This is a generic guide to help play TF2, it is not an exhaustive guide just yet but a work-in-progress.
I assume you have a steam account and have already installed TF2. I will also assume you have a basic understanding of how FPS games are played. Another assumption is that you know basic FPS lingo, for example HUD is Heads Up Display (essentially the visuals on your screen).

TF2 is not like other FPS games as almost everything can be customized. I will link my other guides here. One is regarding the game files, and the other is regarding the crosshair. The crosshair guide is optional, but i recommend you read the CFG Files and how to edit them as modifying them VASTLY improves your experience.

TF2 is an old game and requires a bit of modification to improve your gameplay experience. There are tons of videos on youtube regarding custom huds, mods, scripts, and configs but to keep things simple, i will link the videos to those and not go too in depth now.

If you have any questions, feel free to message me on steam or discord and i would be glad to help.

Everything i post here is allowed by Steam, i do not condone cheating, scamming, griefing etc.

You can modify settings when TF2 launches such as if you want it to start in windowed mode or set a unique resolution etc by setting the launch options. I will include the BASIC ones everyone should include to make TF2 better and easier to play.

Make sure to type it out exactly as i have it, the '-' is needed to seperate commands, see below for example and what they do.



The first screenshot is right click and select properties, the second one shows the game settings, we want to paste the launch options there. This is what i use in my launch options, i will bold and underline the important and necessary ones.



Here is a guide on DirectX level settings, I hope it is ok i link it to another creators guide as this one is not mine. Video Guide on DirectX (not mine)

You can find my other guide on where the source game files are located and how to create the autoexec, and class files below. This is optional if you want to add a level of customization to your game. Recommended if you want to customize the keybindings for each class as well as unique crosshairs per class and per weaponslot or modifying the game to give you more frames per second etc if you have a potato computer or similar.

Regarding this guide and to keep things simple, you do NOT need to do this. Joining a community server from the browser or from console commands can be done 100% without this.

My CFG Files and how to edit them guide

I will not add anything to this section as this is meant to show you it is possible and where to go to learn more. (Plus people tend to prefer https://cfg.tf instead of modifying these files manually, but that is personal preference since CFG.TF requires you to download files), my guide on modifying crosshairs requires class specific cfg files formatted as above.

Easy crosshair switcher NO DOWNLOAD

Again this is entry level explanation at this stage, and will be expanded upon later as this is still a work in progress.

CFG files and Console Commands are similar, what you put in one, can also be put in another. Difference is that one is live in the game and the other is set for EACH time you launch the game.
If we set +attack in console, then you will be forever attacking (whatever class/weapon you have equipped). Once you close TF2 then re-launch it, +attack will be gone. In CFG files if you add +attack to a .cfg file, it will ALWAYS be enabled by default. That is why it is best to use CFG files for repetitive commands you like such as crosshair settings, and keybindings.


For simplicity sake, we will only use console for joining community servers from a connect IP.

TF2 uses IP addresses to join community made servers. See below as an example of a TF2 community server. Depending on your HUD, you may also have a CONSOLE button that brings up the console. Mine looks like a gear icon. Inspect your HUD to see if you have the option.


This example IP address is 91.216.250.11:27015 which is UNIQUE to this server.

If you have setup -console in launch options from earlier in the guide, you can now go ahead and add the following command in the console to take you to this server.



After hitting enter, or submit in the console, you will start to join the server. Prior to this, you can also set what you wish to download regarding custom server files such as custom models, custom maps, custom voicelines etc, but that is optional and may be included in this guide later.

Now we will set some ingame settings, again, i will assume you do not wish to use CFG files so everything below will be from settings or advance settings WITHIN TF2.

Some classes benefit more than others, and these settings are broken down into two categories, Class specific, and Universal. If it is class specific it will only impact the specific class such as Sniper settings only impacting your Sniper gameplay, other settings such as mouse sensitivity will impact all the classes.

Strap in because i include a lot of screenshots to make things easy to understand. Also, i have a custom HUD so my layout may look a bit different than yours. Advance Options can be found under Options>Multiplayer>Advanced Options.


Below are the Options tab, i added a screenshot of each since they are also very important and should be explained more than the advanced options. Again, setting these once should carry through to your next session. Ensure to hit apply after making changes before closing out of these screens.

This is the Keyboard settings, you can re-assign your movement and other keys here.
Under Advanced in this tab, make sure BOTH Fast weapon switch and Developer Console are checked.
To edit a key, you select Edit key, then press your desired key on keyboard or mouse.

This is the Mouse settings, you can configure your sensitivity here. Some people suggest to have mouse acceleration turned off, but i prefer it on, (like the psycho i am 😛).
A competitive TF2 player (best in the world in may peoples eyes) shared this video on these settings. B4NNY mouse settings guide.

Below are audio settings, self explanatory.

Here are the Video options. Clicking on Advanced takes you to some advance options regarding video settings. Should keep them default (any setting with a * should be optimal for your computer but adjust accordingly). TURN OFF MOTION BLUR. No reason to have it enabled. And set Field of View to 90 ALWAYS.

Here are the generic multiplayer settings as well as the Advanced Settings (below options).
You can change the colour, size and shape of your default crosshair here (my custom crosshair switcher overrides this). You can also set a spray, after you import it, i hid mine. You can also set what type of files you will download when joining a server, everything, do not download sounds, only map files, or no custom files at all.



Depending on your HUD, you can either Navigate to Advance options directly, should look like a wrench icon. OR you need to go to Options, then Multiplayer, then Advanced Options (see above).

***If you wish to filter bad words and sprays and disable voice chat you can do so from here***
(You can also mute people ingame instead if you find only one person being rude in VC (voice chat))
After opening it, you can check or uncheck desired options, these WILL carry over next time you launch the game.
Instead of showing a screenshot of each setting i will list in below table some important ones and will describe what they do. Not an exhaustive list, feel free to enable or disable them at any time as you wish. If unsure what something does, ask me, or google it 😛

This is still a work in progress, please feel free to suggest additions or editions if i am missing something. I will also create a general guide on TF2 for new players, covering the classes and gamemodes. I dont want to cover community, trading, crafting or other as there is just a vast amount of stuff to cover.

TF2 is the greatest FPS in my opinion, the level of customization of not only the settings but also weapon loadouts and gameplay styles is a timeless masterpiece, LazyPurple said it best.



Feel free to reach out to me on discord as i dont always respond here, and if necessary i can share screenshots through a discord DM.

das psycho#8313