Valve just released a massive update to their Source SDK today that adds in all of the Team Fortress 2 client and server code. This update means that mod creators can build entirely new mods for Team Fortress 2. These mods can be small changes to gameplay or they can be as large as total conversion mods.
Given that Team Fortress itself began as a total conversion mod for Quake, it seems fitting that Team Fortress 2 brings this full circle. Some other popular total conversion mods that made it big include games like Counter-Strike, Garry's Mod, Natural Selection, The Stanley Parable, and Dota or Defense of the Ancients for you Warcraft 3 players.
Valve says that they are "doing a big update to all our multiplayer back-catalogue Source engine titles." This includes Team Fortress 2, Day of Defeat: Source, Half-Life 2: Deathmatch, Counter-Strike: Source, and Half-Life Deathmatch: Source. This wave of updates includes 64-bit binary support, a scalable HUD and UI, prediction fixes, and "a lot of other improvements." Yes, all of those links are for the changelogs for the updates that Valve released today. I'm happy that Day of Defeat: Source is finally getting some love. Now, how's about a new release on Source 2?
It's important to note that the SDK is licensed out on a non-commercial basis. Meaning that any mod that is created using the SDK must be free and any content in those mods must be free. Valve says that Team Fortress 2 mods can be published in the Steam Store. After publication they will appear as new game sin the Steam game list.
Players have a lot of investment in their TF2 inventories, and Steam Workshop contributors have created of a lot of that content. The majority of items in the game now are thanks to the hard work of the TF2 community. To respect that, we're asking TF2 mod makers continue to respect that connection, and to not make mods that have the purpose of trying to profit off Workshop contributors' efforts. We're hoping that many mods will continue to allow players access their TF2 inventory, if this makes sense for the mod.
