Valve has announced that they are adding an "experimental virtual reality mode" to their multiplayer first-person shooter Team Fortress 2. It will be playable by anyone with an Oculus Rift developer kit. The mode will be released in the coming days.

The full release from Valve:

Valve, creators of best-selling game franchises (such as Counter-Strike, Half-Life, and Left 4 Dead), today announced the addition of an experimental Virtual Reality mode to Team Fortress 2. The new mode will be released in the coming days as part of an update to the popular Free to Play game.

Anyone with an Oculus Rift Developer Kit will be able to use their device to play all of Team Fortress 2 on the PC. All game modes and classes are supported with the new Virtual Reality mode.

"When we first played an early version of Virtual Reality mode in Team Fortress we were blown away by the immersion we experienced.", said Joe Ludwig at Valve. "VR is just getting started, but it is going to have a big impact on gaming. This update will let us share that experience with more of the Team Fortress community."

"Valve's done an incredible job bringing Team Fortress 2 to virtual reality! TF2 is the most-played game in my Steam library, so you can imagine how excited I am to play it in the Rift with all of our backers," said Palmer Luckey, Founder of Oculus VR, Inc.

In addition to gaining access to the new Virtual Reality mode, owners of the Oculus Rift will also be granted a unique Oculus Rift in-game hat. Steam codes to redeem for this item will be sent out by Oculus.

Team Fortress 2 is Valve's Free to Play team-based online game. The game has had more than 350 updates since its release with The Orange Box in 2007.

Okay, step one: Get an Oculus Rift dev kit. Step two: Play this. Step three: Get that Crysis mod that Nathan Andrews made and play that.

Fans of Secret of Monkey Island, the 1990 point-n-click adventure game, will undoubtedly remember the infamous "three trials" scene, in which protagonist Guybrush Threepwood proclaims to Mêlée Island's pirate leaders that he, too, would like to be a pirate.

Here's the iconic scene, Team Fortress 2 style. And it's extremely well done. Enjoy.

[SFM] I Wanna Be a Pirate [YouTube via Tim Schafer]

Can't it be both? Coming soon to iOS and Android, Blitz Brigade is a team-based online multiplayer shooter. It's set during World War II (can't you tell?) and features vehicular combat, five character classes, single-player challenges and trailer music that sounds like it's being performed by a Team Fortress 2 cover band.

It's Team Fortress 2! It's Battlefield Heroes! Since this trailer was released last Friday (it was late Friday, past caring time) the YouTube comments have been dominated by discussion of which game Blitz Brigade is trying to be. Why not give Gameloft the benefit of the doubt? Perhaps this is a completely original creation that just bears a striking resemblance to...*falls over laughing*

Reader Brandon passed this video along yesterday, which he helped make, wondering if we'd ever seen it. I had to say "no", which tore me up inside, because it is absolutely perfect.

Sadly ineligible from winning a Saxxy award due to its use of copyright material, that won't stop it winning hearts here today, because if there's one thing Team Fortress 2 needs more than less hats, it's more Queen.

QUEEN FORTRESS [YouTube]

Team Fortress 2's Heavy, Pyro and Spy will all be playable characters in the PC version of Sega kart-racer Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed. We didn't like the game all that much, but many readers did, so... this is good news, PC/Valve-loving folks!

The game will be out on PC at the end of the month.

This news also should please anyone who plays six-degrees-of-separation with video game characters. See, Sonic has fought all the Nintendo characters in Smash Bros. and now Sonic has raced against TF2's characters. The Heavy was in Telltale's Poker Night, which also starred the rabbit from Sam & Max and others. One step closer to Kevin Bacon!

Murraythis breaks out the Source Filmmaker to bring the internet a very Team Fortress Christmas.

Such great animation, and the Scout was the perfect choice to play the Christmas Eve sneak. He's such a dick.

Night Before Christmas... [YouTube]

Team Fortress 2 just got itself a big Christmas update. I'm so far past playing this game that the significance is lost on me, but hey, that giant Godzilla poster is awesome.

Mecha Update [Team Fortress 2]

Gaming Heads has been working away on a line of enormous Team Fortress 2 statues for literally years now, and are only now moving onto their fourth one. But that's OK. When they turn out as nice as they have, it's worth the wait.

The latest is my second-favourite Australian in the TF2 universe, a man whose accuracy and ability to pull of wearing a silly hat more than makes up for his slender build.

The Sniper should hopefully be out in Q2 2013, and will retail for $220 (or $235 for a slightly fancier, limited edition variant that comes with an African shield).

The Sniper [Gaming Heads]

Glorious, glorious madness. You just gotta love mash ups that put two insane games like these together.

This mod recreates the dungeon layout of The Binding of Isaac in a TF2 map, including locked rooms and even some horrifying bosses. My favorite part has to be how the players go deeper into the "basement" in this mod, too.

It's impressive, and might be just the thing to tide you over before Team Meat's upcoming Binding of Isaac remake—which lets you play co-op. But I'm assuming that version of The Binding of Isaac won't include as many people as this TF2 mod... or, you know, stuff like guns. So this might be more preferable to some folks.

You can try the mod out here, if it happens to come into the map rotation. Judging by the other available maps, which feature Smash Bros and A Link To The Past themes, it won't be so heartbreaking if you have to wait a while till you get the Binding of Isaac map. Just an FYI.

Brilliant-Looking Mod Mashes Up TF2, Binding Of Isaac [Rock, Paper, Shotgun]

Two weeks ago Valve opened voting on the second annual Saxxy Awards, celebrating cinematography in Team Fortress 2 and the Source Filmmaker tool released earlier in the year. Last night, voting ended, and winners in four categories were crowned. You may see them here in this gallery.

The overall winner has not yet been named. It will be revealed, and shown, during the 2012 Video Game Awards on Spike TV on Dec. 7. For now, kick back and enjoy the winners from these four categories.

The Saxxy for Best Replay goes to "EPIC High Five Fail," by 1231231453123.

(See the other nominees for Best Replay.)

The Saxxy for Best Drama goes to "Bad Medicine," by Zachariah Scott.

(See the other nominees for Best Drama.)

The Saxxy for Best Action goes to "Meet the Dumpster Diver," by MrPopulus89.

(See the other nominees for Best Action.)

The Saxxy for Best Comedy goes to "The Wishmaker," by MaxOfS2D.

(See the other nominees for Best Comedy.)