Counterstrike: why do you still play it, what kicks it's ass, and why you shouldn't play it. (1257 hits)
Category: Computers & InternetRating: -0.31 on 22 reviews (Rate this item) (V)
Submitted by <ann_landers.at.abortionstickle.com> (View user info) at 2003-12-06 19:53:43 EST
First off, I'm not writing this to flame or generate heat here, I'm genuinely concerned as to why this game is so popular and there is only one reason that makes sense to me, as I will explain later, for now... my sentiments on the game and my dwindling respects for it.
Why Do You Still Play It?
Counterstrike... to this day the most played mod ever, at this very moment, there are more people playing counterstrike than there are playing any other mod or game. Possibly the sum of people playing every mod for any game of your choosing still does not surpass the amount of people playing the single half-life mod known as Counterstrike at this very moment.
Great, so the rest of the world still thinks it's a decent game, and I did too; prior to the release of quake 3 arena (q3a). In my humble opinion, q3a was by far the best multi-player 3dFPS created at the time of it's inception into the marketplace. What on earth was out that could beat it?
Unreal Tournament? I think not, the game environment and physics are just too slow (for me) and its predecessor, Unreal ran like crap on most any machine you played it on at the time; through no fault of the video hardware either. Blame it on 3dfx/ATi/nvidia if you like, but I'll chalk it up to crappy code... remember that back then video card manufacturers weren't forcing the power of their pocket books upon game developers in the current fashion we are experiencing now. Sadly, under current circumstances the highest bidder gets to have the newest titles run better on their video cards.
Back to the point though, Unreal Tournament at the time was Quake 3's best competition as far as graphics, overall fun, and a good ol' ass whoopin' time. Its only advantage was somewhat better graphics (depending on who you ask) which possibly hindered it from achieving its full potential.
This point leads me to the utter success of Counterstrike. Depending on who you ask, the success of counterstrike will be stated as the result of half-life being sacrificed to the modding community to spawn the phoenix-like Counterstrike. Others will say it's because the game is so fun, and some will be foolish enough to claim that its stamina may be attributed to its cutting edge graphics. Those very graphics are most likely the reason that the mod is still in business.
Fair enough, but by modern standards the graphics blow, the playability has been reduced to cinders by seemingly uncontrollable cheating, and no one seems to mind all of this. Well, not enough of people mind as we all know how many people are playing Counterstrike. Is that the case or is it that there are so many newcomers to the game that they haven't detected these shortcomings yet; as it may be their first 3dFPS.
I would like to believe that my previous statement is one of truth and many of you have given up the once hearty laurels of Dirk Diggler status within the Counterstrike community in pursuit of something more, to fill a void left by a community of thieving bastards that have infiltrated a once chaste and pure community of weekend warriors. Hopefully the CS community is simply acting as an introduction to the world of PC based gaming and the 3dFPS genre; an introduction for so many young kids today waking to a new life enjoying the thrill of "ownage". I would like to believe that most of the Counterstrike community is a group of 14 year-old egotistical little shits in pursuit of little more than the ability to win everything every time, and goddamn game genie to hell for putting such a theory into their heads. Headshots are great... when they're earned through years of hard work dedication, and a synergy of man, machine, code, and hours of palm sweat and irreparable eye strain.
Finally for the kicker here my belief in the true popularity of the Counterstrike mod... a vast majority of people still play the game because it is the only game their systems can pull 60FPS in that people a vast amount of people are still playing.
Why you Shouldn't Play It:
Well, assuming that you're not hindered by hardware here, there are so many better titles that you should pursue.
Tried quake 3? If you haven't... go ahead, you'll hate it because it moves too damned fast for you. You can't see anything without getting a headache, and you get blown up way too fast. Well, these are both the shortcomings and advantages of such a title. It's the fastest game I've ever played in my life, its default physics will allow for nothing less than the cybernetic humanoid Mad Max experience that it was intended to be. If you die too quickly, then deal with it... the game is 3+ years old now, it is composed of a community of highly skilled warriors and it is still used in benchmarks. Although it yields almost 600 FPS in a top of the line system which would dictate that it is crap since there are current games that can bring these current systems to their knees. Thus there's only one reason it still gets benchmarked: It hands down owns the multiplayer world of gaming; it is the pioneer of multiplayer PC based gaming and id put their balls on the line in offering it because they were entering an extremely skeptical community. It is also unfortunately not without fault, it too is now somewhat plagued by cheating little bastards who have presumably graduated Counterstrike and moved on to penetrate other communities.
In light of the cheating, etc. I recently downloaded the absolutely free Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory; a collaboration of Splash Damage and id software. It kicks ass, is thus far cheater free, and has opened my eyes to a game type that I've always loathed; the war game, complete with obliterating bombs and the exemplification of the frailty of human life; we're all wussies when you throw us on a beach and give us a few cross beams of wood to hide behind. It is another recommendation if you would like to try something new, best of all, it's free.
For those of you who despise quake, Unreal 2k3 is a phenomenal game, as is Call of Duty, and Battlefield 1942 (this World War II theme is getting a little abused right now) kicks ass as well and Unreal 2k4 will be out very soon. On its heels will be Half-Life 2, and Doom 3, take your pick; there is a gauntlet of games to choose from in usurping counterstrike and finding a community less riddled with cheats and immaturity. Whether you're 14 or 40, there's not excuse to be a cheating pile of crap, and inevitably you wake up and realize that you ruin a game you have a love for because you cheat. This is basically actualized when another cheater has a lower ping and their bot manages to react sooner than the high pinging bot. Then again, a taste of your own medicine will usually do the trick, no matter what the circumstance. A taste that opens your eyes to the hypocrisy in which you indulge in so frequently; if any of you cheat at all... sorry to those of you that don't, just a meager aside for those that do, your time is coming; when daddy gets a T1 at work, and junior brings his Shuttle XPC there, you're all screwed.
Back to the point... If hardware is your hindrance, get a job, save your scraps, do whatever the hell you have to. I was 17 when Quake 3 came out, my parents aren't loaded and they don't think that a computer should be used for games at all. I did what the hell I had to in order to pull together a geforce 2 Ultra based system that would give me desirable Quake 3 Arena FPS scores until I could finish high school and work my ass off that summer to save for newer components for when I started college and had to drop to part time employment status.
The gaming community is being pegged more and more as the driving force of modern hardware sales, and deservedly so. By refusing to upgrade and accepting the crap that Counterstrike's cheat advocating community (maybe not advocating, but tolerating) has become, you not only hinder yourself from further growth as a gamer and a human being, but you also hinder the growth of those hardware companies with which you've found some footing and trust. Be it your Logitech mousing product, ATi/nVidia graphics card, your 8MB cache 7200+ RPM hard drive, or your cutting edge processor of once mythological proportions, you have reason to upgrade, whatever your desire is.
Your best reason to upgrade is because Counterstrike sucks.
User Reviews
Submitted by slyphter at 2003-12-12 04:02:31 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
Submitted by ann_landers (user info) at 2003-12-07 02:22:17 (#)
Ranking: 0
Slyphter>> You're a dumbass, I exhaulted and promoted Wolf ET... dumbass, do you read anything you comment on? I have individual sperm more capable of reading comprehension than you are as an entire being.
1:30 am and drunk, and i missed one reference, fucking sue me.
Submitted by GRiM_PeePeR (user info) at 2003-12-07 21:52:40 EST (#)
Ranking: -2
CONTRA FOR THE NES FOR TEH WIN!!!11
Submitted by ann_landers <ann_landers.at.abortionstickle.co> at 2003-12-07 21:36:58 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
I'm used to people disagreeing, it's just that most that bother to do so have a brain and are signifigantly less belligerent than yourself.
Submitted by PeopleAreStrange (user info) at 2003-12-07 18:00:52 EST (#)
Ranking: -2
It's no mistake I replied here...and to your other posts. Because they are all shit - like you. You probably aren't used to someone disagreeing with you.
Get used to it.
Submitted by ann_landers (user info) at 2003-12-07 17:42:25 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
PeopleAreStrange>> Okay waste of lard, thanks again.
I never thought I could regard any form of lard as being wasted since it is already a waste material, which is in part due to the fact that there are much better tasting and healthful alternative cooking materials/methods out there. Considering your stature, you haven't figured this out yet.
Furthermore, you somehow managed to reply under the wrong fucking post, you retard jack fuck. Don't come in here ruining my post about video games because whatever limp dicked equally fat pile of man trash you abuse at your whim would rather be playing video games than even considering touching your rabid fat ass.
Submitted by PeopleAreStrange (user info) at 2003-12-07 17:30:43 EST (#)
Ranking: -2
"My opinion is better than yours, wah wah wah" "I don't use Windows, I use Linux/Unix/some other OS because I'm hard-core" "I masturbate over my rocket launcher"
Get off your PC and play with the traffic.
Submitted by Fartknocker (user info) at 2003-12-07 02:58:56 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
I liked.. umm..
What's it called again?
..Oh yes; Snake
Submitted by EvilZurr (user info) at 2003-12-07 02:45:00 EST (#)
Ranking: -2
"at this very moment, there are more people playing counterstrike than there are playing any other mod or game"
lie. more people play EQ (which blows more than CS) than they play CS
"I think not, the game environment and physics are just too slow (for me)"
...except UT runs about 20 times faster than CS
"For those of you who despise quake..."
...dont read this paragraph, because its full of shit.
i did not like this post. go away
Submitted by ann_landers (user info) at 2003-12-07 02:22:17 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
Slyphter>> You're a dumbass, I exhaulted and promoted Wolf ET... dumbass, do you read anything you comment on? I have individual sperm more capable of reading comprehension than you are as an entire being.
KingHFB>> "i hate cs because everyone will rave about it without giving me a good reason why"
Thank you sir, my sentiments exactly.
I'm right, Ann Landers is a cunt, the end. TY for your support King.
Submitted by slyphter (user info) at 2003-12-07 01:34:16 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
The games you listed don't have the same type of appeal as counter strike (fps, team based, semi tactical) How bout wolfenstein ET (FREE) or AmericasArmy (ALSO FREE)!
Submitted by KingHFB (user info) at 2003-12-07 01:10:58 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
doom 3 will be the pinnacle
too bad only high-end machines will support it properly
my machine pulled off black and white alright but it couldnt handle war3
a games success really depends on the balance of gfx and ambience with the support across a whole plethora of systems
i hate cs because everyone will rave about it without giving me a good reason why
their patches are way too big
Submitted by Freight_Train (user info) at 2003-12-07 01:10:51 EST (#)
Ranking: -2
Dude, you contradict yourself. Nobody forces people to play Counter Strike. The game has out-dated graphics, and an out-dated code, its ridden by cheats and immature community. But people keep playing it.
Why?
Because Counter Striker is just that damn good.
Unreal sucks, and nobody plays it. Quake 3 is all right. But trust me, it's not going to live as long as CS did.
It's not about graphics, it's not about the speed. It's about the game. And Counter Strike is one of the best multiplayer games ever created, whether you like it or not.
Submitted by Beer_bong (user info) at 2003-12-07 00:57:46 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
Raven Sheild is better than Counterstrike and Quake3. And Pandora Tomorrow will kick all their asses.
Submitted by ann_landers (user info) at 2003-12-06 23:25:17 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
First off, Fuck Ann Landers, this is my advice and my pen name.
Second, when referencing q3a throughout the above post, I'm also assuming that you guys will also include the mods available for it as well. :-\ Take it as you like though, heheh, just my thoughts on it all.
Submitted by rabbidmonkey (user info) at 2003-12-06 22:24:46 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
I will agree with you on the hardware aspect that some people can't run games like q3a and UT, but CS still gives out good FPS even with low-end computers. I think that's a plus though, because it does offer a larger fan base then. Graphics wise CS isn't exactly up to date, but I think graphics is second to the overall enjoyment of the game.
Q3a and CS are two totally different games. You have to realize that. If you're the person who just likes to go in shooting rocket launchers and the such, then q3a is beautiful. People who like realism (or closer to it) will go for CS. Counterstrike gives you one life per round, so staying alive and thinking ahead is important but q3a and the like you can die and re-spawn and keep on going.
And as Trent said, I smoke, and "Smoking and CS is the perfect match." No really, it is. I'm not bashing q3a though, I play it and it is great to shoot somebody out of a sky with a rocket launcher, but its a totally different playing experience.
Submitted by someone (user info) at 2003-12-06 21:49:05 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
throw away all these shitty first person shooters and get a thinking mans game.
warcraft 3
Then come online so i can smoke your asses
Submitted by Beer_bong (user info) at 2003-12-06 21:09:44 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
I'm sure as shit not taking video game advice from Ann Landers.
Submitted by ann_landers (user info) at 2003-12-06 21:06:55 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
Good point Arcanis... it's popular because it's easy to steal and there's no integrity or sense of self-worth amogst the developers once they've made their ideal amount of money from it's production... Cool, but don't expect it with Half-Life 2. Also, as far as LAN gaming goes, it's easy to get any game on LAN, just copy it, add a crack and you're golden... more often than not though, especially since the inception of punkbuster horse shit, it's harder to have the same CD key on two machines. Also, you should support a game if you enjoy it... same sentiment I had about supporting the hardware community.
Submitted by Acarnis (user info) at 2003-12-06 20:54:21 EST (#)
Ranking: 1
A good reason that many people play Counterstrike, is the simple fact that you can spawn a large LAN game off one CD. Well, maybe you can do that with other games...but also realize that you can distribute CS to many comps without needing the CD again. Cd Keys usually only prohibit you from playing on the exact same server. My dorm floor has had some good LAN games.
Submitted by TrentReznor (user info) at 2003-12-06 20:26:12 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
I didn't read your whole post because it's long and I am lazy. I've been playing CS since 1999. I still play CS because it is everything that I want it to be. I'm not into those multiplayer deathmatch games with super hi-tech weapons where you just shot non stop. I like the way CS mixes the realism of real life guns and equiptment but still makes it interesting to play. I like it because every round of CS is never the same. The game has a good replay value as compared to a 1 player game out there that you beat and never play again.
I've also played competativly a few times on different teams, tournaments, and leagues.
I'm a stoner, and if you havent noticed yet, almost everyone out there playing CS smokes pot.
Smoking and CS is the perfect match. Some times I get so into the game and I'll be sneaking around silently untill a guy pops around the corner. I'll freak and shoot him in the head in 1 shot just on reflexs and me thinking it's real instead of actually trying to aim at his head and shoot it.
I've also meet good friends over CS, and if I'm ever in the desperate need of a bag, I can usually find one on my CS server.
come visit 129.21.144.194:27015 (1.5 server) if you want.
Submitted by DrunkMonk (user info) at 2003-12-06 19:59:24 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
I'm not a big fan of FPS games, but the times that I have played Counter Strike on a friend's system, it did kick some serious ass. Gotta see if he has Q3A.
Submitted by superwallet (user info) at 2003-12-06 19:58:22 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
I think most people like CS because it's pretty realistic. except for that fucking awp....