How to Play Team Fortress 2

One of the new games that comes packaged with "The Orange Box" from Valve, Team Fortress 2 takes online shooters to a whole new level. If you can imagine "The Incredibles" meets the original "Team Fortress", you'll have Team Fortress 2. In case you're unfamiliar with the Team Fortress games, here's a quick rundown.

Difficulty:

Easy

Instructions

1. Choose a map. There are a variety of different maps to be played and different objectives to be completed. 2 Fort is one of the most popular, and there are several servers that run nothing but 2 Fort 24/7. The objective of 2 Fort is simple: get into the enemy base, grab the Intelligence (flag) and bring it back to your Intel room to capture it. Whoever racks up 3 captures (more or less, depending on server preference) wins the match.

2. Choose a Class. Team Fortress 2 utilizes several different classes that you can play, each with distinctive looks, weapons and abilities. Take a look at what each one offers, then choose the class that's right for you.

3. Test it out. Each weapon has both advantages and disadvantages in certain situations. While the Soldier's Rocket Launcher is handy for taking out enemies at a distance, doing so at close range will harm the Soldier as well. The Heavy's minigun is great for mowing down scores of enemies, but runs out of ammo quickly. Before you go anywhere, test out your chose class's weapons a bit and get a feel for how they work.

4. Play defense a little. Get the lay of the map from your own base, as the enemy base will be nigh identical. Get used to playing your class and guard your own base for a while before you head off to make trouble.

5. Get to it! When you feel comfortable with your class, reload and head out to complete your objectives. Some classes like the Engineer are designed with defense in mind, but a clever Engineer can be a very powerful offensive force.

6. Have fun!