Difference between revisions of "Item drop system/ko"

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(Created page with '==Multiple drop mechanics== I've added an explanation on how a player can "receive" multiple items/drops (shown on the hud as multiple "has found"). I would be thinking of a way …')
 
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==Multiple drop mechanics==
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{{Quotation|'''The Heavy'''|Yes. I ''like'' this new weapon.|sound=Heavy_specialweapon09_Yes._I_like_this_new_weapon.wav}}
I've added an explanation on how a player can "receive" multiple items/drops (shown on the hud as multiple "has found"). I would be thinking of a way to make the explanation a lot clearer (I'm unsatisfied at the current state). -- [[User:ShunyValdez|ShunyValdez]] 15:55, 8 October 2010 (UTC)
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[[File:Backpack case.png|right]]
  
==Under what conditions will you ''not'' receive item drops?==
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The '''Item Drop System''' is a system introduced to make earning the large quantity of [[items]] within TF2 easier and maintain class balance during class updates. It was first introduced with the [[May 21, 2009 Patch|''Sniper vs. Spy'' Update]], and has since been tweaked in order to make it fairer between light and heavy players, and to thwart the effect of [[idling]].
The information I have been able to find is old, and sometimes contradictory. I was hoping to find the answers here, on the wiki, but no mention is made in this article. Do you still have to be signed into the friends system to receive item drops? If you do not, when did this change take place? Lastly, can you receive drops in training mode, offline practice, or by creating a private LAN or internet server?
 
  
If somebody can find this information, I feel it would be a great addition to the article, for people like myself who haven't followed the system very closely. --[[User:Shackanaw|Shackanaw]] 08:32, 10 July 2010 (UTC)
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{{anchor|Current Item Drop System}}
:I'll answer what I do know: You can receive drops in a private LAN server (I get items all the time while tr_walkway'ing), and I assume offline practice/training mode is exactly the same as that (only a different map). As for your other question, I don't know D: — [[User:WindPower|WindPower]] 08:35, 10 July 2010 (UTC)
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== Current System ==
::I received an item drop in offline practice while I was not signed into my friends list, so those two are answered. However, I still do not know ''when'' they made it so you do not have to be signed into the Steam Community. --[[User:Shackanaw|Shackanaw]] 01:08, 16 July 2010 (UTC)
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On April 20, 2010, the item drop system was changed.{{ref|url=http://www.teamfortress.com/post.php?id=3727}} Instead of rolling randomly at intervals to see if you got an item drop, the system rolls to determine when your next item drop will occur. With this change, players are guaranteed to find items at regular intervals of 15 minutes to 75 minutes. Under the previous system, players could have unlucky streaks during which they didn't find any items for long periods of time. The new system has removed this possibility and increased the rate at which items drop.
  
==Error==
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There is no cap on the amount of items that can be received per week, but instead a cap on the amount of playtime in which drops can be received. Playing beyond that cap won't yield you any more items. Playing less than the cap carries over the unused time to the next week, increasing that week's cap.  It has been estimated the maximum amount of items that can be received per week is around 6-12.  The system resets each player's playtime cap around 5- 5:30 PM each Wednesday, Pacific Standard Time where Valve is located.
What's that "cite error" BS at the bottom of the page? -[[User:Shine|<font color="#666666">'''Shine'''</font>]]&nbsp;({{mod}}) 13:40, 23 August 2010 (UTC)
 
:There were <nowiki><ref></nowiki> tags in use without <nowiki><references /></nowiki> appearing anywhere on the page. I've fixed it now. [[User:Seb26|<font color="#0B61A4">'''seb26'''</font>]] <span style="font-size:95%;">[[User talk:Seb26|[talk]]]</span> 21:22, 23 August 2010 (UTC)
 
  
==Why is there a Milestone section to this article?==
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The dropped items are stored in the backpack after the player's death, after a [[trade]] has been done, or if the [[Mann Co. Store]] is visited. Occasionally, dropped, traded, or crafted items may get stuck "in limbo" and may not immediately appear in the player's backpack.  Visiting the Mann. Co. Store will usually restore these items to the player's backpack.
  
It seems to be unnecessarily long, and doesn't add more to the generalized discussion than just indicating that items drop from earning achievements in addition to randomly.
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{{anchor|Advantages and Disadvantages of an Item Drop System}}
  
[[User:Absoluteparanoia|Absoluteparanoia]] 12:59, 14 October 2010 (UTC)
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== Advantages and Disadvantages ==
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<!--
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Replace with a list of advantages and disadvantages.
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-->
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A positive aspect of the system is that it allows new and old players alike to earn unlockable weapons by investing play time. It allows players to play as any class, since as long as they are racking up game-time, the player is eligible for an item drop.
  
== -novid ==
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Many players received unwanted duplicates. This was dealt with by the introduction of the [[Crafting]] system, and later by the [[Trading]] system, allowing players to trade all but a few items with each other.{{ref|url=http://www.teamfortress.com/post.php?id=2787}}
  
"Despite the new systems Idling still exists, however it is now possible using the offline mode (use of the -textmode game launch parameter combined with -novid and -nosound to disable video and audio processing respectively) leaving server providers free to provide a gaming experience."
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Despite the new systems, [[Idling]] still exists. However, it is now possible using the offline mode (use of the {{code|-textmode}} game launch parameter combined with {{code|-novid}} and {{code|-nosound}} to disable video and audio processing respectively), leaving server providers free to provide a gaming experience.
  
-novid just disables the intro video, it would seem to be -textmode that actually disables video. I don't use -textmode though so I'll let someone else who knows more fix it...
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== Achievement Milestones ==
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On April 29, 2008, Valve unveiled a set of three unlockable weapons as part of their [[April 29, 2008 Patch|Gold Rush Update]] Update. These weapons were unlocked by completing a set number of achievements, resulting in an achievement milestone. There were three achievement milestones in all, with each successive one requiring more achievements. Once each milestone was unlocked the player received the set weapon that came with that achievement milestone. This requirement was subsequently reduced to stop players grinding just to get the new unlocks.
  
--[[User:The MAZZTer|The MAZZTer]] 19:52, 14 October 2010 (UTC)
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On May 21, 2009, Valve implemented a new system of random drops for unlockable items and discontinued the milestone system.  Valve soon fell back to the Achievement Milestones coupled with the item drop system for the Sniper and Spy weapons in the the [[May 29, 2009 Patch]].  This milestone system has since been used in the [[War update|WAR! Update]] and also appeared in the [[Engineer update]].
  
:I noticed this too. - [[User:LingoSalad|<font color="#007A29">LingoSalad</font>]]<sub>([[User_talk:LingoSalad|talk]])</sub> 14:03, 23 November 2010 (UTC)
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{{anchor|Old Item Drop System}}
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== Former system ==
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[[File:Backpack case early.png|thumb|Backpack icon, used before Mann-Conomy update.]]
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While keeping the Achievement Milestones already present for the [[Scout]], [[Pyro]], [[Heavy]] and [[Medic]], [[Valve]] implemented the random drop system to maintain class balance in the event of a class update. This system was patched into the game as part of the [[May 21, 2009 Patch|''Sniper vs. Spy'' Update]].
  
== New way of idling ==
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Valve calculated the average time a regular Team Fortress 2 player played, then came up with an unknown time which was used as a marker or set point. Every time a player had played for 25 minutes, the game randomly drew a decision for the player. If the player was lucky (25% per item chance) then they would get a randomly chosen weapon or hat. If the player was unlucky, then they would have received no item that time. There was a separate timer that counted every 15,430 seconds (4 hours, 17 minutes, and 10 seconds) you had an additional 1 in 28 chance of receiving a hat. The average time for getting a single item was 1h 40min (including duplicates). Since weapons were granted via a random number generator, experience varied.
  
I have been playing in the offline practice mode with the bots and got no less then 2 weapons and a crate.  This will allow a lot of players to idle without connecting to the internet or using a lot of CPU.  We need to test further what can and can't be used to see how to idle in this mode. [[User:Daminshi|Daminshi]]
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When first released, item drops would only occur if players were connected to the [[Steam|Steam Community]]. If the player was not signed into his or her friends list, or if Valve was performing maintenance on the Steam Community, the player would not receive item drops during that time. Valve changed this system at a later date, and item drops occurred for those who were not signed into the Steam Community (and still occur now with the new system).
:This seems odd, I'm pretty sure the drop system is managed outside of the TF2 client.  Perhaps it could've been things in your TF2 drop queue that you didn't receive when you last signed off. Either way, if anybody supports your claim then I'll certainly be interested in looking into this. -[[User:RJackson|<span style="background-color:#FF0000;color:white;font-size:0.7em;padding: 0 2px;">RJ</span>]]{{mod}} 02:04, 15 October 2010 (UTC)
 
  
This was a significant amount of time between drops and I didn't get those several items before.  I even used no clip and Sv_cheats randomly and still got the crate.  It's weird.  Also got a new Huntsman.  :3  I love this.
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== Backpack ==
[[User:Daminshi|Daminshi]]
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{{main|Items#Backpack|l1=Backpack}}
::The [[idling]] article is marked for deletion, but giving instructions and/or discussing the various methods for connecting to TF2 servers and the likelihood of recieving items from the item drop system is ok?[[User:Nooch|Nooch]] 02:22, 15 October 2010 (UTC)
 
::: This isn't a new way, you've always been able to idle in offline practice --[[User:Firestorm|<span style="text-shadow:orange 0px 0px 3px;"><font color="#FF6600"><tt><big><u>'''Firestorm'''</u></big></tt></font>]] {{mod}}</span> 02:22, 15 October 2010 (UTC)
 
:::: This is news to me because I've tried it before and it didn't work.  It was before the April patch that changed the random time drop to the fixed time drop, must have been very unlucky with my PC running for 36 hours. [[User:Daminshi|Daminshi]]
 
::::: Oh you meant offline practise?  I misinterpreted you and thought you meant Steam was in Offline mode. -[[User:RJackson|<span style="background-color:#FF0000;color:white;font-size:0.7em;padding: 0 2px;">RJ</span>]]{{mod}} 09:56, 15 October 2010 (UTC)
 
:::::: Now I know for certain that items can be dropped in that mode.  I got a error saying my "server", my TF2 client running offline practice, "lost connection to Steam."  So the Steam item and drop servers are connected to my "offline" practice mode. [[User:Daminshi|Daminshi]]
 
  
== Items drop outside of game ==
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==See Also==
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*[[Mann Co. Supply Crate]]
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*[[Idling]]
  
I've been getting a few weapons when I start up my game and look in the Mann Store. Who else has noticed? [[User:Daminshi|Daminshi]]
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== External Links ==
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* [http://www.teamfortress.com/post.php?id=2535 TF2 Official Blog &ndash; May 22, 2009 &ndash; "Every one of you deserves a medal!"] by Erik Johnson, explaining in detail the reasoning for the item drop system.
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* [http://www.teamfortress.com/post.php?id=3727 TF2 Official Blog &ndash; April 20, 2010 &ndash; "Thanks for standin still, wanker."] by Erik Johnson, announcing and explaining the updated drop system.
  
== 56 items per week? ==
 
  
"The maximum amount of items you can get is not known, however it can't exceed 56 because the day drop limit is 8. On average a player gets ~6 items a week. [2] The system resets each player's item drop count around each Wednesday, Pacific standard time where Valve is located."
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[[Category:Gameplay]]
 
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[[Category:Achievements]]
Seems somebody messed up here.
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[[Category:Items| ]]
[[User:Secret Agent Clank|Secret Agent Clank]] 01:51, 24 October 2010 (UTC)
 
:Er. I thought it was, like, 11 items a week?
 
 
 
 
 
::Idling page says 8-12 items a week, which seems right, so I'm going to change that.
 
::Regardless, from what I hear, if you don't get your drops for a week they carry over, can anyone confirm?
 
::One of my sources :http://www.ubercharged.net/forum/index.php?topic=2580.msg163269#msg163269
 
::[[User:Secret Agent Clank|Secret Agent Clank]] 03:40, 27 October 2010 (UTC)
 
:::I've heard a LOT of contradictory information regarding the drop limits. Some places say 8-12 items per DAY, others (like here) say per WEEK. I know I can get 11-13 items per day, which is already more than this page and other sources I've seen have claimed. Lately for some reason I get NO drops anymore during normal gameplay, but if I leave the game idling for even 30 minutes - even AFTER a day of no drops whatsoever, and regardless of how long ago the drop system was reset - I start getting items again. What on earth is going on here?!
 
:::I'm still experimenting with the system to determine how many items can be acquired per week/why I don't get drops anymore except when idling. About to test if I can get more items after having gotten 12 or so earlier in the week, perhaps I'll report back if I get any interesting results. [[User:Will-T|Will-T]] 06:48, 31 October 2010 (UTC)
 
 
 
::::There are not caps on the quantity of items one can receive per week, but instead caps on the amount of playtime in which drops can be obtained - and this playtime has been determined based upon the average time spent in TF2 to make it fairer for those who don't have the time to play.  This means that ''light''-players will get more than they would've with the older system, and ''heavy''-players would get a similar amount (instead of a lot more - with the old sytstem.  Check out the tf2 blog about the newer system here: http://www.teamfortress.com/post.php?id=3727. -[[User:RJackson|<span style="background-color:#FF0000;color:white;font-size:0.7em;padding: 0 2px;">RJ</span>]]{{mod}} 09:36, 31 October 2010 (UTC)
 
 
 
== No items when playing with bots? ==
 
 
 
My computer isn't powerful enough to handle online matches very well, but I can play with bots just fine, so that's what I've done for a long time now. For several weeks I haven't gotten any item drops in normal gameplay with bots. I do, however, seem to get drops if I'm playing tr_walkway or just mucking around solo on any map, even the same ones that don't give drops with bots. Does anyone else have this experience? Has Valve changed something so that using bots stops the drop system from working? [[User:Will-T|Will-T]] 21:36, 11 November 2010 (UTC)
 
 
 
:I was still able to get items when playing with bots... Maybe you just hit your cap. [[User:Meter1060|Meter1060]] 19:20, 23 November 2010 (UTC)
 
 
 
== Separate drop timers? ==
 
 
 
In the [[Mann Co. Supply Crate]] discussion we noticed that drops are on separate timers.  At the very least, there is separation between droppable tools and droppable weapons/hats as its pretty common to see a double drop (i.e. a crate and a weapon drop on the same death).  I don't think there is enough verifiable data out there to add onto the wiki page but how do we start determining what is separate and what isn't?  Is it possible since hats drop so infrequently? [[User:Iloverice|Iloverice]] 23:59, 11 November 2010 (UTC)
 
:I believe Robin has responded in an email that they are indeed on separate timers because it wouldn't be fair to have one of your item drops used up by an item that you need to pay to open. [[User:Moussekateer|Moussekateer]] 00:01, 12 November 2010 (UTC)
 
 
 
::Then it might be useful information to put in. [[User:Meter1060|Meter1060]] 19:21, 23 November 2010 (UTC)
 
:I thought the article used to say this.  Was it removed, or maybe I'm misremembering?  (Digging through the edit history is tedious.)  The separate drop timer would be useful information to include, maybe just cite "personal correspondence." --[[User:Itsatrap|Itsatrap]] 19:21, 24 November 2010 (UTC)
 
::Aha, I found it. It was mentioned in the [[Mann Co. Supply Crate]] article in early October, but was removed on October 12, 2010 as an unsourced statement. A quick web search turns up comments that "crates use a separate drop system," but those all point back to the wiki, so nothing solid. --[[User:Itsatrap|Itsatrap]] 19:42, 24 November 2010 (UTC)
 
:::Maybe a good ol' fashioned email to Robin is in order so we can source it? [[User:Meter1060|Meter1060]] 19:59, 24 November 2010 (UTC)
 

Revision as of 04:31, 25 November 2010

Yes. I like this new weapon.
The Heavy
Backpack case.png

The Item Drop System is a system introduced to make earning the large quantity of items within TF2 easier and maintain class balance during class updates. It was first introduced with the Sniper vs. Spy Update, and has since been tweaked in order to make it fairer between light and heavy players, and to thwart the effect of idling.

Current System

On April 20, 2010, the item drop system was changed.[1] Instead of rolling randomly at intervals to see if you got an item drop, the system rolls to determine when your next item drop will occur. With this change, players are guaranteed to find items at regular intervals of 15 minutes to 75 minutes. Under the previous system, players could have unlucky streaks during which they didn't find any items for long periods of time. The new system has removed this possibility and increased the rate at which items drop.

There is no cap on the amount of items that can be received per week, but instead a cap on the amount of playtime in which drops can be received. Playing beyond that cap won't yield you any more items. Playing less than the cap carries over the unused time to the next week, increasing that week's cap. It has been estimated the maximum amount of items that can be received per week is around 6-12. The system resets each player's playtime cap around 5- 5:30 PM each Wednesday, Pacific Standard Time where Valve is located.

The dropped items are stored in the backpack after the player's death, after a trade has been done, or if the Mann Co. Store is visited. Occasionally, dropped, traded, or crafted items may get stuck "in limbo" and may not immediately appear in the player's backpack. Visiting the Mann. Co. Store will usually restore these items to the player's backpack.

Advantages and Disadvantages

A positive aspect of the system is that it allows new and old players alike to earn unlockable weapons by investing play time. It allows players to play as any class, since as long as they are racking up game-time, the player is eligible for an item drop.

Many players received unwanted duplicates. This was dealt with by the introduction of the Crafting system, and later by the Trading system, allowing players to trade all but a few items with each other.[2]

Despite the new systems, Idling still exists. However, it is now possible using the offline mode (use of the -textmode game launch parameter combined with -novid and -nosound to disable video and audio processing respectively), leaving server providers free to provide a gaming experience.

Achievement Milestones

On April 29, 2008, Valve unveiled a set of three unlockable weapons as part of their Gold Rush Update Update. These weapons were unlocked by completing a set number of achievements, resulting in an achievement milestone. There were three achievement milestones in all, with each successive one requiring more achievements. Once each milestone was unlocked the player received the set weapon that came with that achievement milestone. This requirement was subsequently reduced to stop players grinding just to get the new unlocks.

On May 21, 2009, Valve implemented a new system of random drops for unlockable items and discontinued the milestone system. Valve soon fell back to the Achievement Milestones coupled with the item drop system for the Sniper and Spy weapons in the the May 29, 2009 Patch. This milestone system has since been used in the WAR! Update and also appeared in the Engineer update.

Former system

Backpack icon, used before Mann-Conomy update.

While keeping the Achievement Milestones already present for the Scout, Pyro, Heavy and Medic, Valve implemented the random drop system to maintain class balance in the event of a class update. This system was patched into the game as part of the Sniper vs. Spy Update.

Valve calculated the average time a regular Team Fortress 2 player played, then came up with an unknown time which was used as a marker or set point. Every time a player had played for 25 minutes, the game randomly drew a decision for the player. If the player was lucky (25% per item chance) then they would get a randomly chosen weapon or hat. If the player was unlucky, then they would have received no item that time. There was a separate timer that counted every 15,430 seconds (4 hours, 17 minutes, and 10 seconds) you had an additional 1 in 28 chance of receiving a hat. The average time for getting a single item was 1h 40min (including duplicates). Since weapons were granted via a random number generator, experience varied.

When first released, item drops would only occur if players were connected to the Steam Community. If the player was not signed into his or her friends list, or if Valve was performing maintenance on the Steam Community, the player would not receive item drops during that time. Valve changed this system at a later date, and item drops occurred for those who were not signed into the Steam Community (and still occur now with the new system).

Backpack

본문: Backpack

See Also

External Links