INTRODUCTION:One of the most popular online action games of all time.Nine distinct classes provide a broad range of tactical abilities and personalities, and lend themselves to a variety of player skills.

SCOUT:Born and raised in Boston, Massachusetts, the Scout is a fast-running scrapper with a baseball bat and a snarky 'in-your-face' attitude. He is the fastest mercenary on the battlefield unassisted. His Double Jump leaves slower opponents struggling to keep up and helps him navigate the terrain while dodging oncoming projectiles. Carrying a Scattergun, a Pistol, and a Bat, the Scout is ideal for aggressive fighting and flanking. The Scout is a great class for quick hit-and-run tactics for sapping away the enemies' health due to his ability to get in, do damage, and dash away before even being noticed. The Scout is an excellent choice for completing objectives quickly. He has the capability to capture control points and push carts at twice the rate of any other class. Only the Scout has this ability naturally; the Demoman and Soldier only have the same ability while using the Pain Train. His speed makes him a natural for capturing the Intelligence; his double jump allows him to carry it along unexpected paths.

ENGINEER:The Engineer is a soft-spoken, amiable Texan with an interest in all things mechanical. He specializes in constructing and maintaining Buildings that provide support to his team, rather than fighting at the front lines. The Engineer's various gadgets include the Sentry Gun, an automated turret that fires at any enemy in range, the Dispenser, a device that restores the health and ammunition of nearby teammates, and Teleporters that quickly transport players from point A to point B. Because the Engineer's ingenious devices are under constant threat from explosives and devious enemy Spies, a good Engineer must keep his gear under a watchful eye and under repair with his Wrench at all times. When the Engineer needs to get his hands dirty, his trio of generic yet capable weapons, along with the assistance of his helpful hardware, make him more than capable of holding his own in a fight. If need be, the Engineer can even pick up and haul constructed buildings to redeploy them in more favorable locations. While usually viewed as a defensive class, the Engineer has a selection of high-tech weapons that allow him to destroy projectiles or to build faster-deploying, more damaging Sentry Guns, which give him great utility at the front lines too. His Teleporters are also a key point in any offensive team's success, allowing slower, heavier classes to reach the battle quicker.

SOLDIER:The Soldier is a crazed, jingoistic patriot from America's heartland. Tough and well-armed, he's versatile, capable of both offense and defense, and a great starter class to get familiar with the game. The Soldier is well known for his spectacular rocket jump. In defiance of all good sense and judgement, the Soldier can detonate a rocket at his feet and launch himself skyward at the cost of some health (unless using the Rocket Jumper). This ability allows the Soldier to pop up in unexpected places and reach areas off-limits even to the Scout's double jump and sometimes Hype jumps. The two grenades on the Soldier's character model cannot be used unless the player finishes the Kamikaze taunt, which can only be used when the Equalizer or Escape Plan is equipped.

MEDIC:The Medic is a Teutonic man of medicine. While he may have a tenuous adherence to medical ethics, he is nonetheless the primary healing class of the team. Although the Medic's Syringe Gun and Bonesaw aren't the greatest weapons for direct combat, he can typically still be found near the front lines, healing wounded teammates while trying to stay out of trouble. When the Medic focuses his Medi Gun on a team-mate, they will regain health points. Team-mates who are already at full health will have their health buffed beyond the normal limit, up to 150% of their base health capacity. Teammates who have not taken damage recently will be healed more rapidly, encouraging smart withdrawals when injured. When healing, the Medic will gradually fill a unique ÜberCharge bar, which can fill faster if healing injured or non-overhealed team-mates. When the ÜberCharge bar is fully charged, the Medic's healing gun will begin to crackle with small jolts of electricity around it, indicating that he can now deploy a unique charge to benefit his patient and himself for eight seconds. A charge from the Medi Gun offers temporary invulnerability; a charge from the Kritzkrieg, guaranteed critical hits for his patients; from the Quick-Fix, rapid healing and immunity to knock back; and from the Vaccinator, enhanced damage resistance. Although the Medic cannot heal himself, unless by means of an ÜberCharge-deployed Quick-Fix, he is capable of slowly regenerating health over time, and is the only class capable of doing so naturally. The longer a Medic stays out of combat and avoids taking damage, the greater the increments of health which he will passively heal. An injured Medic will begin regenerating health at a rate of 3 health points per second, scaling up over the following ten seconds to a maximum of 6 health per second (this base rate can be positively affected by the Amputator and negatively affected by the Blutsauger).

PYRO:The Pyro is a mumbling pyromaniac of indeterminate origin who has a burning passion for all things fire related. As shown in Meet The Pyro, the Pyro appears to be insane and delusional, living in a utopian fantasy world known as Pyroland. The Pyro specializes in fighting enemies at close range using a home-made Flame Thrower. Enemies set on fire suffer from after burn and take additional damage over time, allowing the Pyro to excel at hit-and-run tactics. Due to the Flamethrower’s short range, the Pyro is weaker at longer ranges and relies heavily on ambushing and taking alternate routes to catch opponents off-guard. Although categorized as an offensive class, the Pyro also brings some utility to the battlefield. The Pyro’s compression blast, for example, can deflect enemy projectiles, extinguish burning teammates, and forcibly reposition any enemy, including one under the effects of an invincibility-granting ÜberCharge. Because enemies hit by fire are visibly ignited, the Pyro is the best class for Spy-checking, as even a small puff of flame can nullify the Spy’s Cloak and disguise. Additionally, the Pyro can use the Homewrecker, Maul, or Neon Annihilator to protect an Engineer’s buildings from an enemy Spy's Sapper or use the Scorch Shot or Detonator to jump to normally unreachable places. The Pyro wears an asbestos-lined suit that provides protection from the after burn of other Pyros and charged Cow Mangler 5000 shots, though it does not add any resistance to the direct damage taken from the flamethrower/explosion. The three incendiary grenades on the Pyro's character model are purely cosmetic and cannot be used.

SNIPER:Hailing from the lost country of New Zealand and raised in the unforgiving Australian outback, the Sniper is a tough and ready crack shot. The Sniper's main role on the battlefield is to pick off important enemy targets from afar using his Sniper Rifle and its ability to instantly kill a target with a headshot (with some exceptions). He is effective at long range, but weakens with proximity, where he is forced to use his Submachine Gun or his Kukri. As a result, the Sniper tends to perch on higher grounds or in hard-to-see places, where he can easily pin down enemies at chokepoints. Although he is typically known for instantaneously killing enemies at a distance, the Sniper can use the Huntsman to get closer to the enemy. Additionally, the Sydney Sleeper and the mysterious contents of Jarate allow him to take on a support role by causing enemies to take mini-crits.

DEMOMAN:The Demoman is a scrumpy-swilling demolitions expert from the Scottish town of Ullapool, and is one of the more versatile members of the team. A master of explosives, the Demoman strategically deals indirect and mid-range combat and massive splash damage. Armed with his Grenade Launcher and Stickybomb Launcher, the Demoman uses his only good eye and the knowledge of his surrounding environment for well-timed detonations that send enemies skyward, often in many pieces. Should anyone get past his explosive ordinance however, they will be shocked to learn the Demoman is extremely proficient at melee combat, being one of the deadliest melee users in the game, with a variety of powerful melee unlocks in his arsenal. The Demoman excels at swift destruction; he can bounce his grenades at creative angles to wreak havoc on enemy Sentry Gun emplacements while remaining safely out of sight. His stickybombs are a perfect tool for area denial, and are effective at keeping opponents away from any carts, control points, or Intelligence that he deems off-limits.

SPY:The Spy, hailing from an indeterminate region of France, is an enthusiast of sharp suits and even sharper knives. He relies on stealth and trickery to aid his team. Using a unique array of cloaking watches, he can render himself invisible or even fake his own death, leaving unaware opponents off-guard. His Disguise Kit lets him take on the form of any class on either team, allowing him to blend in while behind enemy lines before stabbing his unsuspecting "teammates" in the back. In fact, a swift backstab with any of the Spy's knives will kill any foe in a single hit - provided they aren't under the effects of any type of invulnerability or immense damage reduction. In addition to being able to swiftly assassinate key enemies, the Spy possesses the ability to disable and destroy Engineer-constructed buildings with his Sapper. Once attached to an enemy building, the Sapper disables and slowly drains health from the building. However, a Sapper can be removed by an Engineer, or Pyro wielding the Homewrecker, Maul, or Neon Annihilator. The Spy is able to enter an enemy teleporter and can use this to make his way to the enemy team, and blend in amongst them. Whereas most players can only see the names and health of their teammates, the Spy can observe the names and health of the enemy team as well, allowing him to relay useful intelligence. This ability is unique to only the Spy and a Medic carrying the Solemn Vow.

Heavy:The Heavy Weapons Guy, more commonly known as the Heavy, is a towering hulk of a man that hails from the USSR. He is the largest and possibly most dangerous class in Team Fortress 2. Boasting the most default health and devastating firepower from his trusty Minigun, the Heavy is no pushover. The Heavy's Minigun can inflict heavy damage at a high rate of fire, allowing him to mow down opposing babies, cowards and teeny-men in seconds. The Heavy's movement speed is his main weakness. Revving up or firing his Minigun brings his already unimpressive speed down to a snail's pace, making him a very easy target for Snipers and Spies. His slow speed makes him more dependent on support from Medics and Engineers to keep him in the fight. Aside from decimating entire teams, the Heavy is able to provide further support for his comrades with an oft-required health boost via his Sandvich, which, when consumed, is capable of healing him to full health. It can also be dropped to provide an instant 50% health boost to his teammates. However, if he isn't careful, an enemy may pick up the dropped Sandvich for a health boost of their own. The Heavy is the face of Team Fortress 2 and is what many think of when they hear of the game. He appears prominently on box-art and promotional materials, starred in the very first Meet the Team video, and has appeared in all further videos to date.