In the TF2 Wiki, it mentioned that "two Snipers wielding the Huntsman or Fortified Compound can create an infinite stun loop without killing each other, commonly known as a "Staring Contest"."

However, the Wiki page for the Arrow Stab taunt kill does not mention that this bug has been fixed and has been almost lost to memory, and was a beloved part of the community back in the day as shown by the number of videos about it such as this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7XDbzxpGJM

To perform the Staring Contest bug, two players each from opposing teams equipped with the Huntsman/Fortified Compound must be present. Both players then taunt at around the same time with the bow. After both players are stunned, the taunt key is immediately and repeatedly pressed quickly over and over again until one player eventually tires out from repeatedly pressing the taunt button and loses the Staring Contest.

If you try to do the Staring Contest bug in live TF2, both Snipers do get stunned by each other but the loop does not happen. You can test this with a puppet bot with zero ping and no matter how much you try to mash the taunt key, you are not able to do the Staring Contest bug. It used to be much harder to do at higher pings. You can see a demonstration of the modern behavior with this video: https://youtu.be/9UMqfykEsP4?si=SYwfRnvJOL2yYqdr&t=41

I believe this bug was inadvertently fixed sometime around 2013 (or 2017?) based on patch notes, video comments, and historical videos related to the taunt. I still have yet to confirm when exactly was the bug fixed. What I am sure of is an unrelated change fixed it. If anyone here knows when it got patched, please do tell since that would be useful information and it could be checked by running older builds of TF2.

If you ever wondered why no one seems to do this anymore, here's your answer. It was shadow patched out of nowhere in the mid-2010s when Valve was adding more taunts to the game.

stab stab stab

stab stab stab

stab stab stab is lost media

pretty sure it was patched much more recently, 2017 or later. i remember doing this all the time as well as baiting and terrifying enemy huntsmans that didnt know about it.

I think it was fixed 2017 or later because I have definitely done this and I started in 2016

stab stab stab

It was a side effect of Valve fixing taunts being spammed in shallow water or in the spooked state. This was especially problematic with the Shred Alert taunt or the Meet the Medic taunt since someone could spam loads of particles. This was before unusual taunts existed. Hope this helps.

My stab stab is gone ;(

Stab stab stab contests were a staple in community servers when I first started playing TF2. I remember helping an F2P "rent" a Hunstman from the Mann Co store because he hadn't unlocked it yet.

is the meet the medic epic lag no longer possible? i havent seen it done in a long while