Team Fortress 2 Source 2 has been shut down following a copyright claim from Valve, alongside a remake of the original Portal. Now, a long-standing and well-loved Team Fortress 2 mod, which makes a whole, alternative version of the game playable in FPS counterpart Contractors, has also gone offline, as the creators announce they are pulling the project “indefinitely” in the wake of Valve’s recent DMCAs.
Team Fortress 2 VR is a mod for Contractors, the 2018 FPS game renowned for its robust modding tools and vibrant community projects. Other shooters including Call of Duty and Halo have been recreated, in spirit, using the Contractors workshop – Team Fortress 2 VR is playable in Contractors, but rebuilds almost all of the levels and assets from the classic TF2.
After 14 months in development, however, the popular mod is being “suspended indefinitely” as the creators voluntarily pull it offline. Reportedly, this follows notices sent by Valve to YouTube video makers, after those video makers used footage from Team Fortress 2 VR in their work.
“We announce with a heavy heart that Contractors Team Fortress VR is being suspended indefinitely following the controversy surrounding Valve’s recent treatment of mod projects, and their policies listed in the DMCA given to said projects, the wording of which puts us in direct violation,” ‘TheAdvisor,’ one of the mod’s developers, explains.
“We have reason to believe that Valve has attempted to take down the project already by copyright claiming Youtube videos that contain TFVR content, causing big content creators like ‘Habie147’ and ‘Zhain’ to receive copyright strikes on their channels as well as several other creators.
“Because of this, we are closing our doors and will seek communication with Valve in order to proceed with development, as we want to cooperate with Valve in order to guarantee we remain within legal boundaries while providing the best possible service,” TheAdvisor continues. “TFVR will be put on hold until further notice, and TFVR content will be killswitched until we gain permission from Valve to operate. We as a dev team are currently discussing where our ambitions will take us in the meantime.”
‘Scatter,’ lead visual designer for Team Fortress 2 VR, also comments on the mod being suspended. “It’s a lot to take in,” Scatter says. “It was beautiful. It was absolutely beautiful. I’m just happy that we could make you all smile. With that being said, I don’t see TFVR coming back. But there is a chance – albeit a slim chance – that things can change. Now, I’d really appreciate it if things would change, but from the way I see it, this will possibly be the end of Team Fortress 2 in VR.”
The creator of Portal 64, an unofficial fan game that recreated the iconic puzzler using the visual style of old Nintendo 64 shooters, says that they “don’t blame Valve” following the project’s copyright takedown. Following the DMCAs of Portal 64 and Team Fortress 2 Source 2, which rebuilt the entire FPS using the updated version of Valve’s own engine, a campaign was launched via social media to “save TF2.”
If you’re a big Team Fortress 2 fan, you might want to relive the classic ‘oos era of online shooters with some of the best old games. Alternatively, grab some friends for the other best multiplayer games on PC.
You can also follow us on Google News for daily PC games news, reviews, and guides, or grab our PCGN deals tracker to net yourself some bargains.