Meet the Axtinguisher

[CSN NewsBot]

The latest Steam news update brings us the very first bits of information on the new unlockables coming for the Pyro class!

We've almost completely wrapped up the next big release for Team Fortress 2, which will focus on the Pyro class, along with the Meet the Sniper movie. We've spent time looking at how the recent Medic release went, and have rolled feedback from that release into the new item designs for the Pyro and into the design of the achievements required to unlock those items. One item, shown here in concept form, will be the Axtinguisher. Although it does about half of normal damage to standard run-of-the-mill non-burning enemies, once you light someone on fire the Axtinguisher will guarantee a critical hit.



Along with all of the new content, we're also going to be making some significant changes to the Pyro class for everyone, regardless of whether they have unlocked any new items.

Did you see that? Significant changes will still be coming for the Pyro class regardless of earning any unlocks!

[meowmeow]

Sounds kinda iffy.

[Thortok2000]

Unless they make the thing shoot out farther and wider and you run slower when you're firing (but not nearly as slow as the heavy) and faster when you're not firing, I don't see how any changes will be really that helpful.



The most annoying thing as a pyro is someone just out of range, running backwards at the same speed that you run forwards, and you do 0 damage to them because you can't even tell if you're hitting them or not. And of course, switching to secondary at that range is kind of stupid. -.-



The Pyro's basic use is in really crowded servers when either the right amount of players are on the map, or more. In a more spaced-out environment, he's kinda useless.

[timbro]

and they give us no time frame as usual

[milly9]

I really can't see how they can make the pyro a useful class for anything but spy checking

[Zips]

milly9 wrote..

I really can't see how they can make the pyro a useful class for anything but spy checking

They can be quite useful at clearing out most of every class, and SG's if you have a good healer.

[milly9]

Okay, it's true a pyro is a good choice for ubering at the start of rounds, and can take out SGs if they are close range enough, too far away and they just get stutter stepped and never get in range.



But a soldier is almost universally better than a pyro. If a soldier and a pyro meet in a hallway, the pyro will -never- get within range. The only chance a pyro has to take out most classes is to get the jump on them, and the majority of the time they will be doing 'run forward holding fire praying' strategy. Scouts, soldiers, heavies, demos, snipers, simply can't lose to pyros if it isn't a surprise attack from behind.



And please don't say that you take out these classes all the time, because the fact is a good player will never miss the shots you can easily make to keep a pyro away from you. The pyro is easily the worst class in the game by far.



I think the pyro needs another element to them entirely to become a 'real' class. As it stands I believe with the exceptions noted, another class can do what they can do, better, every time.

[Thortok2000]

Another option is that when you hit someone with the flamethrower, they slow to the speed of a heavy that's firing.