Team Fortress 2 adds ranked play in ‘Meet Your Match’ update

Time to dust off the old butterfly knife

Are you ready to meet your fellow man, rip out his rib cage, and fashion a ladder of bones and viscera out of them to climb to the top ranks mercenary esteem and praise? Well, good news you sociopath, Team Fortress 2‘s new “Meet Your Match” update is providing you just the excuse you need with the introduction of competitive play, matchmaking, and sweet beautiful ranks. 

After nine glorious years of random chaos and pub games, it’s time for all the would-be mercenary kings out there to get serious. Competitive play in Team Fortress 2 will feature a six-on-six format similar to what fans of the unofficial competitive scene will be familiar with. Interestingly, the mode has no class restrictions and none of the documentation mentions team composition limits. However, you can’t switch your class mid-match to counter-pick the opposition. Let the Scout rushes and Demo brigades begin.

In competitive mode, every victory or defeat will count towards your player rank. Valve seems to be taking the whole idea very seriously, getting out front with harsh punishments for abandoning games and requiring players to either attach a phone number to their account or purchase a Competitive Access Pass for $9.99 to play. Hopefully the extra accountability will keep people honest.

A new matchmaking system is also heading towards casual unranked games. There will now be a matchmaking process that sorts you into a fresh game with players of similar skill and experience, no more being dumped into a pub-stomp in progress. Interesting times for a game has been out for nearly a decade.

Meet Your Match Update [Team Fortress 2]