why is TF2 FREE!!!!

[Big Magic]

can someone please tell me why TF2 is a free game its the best game in the world to me
why is it free

[MentallyillGamer(Kaddam)]

So everybody gets a chance to enjoy the "best game in the world."

[fanum sense]

Because they don't need the income from the game purchases, just from the mann co store.

[Big Magic]

oh thanks

[-|BeeR|-CritcH]

yeah - phobia is right. TF2 is probably one of the best money making games in the world. OK there is no "bumper weekend" like there is with other big titles when they are released, so TF2 never makes the headlines, but imagine the constant income from all those keys and MvM tickets.

[Zyroxeon]

You guys do realize that after TF2 went F2P, VALVe reported 12x the amount of revenue.

[geyik]

gordon, did you realize that there's a constant stream of new content? are you paying anything for that? no. if you're so sad that TF2 turned free, let's ask valve to release a TF2 - the original for 10$, as it came 5 years ago, before class updates, achievements, game modes and maps. i bet you'd LOVE playing 2fort with stock weapons. or maybe they should follow MW and BF and release map packs: 5 maps for 15$. sounds great, really!

i'm not advocating anything, but please realize that there's a team on valve working on TF2, and that requires money. if TF2 retail sales aren't enough, only sensible thing to do is opening an ingame shop. if you have an ingame shop, the only sensible thing to do is going F2P. believe it or not, going F2P didn't kill the game, there are still people out there playing only the game and not giving a damn about hats, achievements, whatever.

also, check this: http://wiki.teamfortress.com/wiki/Template:Major_updates_nav
though 2012 seems weak compared to previous years, both pyromania and MvM brought different game modes.

edit: lmeaphawk, answer to your question is hidden here: because retail sales weren't satisfying enough.

[Chris]

Because it it a great game and anybody wants to enjoy it

[Jasper Beardley]

Because Valve use it as a loss-leader... i.e They give it away free, but because people need Steam to play it, and this attracts them to Steam, and people make purchases on their account that they wouldnt have before, which is how Valve makes there money (and the mann co store)

[?]

The above poster said it very well.

[Big Magic]

thanks guys for replying back to me

[joiuuuynb]

Because if it wasn't free, there would be less players by like 6,000,000, less players, less money, more players, more money.
So F2P is the way to go.

[Gino-Ren]

It was reveiled in an interview that tf2 is valve's testing ground, they test how well the playerbase reacts to new gaming concepts, to test microtransactions, they made the mannconomy update, and it became free to play around the time valve let F2P games on steam

[Duff]

Originally posted by krul emanuel:

"So everybody gets a chance to enjoy this game"? ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥. By making the game F2P, they made it a peace of ♥♥♥♥, since a 10$ game is now free. And it has all the ♥♥♥♥♥♥ stuff like premium, shops, that any f2p mmorpg have now. A great FPS changed into a ♥♥♥♥♥♥ F2P hat collecting game in one update... only valve could do that

hhhhmmm GO ♥♥♥♥ YOURSELF

[76561198073478546]

It's because TF2 is super epic and it deserves to be played by everyone. Sandvich

[PÄtrick Kaiser]

Dont give Gabe any ideas