Hi. With TF2 Classified just a week away(!) from launch, we wanted to keep current and future modders informed of technical changes we've been making over the months, and what to expect for changes going forward. If you're a modder, this post is for you! While Steam Workshop support won’t be available at launch, we are actively exploring support for a wide range of moddable content. As our game is actively updated, please note that we'll be making various technical changes that may cause incompatibilities.We’ll communicate these changes clearly in patch notes, and we’re also looking into solutions such as mod versioning to help make this process smoother in the future. With that out of the way, we've split up this post into sections for each type of content. If any of them apply to you, you can get straight to reading.
ITEM SCHEMA & CUSTOM WEAPONS
Item schemas from the original mod will not be compatible with TF2 Classified. Many attributes are returning from the original mod, while a handful aren't. This is due to various refactors and the removal of complex prototype weapon code. Our currently shipped item schema is heavily debloated, and many prefabs have been merged down into their proper weapon indexes. If you have custom weapons making use of prefabs, it would be wise to remake them, or ship the prefab alongside the weapon index itself. Custom item schemas will now go in the /scripts/items folder instead of the /maps folder. Addcond conditions can now take the conditions name instead of ID. For example, "5 5" can be entered as "TF_COND_INVULNERABLE 5". It is highly recommended to use this method, as technical limitations may force us to change condition IDs. All TF2C exclusive conditions have a new ID. A full list of condition names will be available in release patch notes. In the future, we are looking into options for custom weapons being uploaded to the Steam Workshop. We will investigate the possibility of single-file weapon entries to help make this possible.
MAPPING & HAMMER
We've culled a small amount of our custom map assets to remove certain textures and models that don't align with the environment art style we intend for our official map pool. This should help make our official style more clear, but does mean that existing maps using these assets will need to be recompiled with them packed into the .bsp. This primarily applies to region-specific asset packs, though we have tried to keep some generic assets from these. We're also open to re-adding any more specific assets that might be broadly useful. In the future, we are looking into shipping some SDK content, including official logic prefabs for all of our custom game modes. Addcond triggers can now take the condition name instead of ID, via the keyvalue "condition_name". It is highly recommended to use this method, as technical limitations may force us to change condition IDs in the future. All TF2C exclusive conditions have a new ID and will need to be replaced. A full list of condition names will be available in release patch notes. We're changing the naming convention for Three and Four-Team maps. Now, a number will be placed before the gamemode prefix. For example, a Three Team KOTH map would be "3koth_example" and a Four-Team DOM map would be "4dom_example." That said, existing maps that use the old convention will still function correctly. We had originally wanted to include logic, HUD, and asset support for Three and Four-Team versions of Live gamemodes like Robot Destruction, Player Destruction, Passtime, and Mannpower. However, we've had to delay these plans for a lack of time.
PARTICLES
Some particle mods may not be compatible with TF2 Classified out of the box, due to system renames and functionality changes. Particle files (.pcf) have been reorganized, and are now split by content type (eg. weapon, condition, gameplay mechanic). Most unused and incidental particle systems have been removed. Any maps happening to use these will have to ship them on their own. We're looking into including more general-use particles for mappers in the future. Various particle systems have been renamed as they've been updated. This may cause old mods to fall back on live TF2 equivalents. Future particle system renames will be individually mentioned in patch notes as they happen.
MATERIALS & TEXTURES
Many materials and textures have been updated with new parameters and flags. If you're replacing these and wish to retain functionality, please make sure you're mirroring any parameters and flags. Crosshairs, kill icons, and many HUD elements have moved to using .svg files. In all cases, .vtf fallbacks should still work. Various materials have been renamed or moved as they've been updated. This may cause old mods to fall back on live TF2 equivalents. Future material renames and moves will be individually mentioned in patch notes as they happen.
MODELS
The Civilian's player model is now located in the civilian folder (previously civilian_vip). All player models have been given additional facial flexes for decapitation. The Spy has been given a cigarette flex. Some models with embedded particles have had their particle system names updated. This may cause old mods to fall back on live TF2 equivalents. Future renames will be individually mentioned in patch notes as they happen.
UI & HUD
Our UI is undergoing a technical and visual overhaul, and this is planned to continue post-launch. We will make these changes known in patch notes. Using .svg files with image panels will require full path and file extension when specified. We've added a new drop shadow ("dropshadow") parameter for labels and images now. Because of this, most drop shadow elements in .res files have been removed. Meter files have been refactored and some have been combined or moved. Death Notice amount is now an options parameter and not in the .res file. Various .res files have been renamed or moved as they've been updated. This may cause old mods to stop working correctly. Future renames and moves will be individually mentioned in patch notes as they happen.
SOURCEMOD SUPPORT
SourceMod support for TF2C-specific features is still pending while we coordinate with other TF2 SDK projects on the best long-term approach. Closer to release, we’ll be providing gamedata for the server binaries, along with a patched TF2 extension for those who need TF2 functionality; please note that this setup is subject to change in the future. The legacy tf2classic-tools package is currently non-functional and thus will no longer be maintained. Additionally, Metamod:Source Build 1380 is the minimum required version.