Team Fortress 2, possibly my favorite game of all time.
It is entirely possible that I have spent more than a third of all the time I have spent playing video games in this single game alone and this alone may be recommendation enough.
As well as its longevity and a player base greater than some games ever reach; 10 years after it was released. This is a testament to the impeccable core design that the game employes and whilst as a long time player I have seen first hand how it can become bloated with the constant editions the fact that it is still receiving updates at all is somewhat of a miracle.
I digress however. With the influx of class based FPS games over the last two years. Possibly the most important question to ask is why you should play a 10 year old game over a newer one? The most obvious reason is that it is free. However this would mean nothing if it wasn't fun.
So, why is it fun? There are many reasons for this. But I think it can be boiled down to the fact that all of the 9 classes are very different and all easy enough to pick up but with the huge breadth of content, added over the last ten years, and mechanical depth built into their design. It is impossible to have learned everything there is to know about any of them. Indeed the large numbers of gamemodes and shear variety in the weapons for each class means that it's easy to come back for more. The characters endlessly entertaining personalities epitomised in the “Meat the team” SFM shorts. Which endear me to the scout, soldier, heavy and medic more than the entire 50 horse Watch_Dogs campaign did for adan pears.
However I think the magic of TF2 realy is in the name. The “team” part. Playing with friends is clearly the highlight of the game and succeeding to cap an objective by working together is one of the most rewarding experiences I have had in any video game.
The game is certainly not problem free. Many systems implemented in years past are in need of changes. Balance of the classes and weapons is; whilst as good as any other game, is not perfect and it's in game store complet with microtransactions bears many of the hallmarks of a sudo gambling sistem. However. Update whilst more infrequent than many games are usually large when they arrive and come with the large majority of content free. As a free game it's monetary system is not as agreges as many full priced games. Especially considering with steam trading, drops and crafting virtually all game changing items can be attained without paying money.
Overall I think the still advertised review by PC gamer still rings true: “The most fun you can have online” TF2 is may not be the best game I have ever played. But it is certainly my favorite enen 11 years after it was relesed.

Team Fortress 2, possibly my favorite game of all time. It is entirely possible that I have spent more than a third of all the time I have spent playing video games in this single game alone and this alone may be recommendation enough. As well as its longevity and a player base greater than some games ever reach; 10 years after it was released. This is a testament to the impeccable core design that the game employes and whilst as a long time player I have seen first hand how it can become bloated with the constant editions the fact that it is still receiving updates at all is somewhat of a miracle. I digress however. With the influx of class based FPS games over the last two years. Possibly the most important question to ask is why you should play a 10 year old game over a newer one? The most obvious reason is that it is free. However this would mean nothing if it wasn't fun. So, why is it fun? There are many reasons for this. But I think it can be boiled down to the fact that all of the 9 classes are very different and all easy enough to pick up but with the huge breadth of content, added over the last ten years, and mechanical depth built into their design. It is impossible to have learned everything there is to know about any of them. Indeed the large numbers of gamemodes and shear variety in the weapons for each class means that it's easy to come back for more. The characters endlessly entertaining personalities epitomised in the “Meat the team” SFM shorts. Which endear me to the scout, soldier, heavy and medic more than the entire 50 horse Watch_Dogs campaign did for adan pears. However I think the magic of TF2 realy is in the name. The “team” part. Playing with friends is clearly the highlight of the game and succeeding to cap an objective by working together is one of the most rewarding experiences I have had in any video game. The game is certainly not problem free. Many systems implemented in years past are in need of changes. Balance of the classes and weapons is; whilst as good as any other game, is not perfect and it's in game store complet with microtransactions bears many of the hallmarks of a sudo gambling sistem. However. Update whilst more infrequent than many games are usually large when they arrive and come with the large majority of content free. As a free game it's monetary system is not as agreges as many full priced games. Especially considering with steam trading, drops and crafting virtually all game changing items can be attained without paying money. Overall I think the still advertised review by PC gamer still rings true: “The most fun you can have online” TF2 is may not be the best game I have ever played. But it is certainly my favorite enen 11 years after it was relesed.