Recommended Mods (2022)

This Steam Community guide is not a guide per se, rather a list of recommended mods that are available for use to the community of Team Fortress 2, made by the community! It intends to allow players to mod their game and still have a seamless experience between any server setting.

Mods are a large part of many games, especially on PC. If you've been playing a while and want to change some things up or want some community-made fixes for certain bugs for Team Fortress 2, you may or may not find them here.

2022 Update

The guide has been updated and cleaned up a little bit for 2022. Here are some notes regarding the update...

• Removed Custom Lightwarps section*
• Merged a few mods into their own sections, as it made the most sense and looks a little better
• Added Revolver Improvement Pack mod to the list
• Added No Custom Decals mod to the list
• Slightly improved formatting in all sections
• Changed the tags to be more fitting, rather than just using all them (silly 16 year old me did this)
• Updated the localization files

I won't update this guide again for a long time, if ever. As such, the guide is now unlisted, so it stays available for those who still have the link and really want to return to this but I don't want it public anymore. I don't want this visible on my profile or in searches, as the longer this goes without an update (that I don't feel like providing at the moment), the higher risk there is of someone new to modding and/or the game, wasting time with this guide and causing headaches such as crashes on official servers or their game in general.

Details

Important Note

The selected mods below are selected due to what they do to Team Fortress 2. In many cases with the selected mods below, you may feel like you have a 'vanilla' experience but with the added bonus of some small fixes to certain items to make the game feel less inconsistent.

Currently, the TF Team has decided that the only mods that will work with the official servers are custom HUDs and custom hitsounds without any extra effort being needed to be put in to get your mod working on an official server. As a result, some mods may simply not work while connected to these servers and may even causes other issues such as crashes when installed - I've made attempts to remove such mods from the list for the time being, but please note some may still cause issues.

Information

Mods for Team Fortress 2 can range heavily in file size, from a few KB to a few hundred MB each. If you intend to mod just about everything, you should have a few GBs worth of storage left to be on the safe side.

Due to the nature of most mods not being officially supported, it should be noted that installing mods can harm your performance, especially mods to improve graphics.

How To Install Mods

Most mods are now being converted into VPK's (Valve Pack File) for you and all you have to do is place them into your custom folder and that's it. The intended pathway for this is:

C: » Program Files(x86) » Steam » steamapps » common » Team Fortress 2 » tf » custom

Some mods unfortunately are not VPK's and require a little extra work. Create a folder (named anything) in your custom folder and place the mod in there (e.g. if all you were given is a 'materials' file, you would place this in your new folder). Then in a new window, navigate to tf > bin and scroll down until you find vpk.exe, drag the folder you created in custom over the vpk.exe application and it should create a VPK file of that folder in the custom folder. You may delete the folder you created after this process as the newly created VPK file is now the mod you wanted.

Try to use VPKs as often as possible for modding Team Fortress 2, the VPK system is faster. Just using folders works, however you will experience an increased startup time and load times in general...so stick to VPKs wherever possible!

Use on sv_pure 1 servers

Some mods can be 'preloaded' to work on official Valve servers or sv_pure 1 servers. Currently this applies to animation overhauls however may work with other mods. To preload, follow the steps below:

Start your own server (starting up Training mode should work), with mods installed and wait for the map to load, disconnect and then connect to a server. Now, when you attempt to join an official server or a server with sv_pure 1, these mods may work. Alternatively, try using mastercomfig to allow automatic preloading (at the expense of longer boot-up times), so you do not have to manually take this step every time you launch the game.

Please note this doesn't work with sv_pure 2 servers and will not work for a large majority of mods regardless.

mastercomfig

mastercomfig is a modern customization framework, and aims to disable heavily unoptimized features and adjust other settings where it does not affect behavior or visuals noticeably. mastercomfig is documented extensively and also has advanced customization features so that you may adjust settings to your needs/preferences.

You may find that mastercomfig makes TF2 a lot smoother, eliminates stuttering, reduces load times and increases FPS. This is because mastercomfig is heavily tuned and the commands and values are based on TF2’s source code, rather than experiments, guesswork and trying to understand the vague/non-existent documentation. - mastercomfig docs website

Website

• https://mastercomfig.com

Please note...

All the necessary information can be found via the website link above. This is not necessarily a mod in the 'traditional' sense, however this will in most cases, improve your experience with Team Fortress 2 - and it works on any server!

Credits

• mastercoms
• contributors/maintainers or mastercomfig

General Fixes

This section will include various mods that fix certain aspects of the game. This list will be incomplete for a while but may be updated in the future...

Please let me know if any of these mods crash your game on sv_pure 1 servers! I will make note of it with the appropriate mod or remove the mod entirely from the list.

Revolver Improvement Pack

"An overhaul for making ejection rod, crane, hammer and cylinder move like they are supposed to do." - newguy111

Download

• Revolver Improvement Pack[gamebanana.com]

Credits

• newguy111
• n-cognito

Functional Ejection Port

Make ejection port works, 'nuff said.
Including animations for soldier, pyro and heavy. - newguy111

Download

• Functional Ejection Port[gamebanana.com]

Credits

• newguy111[gamebanana.com]

Information

This mod fixes the Syringe Gun cylinder not spinning when fired.

Download

• Spinning Syringe Gun Cylinder[gamebanana.com]

Credits

• newguy111[gamebanana.com]

Custom Hitsounds

Hitsounds are sounds that are heard when you've dealt damage to someone. You'll have to enable this in the Advanced Options, if you have not already.

Downloads

• HUDS.tf - Custom hitsounds[huds.tf]

How To Install Hitsounds

If you're downloading a hitsound, you will likely be given the .WAV file and you may be confused if you're a first timer.

Go to your Custom folder, and make a new folder called 'HITSOUND' (don't include the quotes), then inside that folder, make another folder called 'sound', and then in that folder, create another folder called 'ui' and place the WAV file inside the 'ui' folder.

It should be seen as:

C: » Program Files (x86) » Steam » steamapps » common » Team Fortress 2 » tf » Custom » HITSOUND » sound » ui

It is the same for custom killsounds, but the .WAV file must be named as such.

Having two hitsounds in the folder won't work.

Credits

• Anyone whom created a hitsound;
• huds.tf for their hitsound section!

Custom HUDs

Custom HUDs change the way the user interface looks for Team Fortress 2. You may want to customise your game and Custom HUDs are an excellent way to start. These work on Valve servers and it's all personal preference, use what you're comfortable with.

Downloads

• http://huds.tf/directory - A website that has a clear list of many HUDs that have been uploaded there and is always updated with a list of updated and outdated HUDs, just to make your search that little bit easier for you.

If you dislike custom HUDs and only want an improve default HUD, I suggest the Team Fortress 2 Community HUD Fixes[github.com]mod.



"A compilation of bug fixes and minor visual tweaks to the default Team Fortress 2 HUD."

Credits

• huds.tf
• criticalflaw

No Custom Decals

Team Fortress 2 offers players a chance (via purchasing a Decal Tool) to customise certain items with images of their own choosing and thus allowing that image to appear on said item.

This mod disables all custom images on signs and badges, which is helpful for avoiding NSFW imagery that a player may use on their items. Very helpful for streamers!

Unfortunately, this does NOT work on Valve servers. However, this can still be very useful for players who play on community servers.

Download

• No Custom Decals[gamebanana.com]

Credits

• Aar

TF Bot Overhaul

The Bot Overhaul mod is a complete overhaul of the way bots work in the vanilla Team Fortress 2. You'll find that the bots are smarter and more fun to play against. More information available via the download link!

Download

• Bot Overhaul Mod[gamebanana.com]

If you've seen this mod before and haven't downloaded it in a while, you'll be glad to hear that the mod has been reduced significantly in size from its previous 1 GB filesize.

Credits

• Showin; growin;[gamebanana.com]

Cosmetic Fixes

This section includes mods that fix cosmetics in certain ways. This list will be incomplete for a while but shall be finished in the future...

Cut Throat Concierge Texture Fix

Downloads

• Cut Throat Concierge Texture Fix[gamebanana.com]

Credits

• Hellview24[gamebanana.com]

Fixed BLU Quadwrangler Texture

This mod changes the BLU texture for the Quadwrangler cosmetic for the Medic. It should now look more consistent to the RED variant, but BLU instead. Additional details can be found within the link and image.

Download

• Fixed BLU Quadwrangler Texture[gamebanana.com]

Credits

• gabrielwoj[gamebanana.com]

No-Hats-Mod bgum

This is a pack of mods whose purpose is to remove some visual aspects from Team Fortress 2 (cosmetics, skins, unusuals and some christmas lights). - oranchois

Download

• https://gamebanana.com/mods/205768

Credits

• https://gamebanana.com/members/1634531 (oranchois)

Ultra Low Textures (High Picmips Return)

This mod will restore the "Ultra Low" quality textures for those who wish to conserve on VRAM and boost performance.

It should be noted that as this mod is a graphics modification, you may experience performance issues with the mod installed regardless of if the quality is lower or not due to the nature of mods in video games, though this is unlikely in the case of this mod.

Note: the mat_picmip -10 mod has been removed from this section as the game supports values below -1 again as of the July 7th, 2022 Patch.

Downloads

• Ultra Low Textures[gamebanana.com]

Credits

• Showin;growin;[gamebanana.com]

Stock Weapons' Visual Improvement

Remember when weapons used to look just great? Back in 2013, for example. Especially the metallic ones, which aren't even close to look like so anymore.

Their visual downgrade started back in 2014 with the "Love & War" update when weapons were getting re-converted into the "c_models" system, concluding the process in the "Gun Mettle" update the next year.

If you too paid close attention and realized of the changes, and would like to get back the artstyle's visuals on those weapons, this mod is for you. The mod includes ".VMT" files for all Primary & Secondary weapons, and for some Melee ones. It also includes optional files for 'Dragon Slayer' weapons in case you would like to improve their appearances too. - MOCOLONI

This mod unfortunately does not work on sv_pure 1 servers or Valve servers.

Download

• https://gamebanana.com/skins/153875

Credits

• https://gamebanana.com/members/1351111 (MOCOLONI)

Australium Weapons Alpha Mask "Fixes"

Two mods are included here. The Australium Stickybomb Launcher and the Australium Medi-gun both have alpha mask errors and these have been fixed by pepsi9 and A Paint Bucket Named Huey. respectively.

Unfortunately, this mod does not work on Valve servers or servers set to sv_pure 1.

Downloads

• Australium Stickybomb Launcher Alpha Mask "Fix"[gamebanana.com] by pepsi9
• Australium Medi Gun Alpha Mask "Fix"[gamebanana.com] by A Paint Bucket Named Huey

Consistent and Missing Kill Icons

Consistent and Missing Kill Icons is a mod to ensure that your kill icons are consistent in the game and adds kill icons for items that didn't have one before.

The mod should work on sv_pure 1 servers.

Download

• Consistent Kill Icons[gamebanana.com]

Credits

• -Dark- (original)[gamebanana.com]
• Rocket_Scientist(updated)[gamebanana.com]
• RobotWB (Jungle Inferno version)[gamebanana.com]
• Hootaro_Hoestar (Most up-to-date version)[gamebanana.com]

Old Viewmodel Style Pack

This section will link you to various pages in which you can download the Old Viewmodel Style for that specific weapon.

Downloads

• Old Viewmodel Style Sniper Rifle[gamebanana.com]
• Old Viewmodel Style Shotgun[gamebanana.com]
• Old Viewmodel Style Scattergun[gamebanana.com]
• Old Viewmodel Style Minigun[gamebanana.com]
• Old Viewmodel Style Rocket Launcher[gamebanana.com]

Credits

• NonHuman[gamebanana.com]

Less Distracting Explosions

Information:

This mod swaps most explosion particles with the Sapper particle when a Sapper is destroyed because it is a minimal particle and disappears quickly. This allows you to see more in particle heavy situations, however this may put you at a disadvantage in some situations for not being able to see certain particles.

This mod works on sv_pure 1 servers, such as Valve servers!

Download

• Less Distracting Explosions[gamebanana.com]

Credits

• PixelBacon[gamebanana.com]

Visible Spy Watches While Cloaked

Exactly what you think it is. This mod allows you to see your watch while cloaked!

Download

• Visible Spy Watches While Cloaked[gamebanana.com]

Credits

• Melectrome[gamebanana.com]

[Isac a marmota]

Hey!, Thanks mate

[Darklover52]

Thanks my guy

[󠀡󠀡]

is this still getting updated? cuz huds.tf is dead, should be removed

[ReiKH]

Useful

[TechNI13]

thanks man

[Jmf blw.tf]

Lots of them dont run on sv1 servers, damn shame

[Scout]

no hats bgum is genuinely the greatest thing since sliced bread

[Stingy Jack]

The main question is why do we even care about most of these with servers being "sv_pure 1" for years now?
Also "Consistent Kill Icons" has a wrong link on long outdated old mod.
It should point here instead. https://gamebanana.com/mods/25953

[grungle bungle]

the reason the gernade launcher has 6-slots because on CONSOLE you had 6 clip instead of 4 clip.

[airapples]

dis is epic fam!