competitive tf2 is an organized way of playing the game we know and love, team fortress 2. comp tf2 doesn't have to be played for thousands of dollars or even have a prize pool involved; it is as simple as two teams who love the game fighting it out for fun and glory.

the main way of playing competitive tf2 is 6v6: on each team of 6 people, there are 2 scouts, 2 soldiers, 1 demo, and 1 medic. soldiers and scouts sometimes offclass (switch to sniper/spy/engineer/heavy/etc) depending on what the team needs. this format is proven to be, for the most part, extremely balanced and loved by the competitive community. there is also highlander (9s) which consists of teams of one of each class. watch a bit of each format and try to find out which one you would find most fun. highlander is considered more easy to get into if you are coming straight from public servers (pubs), while 6s is considered less "crowded" and more of a esport-oriented format.

you can easily get into team fortress 2's competitive scene through a number of outlets. there is the newbie mix event that we hold usually on the weekends, which allows you to play with experienced players and learn the competitive format and maps. watch the events sidebar here on teamfortresstv to learn more about those. there is united gaming clans (UGC) which hosts a tf2 league in both 6s and highlander with skill ranging from new players to experienced ones. to find a team for that, go to ugcleague.com's forums and search their recruitment section, or better yet, find some of your friends who fucking love tf2 and want to bring their play to a new level. you even get a free metal for participating in the league at the end of each season!

if you want to see more of each format, feel free to check out teamfortresstv on twitch to watch how 6v6 is played, and extvesports for highlander.

i hope this helps you and welcome to competitive tf2.

Wow, thanks.

I like playing a lot of classes and frequently switch so I don't think highlander would be right for me if it's only 1 person for each class... I really like playing Soldier, Pyro, Sniper and Demoman so would 6s be a better choice for me?

Sixes tends to be somewhat more flexible with "off-classing" with Scouts and the Roamer. Best piece of advice would be to jump into Newbie mixes on Friday nights and see what you like, then go from there.

Soldier and demo are of the competitive format of a 6s team; with 2 soldiers respectively as pocket (one who protect the medic; garners more heal) or roamer (one that flanks and bombs in on the combo)

Pyro and sniper are more of secondary classes that are used to push/protect last and break stalemates.

You just gotta try both formats and see which you like; you can always just play both, highlander or 6s.

if you do 6s you're gonna want to "main" one class even if offclassing is viable. for example lots of people are good at scout and sniper but they put more time into scout and are considered scout mains because scout is the class you would play for the majority of a match.

dont be like this guy

This is comp TF2

If you play in any comp setting you're going to be playing one class for the huge majority of the game (95%). That might sound crazy coming from pubs where you can switch at will but trust me its better.

Play some newbie mixes (they happen every friday!!!!) and decide what class you like best or even comp at all.

If you've got any questions about newbies mixes, ask away. I'm an admin and I'll try to answer as best I can

alright whose alt account is this

If you're looking to get into 6v6, this list of guides might help you learn the basics:

http://teamfortress.tv/thread/18435/collection-of-resources-tips-for-6v6