Rock, Paper, Shotgun

A Not-So Grim Future: Team Forty K

By Kieron Gillen on August 2nd, 2010 at 10:30 am.

RPS’ ways are mysterious. How do you get us to post about something? You stick 40k figures in it. Or Transformers. Frankly, if you put Impactor in your game we’d probably end up skinning the site in your game’s honour. Anyway – 40k models for TF2. “Coming Soon” says the Youtube-page-notes. “I miss Impactor” cries our inner six-year olds, embarrassingly. Footage follows.

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93 Comments »

  1. 02/08/2010 at 10:38 Choca says:

    I’m actually surprised this wasn’t done earlier since putting 40K skins on stuff automatically makes it better.

    • 02/08/2010 at 10:47 Tei says:

      Yea, it fit nicelly, and make you think why has not been done before?.

      But the pace of TF2 is too fast. And everything looks like WIP, since with small changes can become much better (camo texture on the sniper, slighty better apotecary builder, make class different to spot since people seems to ask for it (?), and other).

      - – -

      The problem with making a FPS with big robots, is scale, inertia, pace, destructibility and chaos. I don’t think is feasible, yet… since we would need a city fully destructible in a epic colosus way, a great phisic engine… (Something like Sumotori Dreams ?), lots of particles… like you have never seen in a videogame before.
      In 5+ 10+ years will be feasible.

    • 02/08/2010 at 10:47 Baka says:

      And da red wuns go fastah!

    • 02/08/2010 at 12:25 bill says:

      Well, in theory space marines in their armout should be pretty nippy and agile.

      Video games and movie clips always seem to make them these ponderous, slow, stompy things – but they’re supposed to be faster and more agile than normal humans, and their armour is supposed to have weight/motion compensators to make it like it’s not even there. *

      Maybe this is the only thing ever to get space marines right!?

      -
      * though the real problem is that it IS like it’s not even there! They get gibbed in one shot – what kind of useless power armour is that????

    • 02/08/2010 at 16:12 Nick says:

      But they have the same MA as Imperial guard!

      At least, they did when I last played.

  2. 02/08/2010 at 10:43 John says:

    I’ve never been more convinced that Valve chose the right art style for this game.

  3. 02/08/2010 at 10:44 Cerebrium says:

    The Spy should become a Death Cult Assassin.

    The heavy’s heavy bolter looks great though.

  4. 02/08/2010 at 10:46 mondomau says:

    Awesome.

  5. 02/08/2010 at 10:46 Dood says:

    The funny thing is that all TF2 classes really have a Space marine counterpart in the 40K universe. Scouts, Apothecaries, Devastators, Techmarines etc. are pretty much a perfect fit.

  6. 02/08/2010 at 10:57 Rich says:

    Shame most of the weapons haven’t also been skinned. Apart from the heavy bolter, which looks great.

    I’m not sure the grit of Warhammer 40k is well suited to TF2s style though.
    Alien Swarm yes, TF2 no.

  7. 02/08/2010 at 11:00 HawkesOfSavileRow says:

    I say 3 weeks before inevitable cease-and-desist. Any takers?

    Also fuck you captcha, youre not even a real word.

  9. 02/08/2010 at 11:36 Omolong says:

    You really should have credited the creator of this. His name is Populus, and he comes from Facepunch.

  10. 02/08/2010 at 11:40 Quinnbeast says:

    \o/

    That is all.

  11. 02/08/2010 at 11:42 itsallcrap says:

    This isn’t an improvement – everyone is the same shape now. How am I supposed to recognise in half a second what class I’m about to fight when they round a corner a hundred metres away?

    TF2′s style was perfect to begin with.

    • 02/08/2010 at 12:22 airtekh says:

      This.

      Inherent to TF2′s design is the fact that you are easily able to identify which class you are up against, as soon as you see them.

      I suspect that playing with this mod would make the game more frustrating.

    • 02/08/2010 at 12:24 Rich says:

      True. Valve manages to make class and character distinctions really clear, while also being very subtle about it.

    • 02/08/2010 at 12:38 Tei says:

      Is work in progress. Hints can be added later so the class look different (even his siluette) but thats is.

      The point of modding is not making the game a Better Game, but to make the game, a Different Game. You guys somehow miss the very point of “modding” and put too much weight on yet-another-genius-valve-feature. Classe-based games can be made withouth making classed obviusly apparent, I tell you. Like.. all the BF ones.

    • 02/08/2010 at 13:30 airtekh says:

      The Battlefield games are ‘realistic’ military shooters, people are going to look similar in that regardless.

      In the stylised, surrealistic world of Team Fortress 2, Valve decided to make each class as distinct as possible; both to aid players while playing and also to give the game some of its undeniable charm.

      If I’m a scout and I run around a corner face-to-face with an enemy, I need to know immediately if I should attack them or run away from them. I could forsee many other encounters whereby having this mod installed would ruin the fun I have playing the game.

      To me, changing the player models is changing part of the core game of TF2, which is why I personally won’t be installing this mod.

      However, mods are entirely optional of course. I’m sure there are a lot of 40k fans who will install this mod and enjoy it. Good luck to them.

    • 02/08/2010 at 13:57 Tei says:

      @airtekh – “In the stylised, surrealistic world of Team Fortress 2, Valve decided to make each class as distinct as possible; both to aid players while playing and also to give the game some of its undeniable charm.”

      This is a design decision, a (you say) conscious one. But design decisions can be undoed. Take Windows. Is designed to run launching from a RW disk. But you can change that design decision, and make it run from a Read Only device. Tadaa!!!.. you have a system that can’t take over by virus.
      Changing design decisions is another way to work on resources. Is the “What if” way.

      Also, people take by a fact that Valve consciusly made this decision. But to me, It have the smell of accidentally happened. After 10 or more years tryiing to release a TF2 game, something “clicked” and TF2 born.

    • 02/08/2010 at 14:01 Tei says:

      Re: charm

      Black is another color. 40K has his own charm. Thats why people repeat the memes “blood for the blood god”, “in the grim dark future” and things like that. The chaois-infested marines are easy to spot from the “more bless than you” ones. Like a spider from a nail.

    • 02/08/2010 at 15:10 airtekh says:

      40K has his own charm

      I didn’t say anything about 40k not having any charm. TF2′s character models are part of its appeal to me, personally.

      Also, people take by a fact that Valve consciusly made this decision

      No it probably wasn’t a conscious design decision. If anything, it was probably something born out of their continuous playtesting process (something Valve excel at). Why does this even matter?

      I really don’t know what we’re arguing about anymore.

      It’s a mod. Install it. Have fun. I’ll stick with vanilla, thanks.

  12. 02/08/2010 at 11:52 Quinnbeast says:

    That’s okay. Downloading it will be optional. Freedom to choose = win/win for everyone!

  13. 02/08/2010 at 12:16 Michael says:

    Just to inform everyone who read this article:
    These are not skins.

    Skins are only textures being wrapped around a 3d model, so if these were skins they would have had the exact shape and silhouette of the original models. These are entire replacement models.

  14. 02/08/2010 at 12:20 Jake says:

    It was good to see Impactor again in Last Stand of the Wreckers.

    • 02/08/2010 at 12:38 Urael says:

      He was one of many highlights in that fabulous series. Recommended reading for all 80′s UK fans; in fact I think this should be one the required reading lists in our schools.

  15. 02/08/2010 at 12:26 Vague-rant says:

    But then what will I do with my many, many (3) hats?

    • 02/08/2010 at 12:41 Tei says:

      It would be fun if a mod is madded that attach random atributes to hats. Like % shield, % regen, % more ammo.
      It can be made procedurally, so is not hand generated but random and static. Like that Barcode Battle games.

    • 02/08/2010 at 21:54 DJ Phantoon says:

      Thus taking the fun out of hats by making one better than all the rest.

  16. 02/08/2010 at 12:46 Butterbumps says:

    This is not something I would ever use, but I am extremely pleased it exists. Beautiful.

    I didn’t see it in the video, but the Eyelander needs to become a chainsword, obviously.

  17. 02/08/2010 at 13:26 mandrill says:

    The makers of this mod should probably expect a ‘cease and desist’ from GW any day now. GW have always been very protective of their IP and have killed off more ambitious mods in the past (Battlfied 40k, the Battlefleet Gothic Mod for HW2, and more)

    Its a nice idea but I don’t see GW letting it live.

    • 02/08/2010 at 13:39 Calabi says:

      Thats what I was going to say, they will kill it dead.

      Its not like its free advertising or in any way impinges on their monetary gains. Its funny when these companys do their best to kill of their own business, and then wonder why its decreasing.

    • 02/08/2010 at 23:01 Ergates says:

      I believe they do it because they have to. Or think they have to anyway.

      If they let this chappy give away their IP for free, what happens next time when it does impinge on their sales, or if someone starts charging for something with their IP in – “But you let this guy do it”…

      It may seem mean and mercenary, but at least they’re consistant.

    • 02/08/2010 at 23:28 DrazharLn says:

      They’ve left a Battlefleet Gothic mod for Sins of a Solar Empire go unmolested, though. I think that mod even has the fickle blessings of GW upon it.

      Sins of a Gothic Empire.

  18. 02/08/2010 at 13:59 Wulf says:

    Oooh.

    Redone weapons, and a couple of appropriate maps to romp around in and this could certainly be something worth romping around in.

  19. 02/08/2010 at 15:37 pupsikaso says:

    Uh, great and all, but… team colours?

  20. 02/08/2010 at 15:42 Ekoi says:

    I would have rather seen an ork mod myself. Evil Suns vs Death Skulls would have been great.

  21. 02/08/2010 at 16:09 Mad Doc MacRae says:

    Oh god I’m not sure I can resist how sexy that heavy bolter is…

    FEAR DENIES FAITH

  22. 02/08/2010 at 16:47 Cosmic says:

    I kinda thought the SCOUT should be a scout marine……

    makes more sence no?

  23. 02/08/2010 at 17:59 Raynor says:

    neat looks pretty cool but why didn’t they just make them Starcraft space marines and not some cheap rip off?

  24. 02/08/2010 at 19:56 august says:

    They said multiple[le times before the release that the classes were designed to be recognizable at a glance.

  25. 02/08/2010 at 20:36 Stabby says:

    So just add enormous shoulder pads to each model and you’re done, then?

  26. 02/08/2010 at 21:52 Azazel says:

    Irony upon Irony upon Irony.

    It’s like ‘Inception’, but with Ironing.

  27. 02/08/2010 at 22:12 Killian says:

    In what universe was starcraft created before warhammer?

  28. 02/08/2010 at 22:14 Grible says:

    Is it just me or if you squint a bit does that picture not look like a little patch dog running towards you?

  29. 03/08/2010 at 00:05 Jimbod says:

    i think this is a brilliant idea. i say DO IT! :D

  30. 03/08/2010 at 00:24 Mangos says:

    this reminds me of Tribal Wars way to much for me

  31. 03/08/2010 at 00:30 Bluefoot says:

    Looks amusing, if a little clunky.

    We might cast a bit of this for fun @ http://www.dow2live.com :)

  32. 03/08/2010 at 00:37 40KEndgame says:

    airtekh says:
    August 2, 2010 at 12:22 pm

    This.

    Inherent to TF2′s design is the fact that you are easily able to identify which class you are up against, as soon as you see them.

    I suspect that playing with this mod would make the game more frustrating.

    Maybe to someone with impaired vision that isn’t fixed by corrective lenses (FYI I am a glasses-wearing spy), but at least to me (when I wear my glasses) the icon on the shoulder pads is a good indicator from anywhere but long range, and the weapons the characters are carrying and different color shades are a good giveaway too.

  33. 03/08/2010 at 01:53 The Dark One says:

    Maybe being emotionally invested in Warhammer stuff would make me like it more. As it is, the best compliment I can give it is that it looks better than TouHou Fortress 2.

  34. 03/08/2010 at 02:02 Bill Bobaggins says:

    I wouldn’t be surprised if Games Workshop puts a stop to this.

  35. 03/08/2010 at 02:50 bill says:

    WHERE THE FOOK IS THE SPY?!?!?
    I caught engie, sniper, demo, pyro, soldier, heavy, medic, and scout…BUT WHERE IS SPY?!

  36. 03/08/2010 at 03:12 Flexy says:

    but what about the hats?
    is there new hats to every class too?

  37. 03/08/2010 at 04:54 Adam says:

    Nah. It’s too difficult to tell the classes apart. Maybe a fun mod can be made with this, though!

  38. 03/08/2010 at 05:40 Not Sure says:

    The more I watch the video the easier I can pick every one out, even at the terrible resolution. But than again I’ve been playing games for a while and can see differences pretty quick after a bit of looking at the game.

  39. 03/08/2010 at 05:55 Blargh says:

    GW used to have an illustrator (maybe Wayne England?) with a very cartoonish style which would have been more appropriate. A team fortress mod won’t work without the stylization.
    Having weaker classes be regular humans would help a lot.
    And needs more skulls.

    • 03/08/2010 at 06:05 Not Sure says:

      I just want the models, if there was going to be anymore, otherwise might as well as just go the whole way and make a whole new game using the TF2 code. I bet if you did do that you might just call down the GW hater hammer. Really though from all I have read about GW’s licensing is that it’s more the nanny state of England that requires you to uphold you licensing at all times or else you lose it and than any one can make GW models.

    • 03/08/2010 at 22:00 FunkyBadger says:

      Same in America. Although you wouldn’t have got to use the “nanny state trope.

  40. 03/08/2010 at 06:41 bucko says:

    If this ends up getting finished, one awesome thing would be to skin all the shotguns the classes have for boltguns – otherwise this iconic warhammer weapon won’t ever be used. Doesn’t matter if it still fires like a shotty. Also, make all melee weapons look like a chainsword.

  41. 03/08/2010 at 07:31 Tadpole says:

    @Raynor

    Who is ripping off who? Ripoff of what?

  42. 03/08/2010 at 08:01 Haplo says:

    What I would personally do to encapsulate both the 40k appearance/feel and perhaps the ‘spirit’ of TF2 would be to draw the individual positions from different races.

    A quick knockup I did off the top of my head involves a Space Marine Heavy, Ork Demoman, Tau Sniper, Eldar Spy, Techpriest engineer, maybe Ork/ChaosSM Soldier, IG/Eldar Scout, SM/IG/Eldar Medic, Ork Pyro maybe? The Heavy/Demo/Pyro choices tend to fit the frames better as well.

    Admittedly it’s hardly realistic for these races to all be working -together-, but surely this is the end result of smashing TF2 into 40k?

  43. 03/08/2010 at 09:13 ProPile says:

    One of the things I like in TF2 is the art style and characters… Changing it will ruin the game for me and for other players aswell. Please don’t change the things that makes TF2 such a good game. Make a TF3 or something and i bet there will be less players then in TF2

  44. 03/08/2010 at 10:54 stubbs the zombie says:

    TF2 has his own characteristics –> like the gameplay, the art style, ftw
    You can`t compare TF2 with other games, because TF2 is inimitable.

    If you make this 40k models you will ruin the characteristics of TF2. People will compare TF2 with helo and this future shit. This won`t make fun anymore. After this shit, you can rename TF2 in Team Fortress future, whatever. After this update most of the TF2 players won`t play it anymore, like me.

  45. 03/08/2010 at 11:33 Octopus says:

    This looks amazing and all, but I doubt I will be installing this mod, personally. It ruins both the gameplay and the charm of TF2 alltogether. If TF2 was like this from the start I probably wouldn’t have been playing it. It just doesn’t look right to me.

  46. 03/08/2010 at 13:37 Dyler says:

    GUYS! I know y’all miss one important thing… You never see yourself in 3D in team fortress 2.. So wouldnt this mod just make everyone around you look cool except yourself? (I know taunts) But still, we should all think before posting hate comments. This will MEABY make worse gameplay, but i like it… I could run around with my bro, looking at him and see how cool he is in power armor. :)

  47. 03/08/2010 at 14:27 Avenger says:

    Most of them, just not ours.

  48. 03/08/2010 at 15:23 Flawless says:

    @Stubbs The Zombie
    You actually think Valve would replace the TF2 models with warhammer 40K?
    I really dont think theyd endanger the brilliant community that the game has to see how long they can hold up in court againsty GW.
    Most likely it will be an installable mod that is implenemented into seperate server’s (Much like Zombie Fortress).
    As most people have said, this probably wont last long, but it will be good if they somehow manage to bypass copyright infringements and add this as a little extra easter egg.

  49. 03/08/2010 at 16:54 Ironic says:

    I had a similar idea. I was thinking:

    Eldar Scout – Speedy, and a bit of a dick.
    Imperial Guard Soldier – Pretty obvious. Replace one of the hats with a commissar cap too. :D
    Necron Pyro – GAUSS FLAYER GAUSS FLAYER GAUSS FLAYER
    Ork Engineer – He’s a crazy builder with a robotic hand. He is totally an Ork.
    Space Marine Heavy – With giant pauldrons, of course.
    Dark Eldar Medic – He’s a sadistic madman who loves pain. He just needs a big hat and he’d fit right in.
    Tau Sniper – Pretty self-explanatory. Keep the piss-chucking for extra hilarity. :D

    Only two that I can’t think of would be Demo and Spy. I’m thinking Chaos Cultist and Tyranid, but I can’t think which would fit which better.

  50. 03/08/2010 at 20:45 crappled says:

    I can’t believe how many of you people seem to think this is an update for TF2 that is going to be mandatory when released…

  51. 03/08/2010 at 22:25 pothead says:

    whens this update its seems alright aslong as they dont change the origanal characters its should be just a mode for a map

  52. 04/08/2010 at 07:55 Blarg says:

    How about another mod that turned either team into Orks or Chaos? :D

  53. 04/08/2010 at 11:28 Kollega says:

    Yet another good thing defiled by 40k fanatics. Just what we needed.

    I’d rather prefer a mod that replaces TF2 guys with Looney Tunes characters. Taz as a Scout, Sylvester as a Soldier, Foghorn Leghorn as a Pyro, Wile. E. Coyote as a Demoman, Gossamer as a Heavy, Porky Pig as an Engineer, Grandma as a Medic, Yosemite Sam as a Sniper and Pepe Le Pew as a Spy. That would better fit TF2 than SPESS MEHRENS, don’t you all think?

  54. 04/08/2010 at 16:00 aikan says:

    @ raynor “neat looks pretty cool but why didn’t they just make them Starcraft space marines and not some cheap rip off?”

    indeed, ironic that there is anyone out there that would think this, either complete idiot that has hid their head in the ground under a rock, or a troll.

  55. 06/08/2010 at 19:52 discodude says:

    This idea makes much more sense to me. TF2′s entire premise is of rival corporations that hire mercenaries from different backgrounds to fight, right?

  56. 12/08/2011 at 09:03 Syzygy23 says:

    Aw man, this looks awesome! Unfortunately I’ve been trying to install it for over an hour and the skins refuse to show up ingame. Can anyone tell me exactly what filepath I am supposed to extract the folders in?

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