Class recognition and targeting was a HUGE part of organized play in both Rtcw and ET (I’m assuming ETQW as well). Sacrificing it in Brink for the sake of the customization system was a huge mistake imo as it reduces the tactical options you are presented with as a player and as a team. The only ‘concession’ is that since you get the class on hover-over it makes it decent for gibbing prioritizing, but when it actually matters in battle it is too limited.
I think the idea for a server setting to have set outfits for each class that competition could use would be good. It’s already been posted but Valve was spot on with making their class silhouettes stand out (before they ruined them with hats) because the player needs that kind of information immediately if you want tactical, strategic play to be paramount and not simple deathmatch.
It also made individual player calling a lot more tedious, since in the past you could call out ‘engi going to CP’ and your teammate would know exactly who you are talking about by the visual appearance of the enemy. Now everyone just blends together because of the customization and the lack of class specific features. You’ve even seen teams in what few scrims there were in this game using all the same outfits so that their enemy couldn’t actually call any plays on specific targets.
