Difference between revisions of "Voice chat"

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(Maybe no the way to put it, but it si a note to future self)
 
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[[Image:Speech_voice.png|150px|right|A speech bubble indicating a speaking player.]]
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{{Quotation|'''The Spy''' to the late Scout|May I borrow your earpiece? "This is Scout! Rainbows make me '''cry'''! Over!"|sound=Spy_DominationScout06.wav}}
 
{{Quotation|'''The Spy''' to the late Scout|May I borrow your earpiece? "This is Scout! Rainbows make me '''cry'''! Over!"|sound=Spy_DominationScout06.wav}}
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[[Image:Speech_voice.png|200px|right|The speech bubble that shows above a player's head when talking with all-talk enabled.]]
 
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'''Voice chat''' (default key: '''v''' for PC) is an in-game feature that can be used by those with a microphone to help coordinate tactics and [[strategy|strategies]]. Voice chat on the Xbox 360 is activated simply by plugging in your headset into your controller.    On the PlayStation 3 you can have the option of buying a wireless blutooth earpiece.
 
  
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When a player is using voice chat, a speaker icon appears above the players head. Also, a bar appears on the middle right side of the [[HUD]] to both the player and his teammates, displaying which player is currently speaking.
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The '''voice chat''' is a [[communication]] feature available in all versions of ''Team Fortress 2''. It is displayed at the bottom right side of the [[HUD]].
  
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By default voice chat can only be heard by your own team, but can be heard by all players on servers with '''''sv_alltalk''''' set to "'''1'''". The talk to everyone feature is not available on the Xbox 360 version.  Voice chat is limited as text chat is by death: while you are waiting to respawn, only other dead teammates will hear your voice chat.
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In the PC version, voice chat functions in a push-to-talk manner (default key: {{Key|V}}, bound to {{code|[[List_of_default_keys#COMMUNICATION|+voicerecord]]}}). Voice chat on the Xbox 360 is activated simply by plugging in a headset into the controller. On the PlayStation 3, a wireless Bluetooth earpiece can be used.
  
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On the PC version, voice chat is commonly augmented via third-party programs such as [http://www.goteamspeak.com/ Teamspeak] and [http://www.ventrilo.com/ Ventrilo].  Currently the most popular VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) used by TF2 players is [http://mumble.sourceforge.net/ Mumble]. Using these solutions allow the player to bypass the death limitation on voice chat and still coordinate with teammates while awaiting respawn. One noteworthy combination of Team Fortress 2 and third-party voice chat would be a clan practice match where the server would be set to alltalk while the two teams would be in their own third-party voice channels.  This would allow for public pre- and post-game discussion and in-game private coordination.
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When a player is using voice chat, a speech bubble icon is displayed on the right side of their [[HUD]]. Another bubble appears above the player's head, visible to teammates. Additionally, a talking player's name and team are displayed as a colored bar on the right side of the HUD. If they are waiting to respawn, [[File:Health dead.png|20px]] will appear by the side of their name.
  
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Keep in mind that when cloaked, your chat bubble will still appear, revealing your location when you speak.
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A player's voice can only be heard by their own team by default, but dead players can still be heard by their living teammates (again, by default). Voice chat volume can be reduced with the command {{code|voice_scale}}, which goes from 0 to 1.
  
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==Uses of Voice chat==
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On servers where "alltalk" is enabled (with the setting {{code|sv_alltalk 1}}), all players can hear each other, including players who are on opposite teams or waiting to respawn. The normal speech bubble is replaced with a team-colored speech bubble that is shown over all talking players, including cloaked and disguised enemy [[Spy|Spies]]. The alltalk feature is '''not available''' on the console versions.
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Most situations where faster-than-keyboard or long and detailed communication is needed, such as:
 
  
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*Warning of incoming enemies.
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As of {{Patch name|7|3|2020}}, in order to use the voice chat in Valve official servers, a player must have a [[Account types|premium]] account and a [https://help.steampowered.com/faqs/view/71D3-35C2-AD96-AA3A non-limited user account] on Steam.
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*Coordinating with a [[Medic buddy]] (or vice versa) without having to resort to the default voice phrases, or text chat (great for telling the Medic when to activate his [[ÜberCharge]]).
 
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*Coordinating an attack with a group of other players.
 
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*Rooting out disguised [[Spy|Spies]].
 
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*Telling people the exact location of the [[intelligence]].
 
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*Calling for backup.
 
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*Indicating the locations of enemy [[Sentry Gun]]s and other [[buildings]].
 
  
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You can also Mute players by pressing Esc (PC) and then clicking the button with a crossed over ear on it. The button is located at the bottom, between the Report A Bug button and the Developer Community button.
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Specific players can be muted in the PC version via the [[main menu]] by clicking the "Mute players" button near the bottom of the screen. Voice chat can be fully disabled in the [[Advanced options]] dialog.
  
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Voice chat is also used in [[Glossary of player terms|micspam]].
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In-game voice chat is sometimes complemented by the use of third-party [[w:VoIP|VoIP]] software, such as [https://discord.com/ Discord] or [https://www.mumble.com Mumble], mainly in tournaments. This allows players to coordinate with their teammates quickly, regardless of server limitations.
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== Update history ==
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{{Update history | '''{{Patch name|10|1|2014}}'''
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* {{cvar|tf_teamtalk}} is now on by default - the dead can talk to the living
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* When you [[#Muting players|mute]] a player, the mute settings now apply to text chat as well as voice chat. If you want the previous behavior, change convar {{cvar|cl_mute_all_comms}} to 0.
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'''{{Patch name|3|12|2015}}'''
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* Reduced the [[w:latency (audio)|latency]] of voice audio.
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'''{{Patch name|11|18|2016}}'''
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* Added beta support for the [[w:CELT|CELT]] voice codec
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** Currently only enabled in community servers that opt-in to the beta
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** Server operators can enable CELT usage by setting the below convars, followed by a level change
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*** {{code|sv_use_steam_voice 0}}
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*** {{code|sv_voicecodec vaudio_celt}}
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'''{{Patch name|12|21|2016}}'''
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* The CELT voice codec is now the default for all game servers
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** Community servers can enable use of the older steam voice codec with {{cvar|sv_use_steam_voice 1}}
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'''{{Patch name|6|16|2020}}'''
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* Added "Enable [[text chat]]" and "Enable voice chat" options to the top of the Advanced Options dialog to disable in-game text and voice chat
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'''{{Patch name|7|3|2020}}'''
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* Accounts that are unable to chat in [[matchmaking]] are now also restricted from sending voice chat}}
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== Gallery ==
 
<gallery>
 
<gallery>
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Image:Speech_voice.png|The voice bubble that appears in the corner when you (The player) speaks, or above a player's head if they are speaking.  
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File:Speech voice.png|The default voice chat bubble.
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Image:Speech_voice_blue.png|[[BLU]] voice bubble, seen over the head of someone on BLU.  If alltalk is enabled, and you see a team mate with the opposite-colored voice bubble, then they are an enemy Spy.
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File:Speech voice blue.png|The [[BLU]] voice bubble, used on alltalk servers.
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Image:Speech_voice_red.png|[[RED]] voice bubble, seen over the head of someone on RED.  If alltalk is enabled, and you see a team mate with the opposite-colored voice bubble, then they are an enemy Spy.
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File:Speech voice red.png|The [[RED]] voice bubble, used on alltalk servers.
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Image:Speech_typing.png|An apparently unused typing bubble.  A similar bubble can be seen in Left 4 Dead when a player is talking through their microphone.
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File:Voice Speech Bar Blu.png|A player on the BLU team using voice chat, from the perspective of a BLU player.
 
</gallery>
 
</gallery>
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[[Category:Strategy]]
 
[[Category:Strategy]]
 
[[Category:Gameplay]]
 
[[Category:Gameplay]]

Latest revision as of 17:16, 4 September 2022

A speech bubble indicating a speaking player.
“ ”

The voice chat is a communication feature available in all versions of Team Fortress 2. It is displayed at the bottom right side of the HUD.

In the PC version, voice chat functions in a push-to-talk manner (default key: V, bound to +voicerecord). Voice chat on the Xbox 360 is activated simply by plugging in a headset into the controller. On the PlayStation 3, a wireless Bluetooth earpiece can be used.

When a player is using voice chat, a speech bubble icon is displayed on the right side of their HUD. Another bubble appears above the player's head, visible to teammates. Additionally, a talking player's name and team are displayed as a colored bar on the right side of the HUD. If they are waiting to respawn, Health dead.png will appear by the side of their name.

A player's voice can only be heard by their own team by default, but dead players can still be heard by their living teammates (again, by default). Voice chat volume can be reduced with the command voice_scale, which goes from 0 to 1.

On servers where "alltalk" is enabled (with the setting sv_alltalk 1), all players can hear each other, including players who are on opposite teams or waiting to respawn. The normal speech bubble is replaced with a team-colored speech bubble that is shown over all talking players, including cloaked and disguised enemy Spies. The alltalk feature is not available on the console versions.

As of July 3, 2020 Patch, in order to use the voice chat in Valve official servers, a player must have a premium account and a non-limited user account on Steam.

Specific players can be muted in the PC version via the main menu by clicking the "Mute players" button near the bottom of the screen. Voice chat can be fully disabled in the Advanced options dialog.

In-game voice chat is sometimes complemented by the use of third-party VoIP software, such as Discord or Mumble, mainly in tournaments. This allows players to coordinate with their teammates quickly, regardless of server limitations.

Update history

October 1, 2014 Patch
  • tf_teamtalk is now on by default - the dead can talk to the living
  • When you mute a player, the mute settings now apply to text chat as well as voice chat. If you want the previous behavior, change convar cl_mute_all_comms to 0.

March 12, 2015 Patch

  • Reduced the latency of voice audio.

November 18, 2016 Patch

  • Added beta support for the CELT voice codec
    • Currently only enabled in community servers that opt-in to the beta
    • Server operators can enable CELT usage by setting the below convars, followed by a level change
      • sv_use_steam_voice 0
      • sv_voicecodec vaudio_celt

December 21, 2016 Patch

  • The CELT voice codec is now the default for all game servers
    • Community servers can enable use of the older steam voice codec with sv_use_steam_voice 1

June 16, 2020 Patch

  • Added "Enable text chat" and "Enable voice chat" options to the top of the Advanced Options dialog to disable in-game text and voice chat

July 3, 2020 Patch

  • Accounts that are unable to chat in matchmaking are now also restricted from sending voice chat

Gallery

  • The default voice chat bubble.

  • The BLU voice bubble, used on alltalk servers.

  • The RED voice bubble, used on alltalk servers.

  • A player on the BLU team using voice chat, from the perspective of a BLU player.

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