Robin Walker Interview on Kritzkast
Written by MeeB and translated by aMpeX on 30.05.2010 Time 10:47

Engineer Update, Demo-System, Item-swapping in TF2 and, of course, "Meet the Pyro". That sums up the topics that the common TF2 player is most interested in at the moment. Our colleagues over at  Kritzkast had the possibility to talk to Team Fortress 2 developer  Robin Walker  about these hot topics for us in an Interview.

We want to give you a brief summary about the key facts of the interview:

Demo-System

Robin first  mentioned the new Demo system in June 2009. This doesn't concern TF2 players only, whenever an update is issued, old demos become unplayable and therefore useless. The new demo system shall eradicate this major flaw.

During the interview with Kritzcast, Robin talks about the progress the team made with the new system. Unfortunately, it is still not ready to be published.

Meet the Pyro

Male or female? This question bugs many of us. Robin explains, that the team is still working on "Meet the Pyro" and one will be able to see the world with the pyro's eyes. Of course, further details are still top secret and we will have to wait until the actual release of the movie.

Female models

Detailed, and refined work by the community has been out there for a while, but Robin reminds, that a mere integration in the game is far away from a clean and playable addition to TF2. The team would have to re-edit the hitboxes and rework all the items and weapons for both genders. Female models aren't off the tab though, so we will have to wait until there is more information.

Engineer-Update

Of course, Robin Walker gives only vague details about the update. But he talks about another idea, which, like the amplifier mentioned in the TF2Blog earlier, has sadly not made its way into the game. A secondary weapon, designed to teleport the engineer to his teleporter exit. He also talks about the side effects of this: The teleporter would loose its role as a plain team element and part of its use. Moreover, one of the major risks for the engineer would be eliminated, as he would be able to roam freely and teleport back to his nest when needed.

Trading-System

Valve continues its work on the trading system for items, which can be swapped between players in the future. Several teams at Valve are involved in this development - Steam and TF2. With the new Steam UI having launched only some time ago, the Steam division already has their hands full, postponing the release of the trading system even further.

Detailed dates have not been given. What gives? Valve doesn't meet them anyway. But Robin Walker spilled the beans that they are already working on the next big update after the engineer update, so there will be more new stuff coming up.