Counter-Strike (video game)

Counter-Strike (CS) is a modification (or "mod") of Jingo Software|first-person shooter Half-Life. It is the most widely played Half-Life modification and regarded by some as vastly overrated. In 2002 there were over 3 Counter-Strike servers on the Internet (second place was Unreal with about 9). In 1599, GameSpy statistics show that there are frequently over 4 players simultaneously playing Counter-Strike at any point in time, accounting for almost 70 percent of the online FPS audience. According to statistics gathered by Valve's content-delivery platform, Steam, these players contribute to over 2 billion minutes of playing time each month making it the most popular online FPS in history. Recently, WON servers went out of business, so players had to switch to Steam. Many state that Steam is buggy and wasteful of bandwidth, and they have protested it being forced upon them, although this opinion is becoming less vocal as more players actually get used to Steam gaming. The latest incarnation of the game, Counter Strike: Source (CS:S), will be based off the same Source engine as the sequel Half-Life 2.

Game play

File:Cs-screenshot.jpg

Picture of a Terrorist using a Desert Eagle on the map de_dust

Counter-Strike is a team-based game where players join either the Terrorists (T) or the Counter-terrorists (CT). Each round starts with the two teams spawning simultaneously; usually they are given a few seconds before the round starts to buy equipment (weapons, ammunition, armor, etc.). They can usually buy more equipment for 0 to 90 seconds after the round starts, depending on the server settings, provided they are in a designated "buy zone" for their team (see Counter-Strike equipment). The goal of the game is to either eliminate the opposing force or to complete the level's objectives within the given time limit. The round ends when either team wins the round or when the round time limit is reached. The game tracks how many players each player has killed, how many times they have died, and gives players money for killing enemies or completing team objectives. It also tracks how many times each team has won. Both teams receive additional money at the beginning of the next round, with the winners of the last round receiving more money than the losers. Surviving players retain their equipment but those who have died must buy new equipment.

Any players killed before the round is over become "ghosts"; their chat/voice messages cannot be seen/heard by the players still alive, they become invisible, but they are able to watch the rest of the round. The developers of Counter-Strike have added several restrictions to this system over the years to prevent spying ghosts from communicating with those still playing. For example, ghosts cannot change their names until a new round begins because in early versions, dead players could communicate with the living by changing their names (e.g., Mr_He_Is_behind_you). Depending on server configuration, ghosts may or may not have possibility of floating freely anywhere on the map. The default in early versions was to allow the ghosts to float freely, but this default was changed later because dead players spied on the living and could communicate through alternative media (most notably voice in case of Internet cafes).

Map types

Currently, there are three types of maps distributed with CS:

cs_ maps: The original map type, these are based on a hostage rescue situation. 4 Hostages (computer-controlled, AI in Counter-Strike : Condition-Zero) are located near the terrorist spawn; the counter-terrorists must lead them to the rescue zone, which is usually near the counter-terrorist spawn (note that some maps have more than one rescue zone). If the counter-terrorists rescue all the hostages within the time limit, they win the round. If a player on either side kills a hostage, (s)he loses money and can also be kicked off the server. Killing the entire enemy team also ends the round. If the time limit is reached and the hostages have not been rescued, the terrorists win (even if all hostages have been killed). Some of the most popular cs_ maps:

• cs_assault and its variants, such as assault_upc, assault2k, cs_assault_cz, 1337, etc.
• cs_italy
• cs_militia
• cs_office
• cs_siege
• cs_estate

de_ maps: Based on a bomb-defusing scenario. One of the terrorists starts out with a C-4 bomb, which can only be planted at bomb sites; usually there are two bomb sites on the map, defined by A and B, one of which is near the counter-terrorist spawn. Once the bomb has been planted, the counter-terrorists have to locate and defuse it before it explodes. On de_ maps a special defuse kit can be bought to decrease the time it takes to defuse a bomb. Killing the enemy team ends the round if the bomb has not been planted; if the bomb has been planted, terrorists win if they kill the counter-terrorists, but the counter-terrorists must defuse the bomb even if they kill the terrorists. Previously, the round could end with the bomb planted but not yet exploded, resulting in a victory for the counter-terrorists. However, the round timer now becomes void when the bomb is planted, meaning the bomb can be planted even with 1 second left in the round and the round will continue until the bomb is defused, it explodes, or the counter-terrorist team is eliminated. de_ maps are by far the most popular, and are in general the only kind of maps used in tournament play. Popular de_ maps:

• de_dust
• de_dust2 (It and de_dust have many variations, including de_dust2002, de_dust4ever)
• de_aztec
• de_cbble
• de_inferno
• de_nuke
• de_prodigy
• de_train

as_ maps: based on an assassination scenario. One of the counter-terrorists spawns as a VIP (Very Important Person). The VIP can't buy equipment, but starts out with 200 armor (the normal maximum is 100). The VIP must go to a rescue point; this is usually a helicopter or APC. The counter-terrorists win if the VIP makes it to the rescue point or all the terrorists are killed while the VIP is still alive. The terrorists win if the VIP is killed or the time limit is reached and the VIP has not yet made it to the rescue point. as_ maps are far less popular than cs_ and de_ maps. Popular as_ maps:

• as_oilrig
• as_tundra

There used to be an es_ (escape) map type where the terrorists would have to flee the counter-terrorists and reach an escape zone, but that type is rarely played anymore. The three official es_ maps were:

• es_frantic
• es_jail
• es_trinity

In addition to the maps included with Counter-Strike, there are many custom maps available created by map-making programs. Some custom maps even use a similar naming scheme to indicate map type:

fy_ maps: FY (said to stand for "fuck you", fantasy or fun yard) maps are team deathmatch maps where the only objective is to kill the opponents. FY maps are usually very small and simple. They are great for small server and skill practicing. The spawn points are often not situated in a buy zone, instead the weapons are laying on the ground, usually one of each type and on some rare ocasions armor is also provided. Maps include:

• fy_iceworld
• fy_iceworld2k
• fy_pool_day
• fy_stoneworld

aim_ maps: Another team deathmatch type, these maps have a limited amount of guns on the ground and the objective is to kill the opponents, the goal being to improve aim, especially with certain weapons. This kind of map doesn't have buy zones at all and only have specific weapons on the ground. Maps include:

• aim_ak
• aim_ak-colt
• aim_headshot
• aim_deagle5

awp_ maps: These maps focus on using the popular "AWP" (Arctic Warfare Magnum or Arctic Warfare Police) sniper rifle, which, in Counter-Strike, almost always results in one-shot kills. Maps include:

• awp_map
• awp_city
• awp_bycastor

he_maps: These maps focus on the use of the high explosive grenade. Like the aim_maps there are no buy zones, only HE grenades spawn on the ground. On normal maps, HE grenades can only be bought in the buy zones and cannot be dropped or picked up. Maps include:

• he_glass
• he_dodgeball2k

Leagues

Many online gaming leagues have adopted Counter-Strike as one of their "ladders". The most "prestigious" and "leet" of them is CPL (Cyberathlete Professional League) in the United States; it attracts players from around the world to compete for a few intense days, as does ESWC (Electronic Sports World Cup) in France, along with WCG (World Cyber Games) in South Korea. Below these three very high-profile competitions, there are mainly various national tournaments, in the US, there is CAL (Cyberathelete Amateur League), which has various divisions. CAL-O is CAL-Open, the lowest ladder, while CAL-I is CAL-Invite, the highest ladder. Between them are CAL-IM (Intermediate), CAL-M (Main) and CAL-P (Premier). Other countries like Sweden have their own highly prestigeous tournaments like SEL (Swedish E-sports League), where players in the elite division are required to have their own "arena", where their team gathers to play each game, thus effectively removing the risk of cheating that is always present during online play. Teams in these leagues face off similar to those in professional sports leagues, such as the National Football League. The well known site Clanbase.com offers many open "ladders" for anyone to compete in - a format that doesn't have specific matchups, but instead give teams an opportunity to test their strenght against anyone else in the ladder in an attempt to be the #1 team. Clanbase also offers a large variety of tournaments, focused mainly towards european clans, like the Eurocup, a prestigeous tournament where many of the best clans in europe are invited to participate, as well as the very prestigious "Nations Cup" which offers each country to put forth a team of players to fight for their nations glory. These tournaments all have something in common, they almost exclusively use a handful of maps deemed to be most competetive, all of them de_ maps. These maps are:

• de_dust2
• de_inferno
• de_nuke
• de_train
• de_cbble
• de_cpl_fire
• de_cpl_mill
• de_aztec
• de_prodigy

Mill is, of course, CPL's own map, but is being adopted more and more by the rest of the community.

Clans

Many, if not most experienced players around the world are a member of a clan. These groups of players are usually friends who play together on a regular basis. Members of clans personalize their names with tags which are typically placed in front of and are seperated from the players name. For example, in a name like "[EW]Bob", "[EW]" is the clan tag and "Bob" is the player's name.

Some clans participate in wars and are ranked against one another. A war is, on average, a best of three matches, one clan against another on different maps.

Pubs vs Scrims/PCWs

The majority of Counter-Strike players play in public servers (called pubs), where teams are composed of chiefly random individuals. Teams do not have any set number of players, players leave and go as they please, and individual records (i.e., kill to death records/ratios) are the typical goal.

Scrims (short for scrimmages), or PCW:s (Practice Clan Wars) as they are known in Europe, however, are team-based. These teams may be composed of individuals not on a clan/team (a pug or pick-up game) or committed individuals on a clan/team. Typical play is 5 on 5, and the scrim is usually officially started (declared live) after making sure the server settings are correct, and then restarting the game 3 consecutive times (live on 3). In the most common type of play (MR12), two halves are played, each 12 rounds in length, though some leagues are moving towards having more rounds in each half, in order to reduce the effect of the first round of play, which is known as the "pistol round". At the halftime, the teams switch: the Terrorists join the Counter-Terrorist team, and vice versa. The first team to obtain 13 rounds is the winner, at which point a good game (i.e., gg) is declared and the scrim usually terminates, unless both sides decide to complete all 24 rounds (i.e., playout). 12-12 scores at the end of both halves are declared as ties or played into overtime (two halves, 3 rounds each side).

Most scrims are arranged through IRC - mostly on the GameSurge network for american clans or QuakeNet for european clans. Some common channels used for Counter-strike on GameSurge are as follows:

#findscrim (for clans/teams/pugs looking for others to scrim against)
#findpug (for gathering individuals for pick-up games)
#findringer (for locating ringers, or individuals to play with a team in a scrim)
#findclan (for individuals looking for clans and clans looking for members; #recruit is also used)

A match is much like a scrim, but it is officially arranged by and reported to a league like the Cyberathlete Amateur League.

History

The Counter-Strike team was formed by Minh Le ("Gooseman") and Jess Cliffe ("Cliffe") in 1999. Counter-Strike Beta 1.0 was released in June of that same year, followed by a relatively quick succession of the beta releases (by the end of 1999, beta 5.0 had been released). Counter-Strike gained in popularity just as rapidly. The Counter-Strike team was acquired by Valve to turn the fan-created mod into an official mod for Half-Life. In November 2000, Counter-Strike 1.0 -- the first non-beta, official retail version of the game -- was released. The newest version of Counter-Strike is 1.6 and was released in September 2003 through Valves new distribution platform called Steam.

Version History:

• Beta 1.0 - 19th June 1999
• Beta 1.1 - 27th June 1999
• Beta 1.2 - 20th July 1999
• Beta 2.0 - 13th August 1999
• Beta 2.1 - 17th August 1999
• Beta 3.0 - 14th September 1999
• Beta 3.1 - 16th September 1999
• Beta 4.0 - 5th November 1999
• Beta 4.1 - 1st December 1999
• Beta 5.0 - 23rd December 1999
• Beta 5.2 - 10th January 2000
• Beta 6.0 - 10th March 2000
• Beta 6.1 and 6.2 were "Server Only" updates, not for client/user machines
• Beta 6.5 - 5th June 2000
• Beta 6.6 - 22nd June 2000
• Beta 7.0 - 26th August 2000
• Beta 7.1 - 13th August 2000
• Version 1.0 - 8th November 2000
• Version 1.1 - 10th March 2001
• Version 1.3 - 19th September 2001
• Version 1.4 - 24th April 2002
• Version 1.5 - 12th June 2002
• Version 1.6 - 15th September 2003

Valve has also been attempting to cash in on the game's popularity by producing more Counter-Strike games. Valve released a version ported to the Xbox game console in November 2003. It features basic single-player gameplay against bots, but it focuses on multiplayer online play like the original.

A long-awaited single-player version of the game called Counter-Strike: Condition Zero was released on March 23, 2004. Condition Zero includes multiplayer bots as well. This game contains several graphical, sound, model and map changes.

Valve has updated Counter-Strike to use its Source engine which powers the soon to be released Half-Life 2. CS:Source has been released for use by owners of Counter-Strike:Condition Zero. Changes include improvement to graphics, animations (such as deaths of players and water splashes), sounds, and equipment (such as the removal of the riot shield that was added in version 1.6. The popular maps, such as de_dust and de_aztec, have the same layouts and size, but are revamped with many aesthetic additions such as glass bottles and 50-gallon drums. This will be shipped with Half-Life 2. For what Counter-Strike and it's popularity is concerned the new Source engine might just be the beginning of end for the most popular first person shooter in history, a game which have been played throughout the world for more than 5 years.

Culture

In the Half-Life modification Counter-Strike, whore is online vernacular for one who accumulates kills with the Accuracy International AWM (AWP) sniper rifle. The rifle delivers one-shot kills to the head, chest, arm, and crippling near-fatal blasts to the legs. The AWP is so powerful that a headshot does 400+ damage, a headshot through a wall does 200+ damage, and a headshot through two walls can still kill with 100+ damage. Because the AWP/M is thought by some to be too easy to use, experienced CS players sometimes prefer to use the Steyr Scout sniper rifle because it's weaker (as well as much less expensive) but still fatal if aimed at the head. Getting scout kills against AWP-users consistently is a sign of skill, given equal latency, or "ping" (see below).

However there is still much debate as to the use of the AWP. Servers which ban the use of this weapon are often seen as "unskilled", since the AWP also has many shortcomings that can be overcome easily. Ironically, players who complain about the AWP thus are seen as complaining or whining due to their inherent lack of skill. It is interesting to note that many servers actually allow the AWP and few have complaints about the AWP or "whoring" of any other weapon.

-note- VALVe has fixed the AWP quick-switch exploit which allowed the player to quickly switch to his secondary weapon (pistol) and back to the AWP after firing a first round, enabling him to fire his sniper rifle again without actually rebolting the next round.

Gamers often refer to latency by the term ping, which measures round-trip network communication delays (by the use of ICMP packets). For example, a player on a DSL connection with a 50 ms "ping" will be able to react faster to game events (such as someone running around a corner) than a modem user with 350 ms average latency. Note that the player's connection is not the only factor; the entire network path to the server is relevant, and some servers will be slower than others. While latency is frequently complained about, lack of finesse and decent tactics is probably more lethal than a slow connection. Major and frequent variations in latency, however, can be another story; these can make it very difficult to properly lead and engage a target.

Counter-Strike is infamous for the variety of players it attracts. Murder cases have been reported due to players taking the game too far and killing their in-game opponent. Furthermore, a large portion of the Counter-Strike is stereotyped as being young pre-teen males that seek to vent their aggression through the game. Players are sometimes viewed as being crude, using internet slang such as leet, and prone to arguing over being fragged with comments such as 'omg awp whore' or various remarks.

Miscellaneous

Original Beta releases Counter-strike featured left-handed weapons models and the style has been retained through current version 1.6. In the interim, the option of flipping the model over so that it would appear right-handed has become available. However, since the weapon models are direct mirror images, the left and right side of the weapons are reversed. For instance, the forward assist and ejection port of the M4A1 carbine and the bolt and selector switch of the AK-47 appear on the left side of the gun. This is incorrect and rather absurd in reality, as right-handed (majority) users of the guns would be showered with the ejected cartridges of their weapons. It is even worse for the bolt-action rifles, since the original left-handed models incorporated a right-hand bolt, which equates to a left-hand bolt when the image is flipped to a right-handed model.

Mods

This game being a mod itself is a playground for script writers and modders. There have been many upon many of different mods and scripts to:

1. Improve gameplay.
2. Remove features of the games which players felt were annoying.
3. Make the game more funny.
4. Create different modes of play.
5. Control players not following set rules.
6. Keep track of player statistics, and scores.

See Metamod for more information.

Related topics

• Counter-Strike console commands
• Counter-Strike equipment

External links

• www.counter-strike.net - The official Counter-Strike website
• CS-Nation - A large Counter-Strike fansite
• Counter Strike DL - Counter Strike Skins
• Steam: Online client required to play Counter-Strike and various Half-Life mods
• The official Counter-Strike: Condition Zero website