Spamming

“

You're all a bunch of no-hopers! Click to listen — The Sniper

”

Message spamming refers to the continual repetition of any type of communication. It is generally used to gain players attention or annoy other player within the match. Over all spamming is frowned upon on all servers and some servers may kick or ban players who are spamming.

Chat spam

Chat spam involves one or more players continually using the in-game text based chat system to send nonsensical or repetitive messages, continually request trades or free items, or abuse other players. Usually the chat spammer binds a key to the say command with his message, allowing the message to be sent repeatedly with the press of a single button. Eg: Bind l say Buying Name Tags

Micspam

See also: Voice chat

Micspam occurs when a player uses the in-game VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) system to repeatedly send messages to other players. Unlike chat spamming, players can get a lot more creative by using a number of sound effects, voice clips, or music from an external program. While some players find it amusing, many players consider this irritating as this may disrupt their concentration or affect their ability to listen for key in-game sounds, such as incoming players or uncloaking Spies. In addition, micspamming can make it very difficult to listen to a teammate's alerts or responses. Another program, HLDJ, was used before the Hatless Update and introduced the Silk codec. Players could use its binds to play sound clips and music.

Quietspam

Quietspam involves a player using the in-game VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) system to continuously emit silence; only the notice displaying the name of the quietspammer is visible. Its purpose is to confuse other players or occurs without reason.

Loudspam

In loudspam, a player uses the in-game VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) system to send nonsensical sound at a high volume, edited purposefully to affect other players' ability to listen for key in-game sounds such as incoming players or uncloaking Spies, or simply to irritate other players.

Voice Command Spam

“

Need a dispenser here! Need a dispenser here! Need a dispenser here!... — The Scout

”

To voice command spam, a player abuses voice commands, which are pre-defined calls used to organize a team or call for help, by using them repeatedly and often without legitimate reason. For other players it mainly affects their ability to read the in-game text chat, being flooded by the transcribed voice commands. This also results in the disruption of proper voice command usage. Voice command spamming frequently occurs in servers that have the tf_max_voice_speak_delay disabled. Other times a player can repeatedly call for Medic, which results in flooding the chat box and confusing friendly medics.

Countering Message Spamming

Often, simply asking the spammer to stop will work if they're considerate enough. If a player is micspamming, use the Main Menu and select the Mute Players option to silence them. Message spamming can easily be remedied if a Server Admin is present, as they have the ability to either prevent a player from using Voice Chat and/or Text Chat, or physically remove and ban the player from the server. However, there is not much one can do by themselves. Also, most message spammers are usually targeted to make you feel as annoyed as possible, thus if you act like you don't really mind, they will probably stop spamming. On servers with certain plug-ins, it is also possible to either ban or kick a player with certain chat commands of the respective server.