Impact
Site Admin Joined: 01 May 2004 Posts: 3257 Location: Pinecrest, FL	Posted: Thu May 06, 2004 11:37 am    Post subject: Counter-Strike Review - Because Every Website Needs One   Counter-Strike (or CS for short), is possibly the greatest first person shooter ever created. Boasting over 1 million users, 100,000 of which are online at any given second of the day, Counter-Strike is without a doubt a great force in the first person shooter genre. But what is it that makes it so great? Could it be the fact that this game boasts some of the cleanest and purest sound ever heard in games? Or is it maybe the fact that CS utilizes the Half-Life engine? Or could it be the fact that CS can only be played online, which opens up an infinite number of ways in which to experience the game? All of these may have served as reasons why CS remains a top contender in the first person shooter genre. Now you are possibly asking yourself, how is Counter-Strike different than all the other games out there such as Quake and Unreal Tournament? There is only one answer to this question, realism. CS offers real life scenarios and weapons. In games such as Quake and Unreal, gamers run around collecting power-ups to boost their damage and/or stealth. Then they throw themselves in the face of danger with no regard whatsoever for health and ammo. Counter-Strike is exactly the opposite, in CS players play in rounds; once you die you are unable to play for the remainder of the round and must wait until the objectives are completed or the timer runs out. This aspect encourages players to play intelligently and cautiously. Due to the game’s realism, health is very limited. Notice that it only took two shots to take down the opposing team member. Unlike Quake and Unreal, players cannot withstand 100 shots to the head with a shock rifle. In CS, a single shot to the head usually results in death. This forces players to develop strategy and team work in order to defeat the other team. Realism is further enhanced by the fact that Counter-Strike also offers only real life weapons, such as the Carbine M4A1 or the “Klashnikov” AK-47 assault rifle. Another aspect that sets Counter-Strike apart from the rest of the genre is the essentiality of teamwork. When you join a server you choose one of two teams that you will work with to complete a series of objectives. One team is the Counter-Terrorists whose primary jobs are to rescue hostages and prevent Terrorists (the opposing team) from bombing a target. The other team is the Terrorists whose main tasks are exactly the opposite. On a typical map, they must bomb a target or prevent hostages from being rescued. There are other modes of play such as “fy” in which players face off in a small arena with no objectives or “as” in which Terrorists try to assassinate a Very Important Person (VIP). Once a player has chosen his/her team, he/she is given a starting sum of money then offered a menu from which they may purchase weapons, ammo, and armor. The weaponry ranges from pistols all the way to fully automatic machine guns. The guns available to Counter-Terrorists to Terrorists vary slightly, but are balanced. (Some people argue that Terrorist weapons are harder to use.) The real competition comes in due to the fact that, in order to buy weapons and equipment, a player must have collected enough money to make the purchase. There are only two ways to collect money, killing members of the opposite team or completing an objective. If a player dies he/she loses a part of his/her money and cannot necessarily buy a gun as good as the one he/she had at the start of the round. It is important to note that the “better” a weapon is, the more it costs. (However, this does not mean that a marginal player with a machine gun will be able to kill another player that only carries a pistol. More often the skill of a player matters more than the weapon they carry.) After a while, the sound of an opposing team member dying and your cash racking up is a very satisfying. Map variety is also a very important part of any first person shooter, and CS offers nearly an unlimited amount. Some of the most popular levels are titled de_dust, de_dust2, and de_aztec. (Note: the de_ in front of the map stands for demolition or bomb planting; hostage rescue maps have a cs_ in front of them.) Both of the de_dusts are desert-themed maps that contain wide open spaces for sniping and close corridors for almost hand to hand fighting. This overhead shot gives you an idea of what de_dust looks like. Players must utilize all possible nooks and crannies to get a jump on the opposing team. This type of map offers many players with different abilities a chance to compete relatively fairly with each other. Some of the other popular maps are de_cobble in which players compete in a castle with lots of windows and hiding places, cs_office where players must rescue hostages in a snow compound, and cs_militia which takes place in a summer house that Terrorists have raided and taken the inhabitants hostage. There are thousands of maps for players to experience. The massive map quantity can be attributed to the software that players can download to create their own maps and scenarios. Examples of homemade maps are “fy_iceworld” and “as_crazytank”, two very popular levels that are internationally played. If you are not willing to take on the Counter-Strike world alone, there are many clans that you can join that can offer you advice and a safe place to practice. There are many clans that are often recruiting and will offer anyone that wants to join a chance to play. Clan information can be found at the following internet site: http://www.forumplanet.com/counterstrike/forum.asp?fid=4958. Clans also spend much of their time recruiting on IRC (Internet Relay Chat) programs, but the forum should be enough to get you started for now. All in all Counter-Strike is a game for people willing to develop strategy and teamwork with people all around the world. It is not a game of power-ups, unlimited ammo, and jumping over lava. It is a game of duty, adrenaline, strategy, and teamwork. Don’t worry; CS can be fun on both a casual and competitive level. Counter-Strike is not a game that can be mastered in a few months of play, or even a year. Many of the world’s best players have devoted thousands of hours to the game, but they are rewarded with cash and prices in online tournaments, LAN party competitions, and leagues such as CAL (Cyber-Athlete Amateur League).
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