IGN: What types of items can players expect to unlock with the Medic and other classes? Can you give a few specific examples?

Robin Walker: We'll be shipping an unlockable version of each Medic weapon. Our focus has been to produce weapons which have both pros and cons, so they're not a straight win when equipped. Much like the TF classes are aimed at different players, where the "best" class varies depending on the player's skill, we want the "best" weapon to vary based on the player's playing style. So we want players thinking about what kind of player they are, and what strategies they like to use, and trying out different weapon loadouts to see what works best. As an example of these tradeoffs, the unlockable medigun we're play testing right now switches out the 10 second invulnerability effect for 10 seconds of 100% chance of critical hits. It's the source of much debate internally as to whether it's better or worse than invulnerability, and under what circumstances it's better or worse. This is the kind of weapon we're aiming for, where you can think of many cases where it's better, and many cases where it's worse. It also affects the play of the Medic and his partner a lot, which is another goal for us. If the unlockable weapons don't significantly impact player's play style, they're not worth doing.

IGN: How do you actually unlock the items?

Robin Walker: They're tied to achievement progress. So you unlock the first Medic unlockable when you complete 12 of the 36 Medic achievements, the second at 24, and the third at 36. We're also looking at other ways to unlock weapons too, so that everyone gets to be involved in the weapon selection process.