret experimental weapons and mysterious artifacts of incredible power. For more information, check out the briefings for individual maps - there’s a lot you can learn about the current state of the TF world from those humble chalkboard messages.

Q: What parts of the TF2 lore are considered canon in OF?

A: Pretty much all the events of the official TF2 timeline are fair game, including the Team Fortress Comics series. However, with the seventh and final installment of TF Comics currently unreleased, we have chosen to keep the aftermath of a hypothetical Issue #7 intentionally vague, only setting a few basic facts in stone (the disappearance of the Administrator and Olivia Mann, the bankruptcy of Mann Co) and keeping our focus on the here-and-now of the groovy ‘70s. As far as that decade is concerned, almost anything goes!

Q: What are your worldbuilding goals?

A: We’re embracing the opportunity to venture further out into the wider world of Team Fortress, beyond the confines of RED, BLU and Mann Co. In particular, the hyper-masculine, chaotic presentation of TF2 from 2010 onwards has been considerably downplayed, and references to characters such as Saxton Hale and the TF2 mercs will mostly act as brief namechecks rather than fully-fledged crossovers. Instead of making the world of OF feel small by focusing only on these established characters and companies, we’re essentially treating it as a soft reboot, with a broader goal of spoofing the media, attitudes, aesthetics and politics of the ‘70s, just as TF2 did with the ‘60s. Outside of Deathmatch, expect the upcoming Retro Mode to feature direct nods to Team Fortress Classic, both in its original form and its later inclusion within the established timeline of its sequel. There might even be a few nods to the granddaddy of them all, Quake Team Fortress…but we don’t want to give away too much just yet!

The Gameplay Experience

Q: How do you bunnyhop in Open Fortress?

A: To bunnyhop, simply hold the jump button (usually Space, but it may differ depending on your keybinds) and airstrafe - pressing the left and right direction buttons (usually the A and D keys) while moving your mouse in the corresponding direction. Practice bunnyhopping whenever you get the chance - you’ll get the hang of it in no time.

Q: Help! I’m not used to games being this fast-paced, and I’m feeling discouraged. Is there anything I can do to improve?

A: The mile-a-minute pace of Open Fortress can be overwhelming at first, especially for players who are new to arena shooters or Source engine games. With that in mind, it helps to take a step back and focus on one area of improvement at a time; for example, maybe your aim isn’t as precise as you’d like it to be, or maybe you find that other players are always beating you to weapon spawn points. Whatever it is, identify what you want to prioritize, experiment with different approaches, and if you find one that works for you, stick with it - the journey to becoming the best merc possible may take a while, but it’s worth it. (And don’t forget that above all else, having fun triumphs over victory!) 


Q: Why isn’t [X gameplay feature] more like it is in [Y game]?

A: One of the goals of Open Fortress Deathmatch is to bridge the gap between the strategic class-based gameplay of TF2 and the fast-paced mobility-oriented gameplay of classic arena FPS games. In melding the two types of game together and ensuring that fans of each side of gameplay are not alienated, there are inevitable compromises that have to be made. For example, dropped weapons and ammo boxes have physics rather than stay at the point of the player’s death, and the available weapon pool is rooted in its TF2 equivalent above all else, with a broad variety of melee, hitscan and projectile weapons. We hope that this fusion of gameplay styles is above all else enjoyable and refreshing for veterans of both camps, as well as to players new to both arena and class-based shooters. 



Q: Why isn’t Open Fortress more like [X Source engine mod]?

A: Each of the many TF2 mods of recent years has their own take on TF2; there are many different approaches for gameplay and presentation, and many different ways to contextualize them within Valve’s own design philosophy. Just because one mod team does something a particular way, it doesn’t mean the others have to follow suit. This is the case with Open Fortress; we have our own unique goals that we’re following, just as Pre-Fortress 2, Team Fortress 2 Classic and Dating Simulator Fortress have theirs. (Disclaimer: one of these mods does not exist. Yet.)

Q: What are the differences between OF Deathmatch’s weapons arsenal and TF2’s?

A: Almost all of the typical TF2 weapon archetypes have been tweaked to better fit the flexible, on-the-fly nature of Deathmatch gameplay. These changes range from subtle refinements (such as the smaller blast range of OF’s own Rocket Launcher) to more significant overhauls (such as the explode-on-player-contact projectiles of the China Lake grenade launcher). Many of the weapons have also been given corresponding makeovers for their visuals and sound design; as a general rule of thumb, the further a weapon looks and sounds from its TF2 counterpart, the more different it’s likely to play too. And if you don’t recognize it from TF2 at all, it’s probably a brand-new weapon wholly unique to OF!

The Future

Q: Is development on Deathmatch finished?

A: Not yet! Although Deathmatch is essentially playable in its current form, there are still many additional features that we are working hard to finish. These include (but are by no means limited to) new voicelines, animations, UI refinements, support for sub-gamemodes such as MCTF and Duel, new maps, new weapons and power-ups, anti-cheat features, and general optimization. In addition, the simplicity and flexibility of Deathmatch means that features and systems designed for it can be reused in other gameplay modes in the future; this, combined with the experience of the OF team, means that development on future gamemodes should progress much faster than that of Deathmatch.

Q: What other gamemodes will be added to Open Fortress after Deathmatch?

A: Once DM finishes development, our next focus will be on Retro Mode, a spruced-up recreation of Team Fortress Classic that bridges the personality, painterly visuals and backstory of TF2 with the Half-Life derived environments, unique gameplay features and military theme of TFC. Beyond that, we hope to begin development on a new gamemode called Espionage, which we’ll be keeping mostly under wraps for now - as is befitting of its name.

Q: Will the OF team be adding more classes to Deathmatch?

A: No. In order to ensure precise game balance, the Mercenary has been and always will be the only available class within Deathmatch. If you really want to see how the TF2 classes play in Deathmatch, they can be enabled by entering the developer console and typing in the following command: “of_forceclass 0”.

Q: Will any additional weapons be added to Deathmatch?

A: Yes and no. The baseline arsenal for Deathmatch is essentially complete, with only the flamethrower needing more refinement, so we don’t have any plans to add any new base weapons. However, more super weapons will be added further down the line, as their map-by-map nature means they can be incorporated without disrupting existing gameplay balance. Several new super weapons are currently in development - we’ll have more news on them soon!


Q: Will more cosmetics be added to OF in the future?

A: We definitely plan on adding more cosmetics to Deathmatch as time goes on, but be aware that it’ll be a limited and careful selection. Unlike the anything-goes bonanza that is live TF2’s take on war-themed hat simulation, OF cosmetics need to fit with the Mercenary’s distinct characterization, the action movie-esque tone of OF’s narrative, and the 1970s setting. (Existing TF2 cosmetics will not be added for the same reasons, as well as because of the legal wrangles that would come with essentially licensing active components of a microtransaction-based economy). We can also confirm that Deathmatch will be the only gamemode to feature cosmetics, namely because our upcoming Retro Mode will take place during the 1930s, a time when America was still suffering from the effects of controversial “prohatbition” legislation. No wonder people called it the Great Depression - you’d be depressed too if you saw so many bald, hatless heads all the time.

Q: What is the current status of bot support?

A: Support for bots in OF is being rebuilt from the ground up, as we’ve had to remove any and all Nextbot code from the mod. The bots are basically functional in their current state, but they still require significant refinement to their AI in order to bring them up to par with human players. Expect the finished bots to accurately recreate behaviors such as switching between situation-appropriate weapons on the fly, prioritizing important item pickups, and more!

Q: Will the OF team be updating the UI?

A: Yes! We are currently developing a consistent and comprehensive overhaul of Open Fortress’ visual language and design style, both in the game and in secondary promo materials, including the recent refresh of the very website you’re reading this on. This overhaul will involve changes to the UI, so stay tuned…

Q: What happened to the CSMG? Will it return in the future?

A: The CSMG was a very similar weapon to the Tommy Gun, and over time we realized that having two weapons in the same category with the same role was ultimately unnecessary; out of the two, the CSMG was felt to be less suitable for both that specific weapon niche and the for Mercenary’s character, and so it was the one that got the chop from the Deathmatch roster. However, it’s not gone for good - we can confirm that the TFC Sniper will be using the CSMG in Retro Mode as his secondary weapon. (We can also confirm his primary weapon will probably be some kind of sniper rifle - surprising, right?)

Q: What happened to OFToast? Will it return in the future?

A: Our former launch/installation software OFToast was a suitable enough solution during the earlier days of OF, but with the recent increase in demand on our servers following OF’s grand reopening, its flaws became increasingly apparent. Thus it was we made the difficult decision to take the toaster out the back and unplug it for good, like Old Yeller if he'd been riddled with error prompts instead of rabies. Thankfully, work is currently underway on a replacement launcher, OFToast2 - a ground-up redux that incorporates a far more stable and less buggy framework, with a brand-spanking-new coat of purple paint to boot. (Sort of like the plot of Old Yeller 2: Cyborg Resurrection, the beloved straight-to-video sequel that remains banned in 37 states to this day.) As always, keep a sharp eye on this very blog for further news on the matter!

If you have any more questions, feel free to reach out on our official Discord server!


Hello All,

It has been quite the rough start for the Open Fortress team as we face multiple DDOS attacks, and an uphill battle with getting downloads up and ready via a custom made update client. However, we wont be deterred. This passion project has come so far, so of course we aren't going to give up just yet!

For now, if you wish to install the game, follow these links and download a copy for yourself. (They will be updated semi-frequently.) To install, simply extract the open_fortress folder to steam/steamapps/sourcemods and restart your steam client. It should then appear in your library. If you need assistance, kindly visit our discord server! (Link at the bottom of the page.)

Note: When using any of these mirrors, you will need to download Source sdk base 2013 multiplayer manually. If you don't have it, simply search by name in your Steam Library, and install as if it were any other program.

Happy Fragging!

Hello, everyone part of the Open Fortress community. We have decided that we are now going to re-open the game back to the general public.

Ever since the day we got the first email from Valve asking us to take down the game, it has take a toll on not only us, but you, the community. In the time that you were all waiting for us to give you information as to what was going on - we were in the background sending emails back and forth to Valve to see if there was a way that they could help us in getting the proper things in order to get the game on Steam.

After some time had passed we never really got a response back from them. We waited, thinking that they would eventually get back to us, but they never did.

We have now taken it upon ourselves to bring the game back. We hate seeing you as a community sit and wonder what has happened and when we will ever return. As an ending note, please do not bring hate towards Valve over this. They are a big company and have other things that they need to tend to that are way more important.

Here's the new launcher, download it now, GO! OFToast (Windows)

(Notes: If it ever stalls during downloading, leave it be, many people may be downloading currently, be patient. You'll also want to delete your current Open Fortress installation to avoid conflicts.)

Linux Users: You'll have to compile the launcher yourself due to various distro issues which will be patched in the coming days. https://github.com/int-72h/oflauncher-rei

• OF Team