Some will just log into a match and then leave themselves doing nothing to accrue game time. Valve reveals that, as of last week, ”players can no longer receive item drops unless” they’re active.
The studio will ”continue to examine” the Item Drop System to ensure it remains as ”fair, fun, and rewarding” to as many as possible. Valve detail what constitutes as ‘active’.
From an item drop perspective, a player is considered to be actively playing if they meet all of the following criteria:
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Is connected to a VAC secured server.
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Is responding to in-game drop notifications while not utilizing external programs to do so.
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Is running only one instance of the game.
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Is not in textmode.
Those who meet those requirements will be earning time towards their random item drops. Valve state that those who idle aren’t in danger of being banned by VAC. ”No, you will not be banned for just idling. You may be banned if you use external programs to circumvent idle detection,” reveals the FAQ.
”This change is designed to make the TF2 experience equally rewarding for all players. The previous system had flaws that allowed players to collect rewards without actively playing TF2.” Check out the blog post for more details.
