Update (4/7): A new update for Team Fortress 2 includes a fix for "a server crash exploit." This issue appears to have been fixed.

Original Story (4/8): Team Fortress 2 crime reports spiked over the weekend, with widespread testimony that "lagbot" infestations were ruining casual matchmaking. While malicious bots are nothing new to TF2, these bots are particularly frustrating because they not only rack up kills with auto-aiming, but also crash the server when legitimate players try to kick them.

Looking at the TF2 subreddit situation, there is a mega-thread dedicated solely to discussions about the bot, and this problem is no small one. 'March was honestly the calm before the storm,' wrote user DerpyEinstein.

"April is ten times worse than it was two weeks ago.

Bots have mainly disrupted casual matchmaking servers, and some have noted that community servers are largely free from bot plagues, offering a more traditional Team Fortress 2 experience. The most voted comment in the bot mega thread refutes this argument.

"Just a reminder that you don't have to play on an external community server to play the damn game," wrote user fivesofclubs." The blame for not providing customers with a functional product lies entirely at Valve's feet." "We should stop making excuses for them."

Above: at least some of the subreddits are having fun.

John Irwin, creator of the TF2 podcast KritzKast, told PC Gamer that he was personally hit by "Script Kiddies and their lag bots" a couple times today while playing the game. He noted that the only way to deal with the rogue bots was to kick them by voting, but these bots would crash the servers before they could be kicked, so players could do nothing. Says he, "It's not a good feeling knowing you can't do anything about it."

I was disconnected from several casual matches today. However, it was not clear whether the disconnections were due to bots or something else. It is possible that the people behind the bots started using inconspicuous display names like "COVID-19 // Lag-Bot."

However, I did encounter one group of miscreants: for a few matches, furry bots 10, 23, and 27 repeatedly declared that they were nuzzling everyone in the chat. As far as I know, these bots are just spamming Discord links. (Even if that is all they do, I strongly recommend that you do not join the Discord server promoted by the TF2 bots, as being groped causes a certain amount of psychological damage.)

The resurgence of TF2 bot activity is not without precedent; Grampa Swood, a member of KritzKast's Discord server, said, "We've been through this before and we will survive."

Not everyone is so optimistic; Team Fortress 2 has not been the focus of Valve's attention for a long time, and confidence in its ability to protect the game is low.

"I think the general mood in the community is that Valve will eventually take legal action and patch the netcode.

I sent an email to Valve asking what they were going to do about the bots.